Pubs, bars and other venues will close down if mandatory Covid vaccine passports are imposed this autumn, hospitality leaders have warned.
The Government is planning to require entertainment venues in England to demand proof of both jabs or a negative test the day before through Covid status certificates later this year, according to The Times.
It would be designed to tackle stalling vaccine take-up, with fewer than 100,000 first doses being administered each day, on average, for the first time since April.
But Kate Nicholls, head of UKHospitality, said it was "not appropriate" as this would “effectively be a fourth lockdown” for thousands of firms.
“You would be putting door control on every pub, bar, restaurant, coffee shop, hotel, nightclub and music venue in the country [to check certificates] and that’s simply not happening at the moment," she told Sky News.
“You would see high levels of business failure, high levels of business closure unless there was substantive Government support.”
She said there was no appetite for Covid certificates among business owners, and they “shouldn’t be necessary” for the economy given more than 86 per cent of UK adults have had at least one vaccine.
Follow the latest updates below.
02:56 PM
Time to head back to the office, civil servants told
Civil servants and local officials must "get back to their offices", Boris Johnson's former chief of staff has said, as he warned that "Whitehall is dead" and the absence of staff from council offices is harming local firms that rely on their trade.
In a rare intervention, Lord Udny-Lister, who worked in No 10 until earlier this year, said he was concerned that government departments contained "corridors of empty rooms" and questioned how the civil service could train new recruits or enable officials to "build up relationships" if a majority are working from home.
The current situation is "not sustainable", he warned.
The peer, a former council leader and deputy mayor of London, also warned that many businesses in Westminster and town centres across the country rely on trade from civil servants and local officials.
Urging a return to work for public servants, he said: "Now is the time to start trusting the vaccines."
People in Brighton queue for their vaccines from a mobile bus clinic earlier on Saturday - Alamy
02:51 PM
Covid to get worse before it gets better, say doctors
Coronavirus will get worse before it gets better, medical leaders have claimed as they warned of a "dangerous" return to normal after England's July 19 Freedom Day.
The Academy of Medical Royal Colleges warned the nation is "already in the turmoil of a third wave" and "there is little doubt that things will get worse before they get better".
It acknowledged that rising Covid cases are not translating into previous levels of hospitalisations and deaths, but self-isolation rules are leading to NHS treatments being cancelled again.
Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Academy, told BBC Radio 4: "There seems to be a misapprehension that life will return to normal from then (July 19), and that we can throw away all the precautions, and frankly, that would be dangerous."
The body, which represents 23 medical royal colleges, said admissions to GPs and A&Es have "rocketed" and the NHS is "under unprecedented pressure" at the same time as trying to clear a huge backlog of elective surgery.
"It is like the worst of a bad winter in July," it added in a statement, urging people to continue to wear face masks in crowded places and take precautionary measures.
02:30 PM
Rail chaos: Hundreds of trains axed over self-isolation 'pings'
Football fans will be hit by chaos on the railways as operators are forced to cancel hundreds of services on Sunday ahead of England’s first appearance in a major championship final since 1966.
Govia Thameslink (GTR), the UK’s biggest rail network, is cutting 400 of its 2,200 services as it grapples with a dearth of train drivers.
The operator blamed a rise in staff being “pinged” by the Government’s Test and Trace app and told to isolate. In an apology to customers, GTR urged them to check trains are running before they travel.
And with the game kicking off at 8pm, operators warned that fans who are travelling to watch the game with friends could end up stranded.
Other networks such as Northern and London Overground are also expected to suffer disruption, and long distance operators such as LNER are advising against travelling back by train.
Europe rushes to tighten Covid rules, spooked by delta variant spread
Countries across southern Europe are rushing to reimpose Covid restrictions amid concern at rapidly rising cases of the delta variant.
Although deaths and hospitalisations remain low across Europe, a new wave of infections is unnerving governments and creating rifts across the continent.
Countries that were among the first to reopen, such as Spain, Portugal, Greece and Cyprus are among those now tightening restrictions.
France this week warned its citizens against holidaying in Spain and Portugal, while Germany added Cyprus to its list of high incidence destinations, meaning travellers who do not have both jabs will have to self-isolate on return.
Across Europe, the main fear is that there will be a new wave like Britain’s — despite the fact the UK has largely escaped serious cases thanks to its vaccine roll out.
People enjoy silent disco stage at Exit festival, in Serbia, as Europe fights to avoid another severe wave of Covid - Zorana Jevtic/Reuters
02:07 PM
£10,000 fine handed out after 100-person house party
The organiser of an illegal house party for around 100 people has been fined £10,000.
Essex Police were called to the event in Kelvedon Hatch, near Brentwood, at around 10.35pm on Friday.
Officers breaking up the partygoers had to block the road to stop more people arriving. Along with the £10,000 penalty for the organiser, 39 people were fined £200 each for breaching Covid restrictions.
Detective Superintendent Jon Burgess said: "This event was a clear and blatant breach of the Government's Covid-19 regulations so it was absolutely right that we responded to it and shut it down.
"We know that the end of lockdown measures is within sight but while they remain in place it's really important we all continue to do the right thing and follow them."
01:27 PM
Amber list 'holidays' still feel like hell – as I'm learning
I haven't even made it to Italy yet and I'm already mired in regulations and quarantine talk, Bryony Gordon writes.
Like most people, I rejoiced at the news that I will soon be able to holiday in notoriously dangerous areas such as France, Italy and Greece, without having to quarantine on my return. Then I looked at the entry requirements for these countries, and realised that most amber list destinations don’t actually want us to visit in the first place, so saturated are we with Delta variant.
Staff shortage concerns at NHS trusts amid rising self-isolation
Up to a fifth of staff could be absent from one NHS trust in just three weeks from now, potentially leading to the cancellation of as many as 900 operations, it has been warned.
NHS Providers, the membership body for NHS trusts in England, said a combination of staff having to self-isolate and people "rightly" taking annual leave that the pandemic pushed back is likely to strain the health service.
The organisation said a growing number of trusts had expressed concerns in recent days about how self-isolation of staff is "significantly impacting their ability to deliver care".
Chris Hopson, NHS Providers chief executive, said: "One trust is predicting that its overall absence rates are potentially going to reach 20 per cent in three weeks' time, which means they would have to cancel up to 900 operations."
He added that one trust currently has 500 staff a day absent from work due to the virus, with the vast majority due to self-isolation, although did not specify whether this is the same trust. NHS Providers said it would not reveal which trusts were involved.
12:45 PM
Proof of full vaccination required for entry to Malta
Malta is now requiring proof of vaccination for visitors to the Mediterranean island nation in hopes of stemming the latest rise in coronavirus infections.
Starting on Wednesday, visitors to Malta must present a Covid-19 vaccination certificate that is recognised by Maltese health authorities, meaning those issued by Malta, the European Union or the United Kingdom.
The EU's green passport certifies people who are vaccinated, receive a negative PCR test result or have recovered from Covid-19. But Malta has decided to only recognise those who are fully vaccinated.
"Malta will be the first EU country taking this step," said Health Minister Chris Fearne.
Children aged 5-12 only need to present a negative PCR test, while those under age 5 are exempt from any obligation.
Malta, which has a population of just over half a million, had 46 active cases on July 1 but the number rose to 252 on Friday but 90 per cent of new cases are among unvaccinated people. Currently 79 per cent of its adults are fully vaccinated.
Malta has limited entry restrictions to those who are fully vaccinated - Getty
12:23 PM
Firms offer flexible working in Covid vaccine push
Flexible working to attend jab appointments and paid time off for side effects are two of the measures being used by companies to encourage employees to have the coronavirus vaccination.
Amazon, Sky, Molson Coors and Three UK are the latest firms to join the Government's drive to push up vaccination rates, as the UK on Friday saw its highest daily increase in Covid cases since January 22.
They join other organisations including Asda, Slimming World, Metro Bank, Santander, Nationwide Building Society, Severn Trent and Merlin Entertainments, who are offering flexibility for staff jabbed during working hours, among other measures.
They have also committed to giving paid time off for employees, as well as sick pay, for anyone who suffers from side effects such as fever or a headache.
Nadhim Zahawi, the vaccines minister, said: "We're calling on every employer in the UK to join us in the final push to get the UK vaccinated."
12:04 PM
Will the Nudge Unit be pulling your strings after Freedom Day?
With Covid restrictions about to be eased, politicians are using other means to keep the public onside, Laura Dodsworth writes.
Boris Johnson's sombre demeanour during this week's press conference suggested that Freedom Day will in fact be anything but. The tools may be changing, but the extent to which the Government will be manipulating our everyday behaviour will remain just as intrusive.
In Whitehall parlance, this is known as “nudge” – the dark art of politicians getting the general public to do exactly as they wish, without us even realising it.
Governments have always manipulated our emotions and used fear to engender compliance and docility in the population. But in the past decade – and particularly during the pandemic – the tentacles of the behavioural scientists have tightened around our lives.
We can't languish in lockdown forever, Government advisor signals
Britain has got to get back to normality at some point, even in the face of “worrying” infection rates, a Government vaccine advisor has said.
Prof Anthony Harnden, who is deputy chair of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation which guides the government on the vaccine rollout, said "at some point we have got to get back to normality".
He told BBC Radio 4: "We're in the middle of summer and, providing people carry on behaving responsibly - which I think they will do - then we're in a much better position [than previous waves].”
He said the vaccination programme had gone "incredibly well" but there was still "a long way to go" in terms of increasing vaccination levels, which have stalled in recent days.
Prof Harnden said around 55 per cent of 18 to 29-year-olds had received their first dose and he was confident of stronger uptake among young people in the coming weeks.
Both Prime Minister Boris Johnson and Sajid Javid, the Health Secretary, have said the timing of the July 19 Freedom Day in England, when all restrictions are due to lift, is a case of now or never before winter arrives.
England is due to lift all restrictions on July 19, a month later than planned - Andrew Milligan/PA Wire
11:25 AM
The kids that never went back to school... by choice
For many families – perhaps most – the great home-schooling experiment we involuntarily joined in these past 16 months came at rather a cost. Ask most parents how they found it, and they’ll hardly know where to start, writes Rosa Silverman.
The chaotic Zoom lessons? The reams of work to print out, make sense of, then force our dejected children to complete? The dreaded fronted adverbials and the constant need for bribery? The impossibility of juggling it all with our jobs? Or the point where we all gave up and turned on Netflix?
Each time schools reopened, most of us found ourselves crying hot tears of relief. But not everyone. A significant minority of families so enjoyed their foray into home education they decided to stick with it long-term.
Make Covid-19 jabs mandatory for medics, French advisors say
France's top health advisory body has recommended that Covid vaccines should be made compulsory for all health workers and other professionals working with at-risk groups.
The French government closely follows recommendations made by the Haute Autorite de la Sante (HAS), and the UK government is consulting on similar action.
"While the number of new cases and the pressure on the hospital system remain relatively low, the dynamic of the epidemic in France is significant and could quickly lead to a deterioration in the health situation," HAS said in a statement.
HAS also said the government should start thinking about mandatory vaccination for the entire population, in order to be ready to take such a decision if it became necessary.
Emmanuel Macron, the French president, is expected to address the nation on Monday on any new measures to help contain another wave of infections.
10:51 AM
'It's time to ditch the toxic language of Covid'
Yes, strict laws have helped coerce us into good behaviour, but words have done the really dirty work, says Mark Bailey on our comment pages.
The UK’s draconian Covid laws are being repealed, football fans are dancing in the streets, and even the 73-year-old Duchess of Cornwall can’t wait to ditch her mask. But the toxic language of Covid-19 continues to poison any hope of a return to normality. Some doom-mongering scientists are now calling the restoration of our basic human liberties a “dangerous and unethical experiment.” Dangerous experiment. Spreader events. Variant factories. Such phrases gnaw at our deepest anxieties. But the truth is that our lives will always seem risky and repellent when sketched exclusively through the dehumanising language of virology and epidemiology.
Families urged to let children embrace summer after 16 months of missed chances
The UK Government is urging families to "rediscover summer" after successive lockdowns blighted the lives of children and created more than a year of missed opportunities.
The new campaign promotes a range of free activities and opportunities for families, such as exploring a local museum or discovering a National Cycling Network Trail Families.
Each week of the summer holidays will promote a separate theme from sport and creativity to nature and heritage.
A Save The Children survey shows a third of children are now playing alone more and a quarter having played less sport since the pandemic struck, raising concerns about the impact on their wellbeing.
Nigel Huddleston, the tourism minister, said: "Our young people deserve a summer filled with exciting and enriching activities after everything they’ve missed out on as we’ve fought to control the virus.
"We want families to get out there and enjoy what’s on offer, and our Rediscover Summer campaign will help them do that."
10:21 AM
EU 'hits goal' of delivering vaccines for 70 per cent of adults
The European Union says it has hit its target of providing enough Covid-19 vaccines to member states to cover 70 per cent of adults this month.
The 27 EU member state governments are responsible for administering jabs to citizens, and some are working much faster than others.
The EU joint vaccine purchasing scheme has shipped 330 million BioNTech-Pfizer shots, 100 million AstraZeneca, 50 million from Moderna and 20 million Johnson & Johnson. The EU is home to an estimated 366 million adults.
Ursula von der Leyen, the EU Commission president, said: "Covid-19 is not yet defeated. But we are prepared to continue supplying vaccines - also against new variants.
"Now the member states must do everything they can to ensure that vaccinations move forward. Only then will we all be safe."
Tourists and locals gather at the Barceloneta beach, as indoor nightlife venues were shut again by Catalonia's regional government in a bid to stop the increase of Covid-19 cases in Barcelona, Spain - Nacho Doce/Reuters
10:03 AM
Summer of chaos looms, says Labour
The Government's plans to ease all restrictions on July 19 is "creating a summer of chaos", according to the Labour Party.
Jonathan Ashworth, the shadow health secretary, dismissed No 10's suggestion that NHS staff could be exempted from self-isolation if 'pinged' by the Covid app to help boost workforce levels.
He said: "The NHS is in crisis as Covid admissions climb, cancer treatments delayed, waiting times increase and pressures intensify.
"Sajid Javid has no plan to support NHS staff through the summer. Their only response is to talk about removing the batteries from the smoke alarm by watering down the NHS app and looking at ID cards for pubs.
"Boris Johnson's recklessness in throwing all caution to the wind is creating a summer of chaos."
EasyJet accused of cancelling flights then making seats available at ‘double the price’
Passengers have claimed easyJet cancelled their flights to amber list countries before making the same seats available at “double the price”, following the changes to travel restrictions.
Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, announced this week that double-jabbed adults and all children would be able to travel to amber list countries from July 19 without having to quarantine on their return to the UK.
The recommendation that people should not travel to amber list countries will be removed, but passengers will still be required to take a pre-departure and day 2 test.
But the news was dampened for some travellers after they found their flights, which had been cancelled, became available again at increased prices.
EasyJet said in a statement that the company “absolutely do not artificially increase fares”.
Don't come to London if not booked, police tell Euro 2020 fans
England fans have been warned not to travel to London if they are not booked into a venue, as police vowed to crack down on those breaching coronavirus laws.
The Metropolitan Police has a "significantly enhanced policing operation" in force ahead of Sunday evening's Euro 2020 final at Wembley between England and Italy.
Deputy Assistant Commissioner, Laurence Taylor, said: "We want people to be able to enjoy the Euros final 2020 safely and securely, behave responsibly and consider the safety and welfare of others.
"London still remains in a public health crisis. There are government guidelines in place and we ask people to follow these and remain socially distanced.
"We will enforce legislation proportionately and as appropriate and engage with crowds.
"But I urge people not to gather in large numbers. If you don’t have ticket to the matches, fan zone or officially booked into a pub, bar or club my message is clear: please do not come to London – you could end up missing the game."
09:18 AM
Coronavirus around the world, in pictures
People sleep below Buddha statues as they queue overnight for free COVID-19 swab tests at Wat Phra Sri Mahathat Woramahawihan Buddhist Temple in Bangkok, Thailand - Sirachai Arunrugstichai/Getty Images In Barcelona, Spain, tourists and locals dance at the Barceloneta beach, as indoor nightlife venues were shut again by Catalonia's regional government amid rising cases - Nacho Doce/REUTERS A Covid warning sign is seen at Bondi Beach in Sydney, Australia, as lockdown restrictions continue - MICK TSIKAS/EPA-EFE/Shutterstock
08:59 AM
More cases 'challenge the virus', says disease expert
Higher numbers of coronavirus cases "challenge the virus" and give it the opportunity to mutate into a form which could make vaccines less effective, a Government scientific advisor has said.
Dr Mike Tildesley told Times Radio: "We need to be careful. We can't just say once we've broken the link between cases and hospital admissions that we are pretty much safe and no-one gets really sick so it's fine to have a big wave of cases.
"Of course the more cases you have, particularly with high levels of vaccine protection, that does then kind of challenge the virus a little bit more and gives more potential for it to mutate into a form where the vaccines are less effective."
Asked about Covid passports potentially being required for entry to pubs, restaurants, and nightclubs from the autumn, he said there is a danger of "potentially marginalising members of society who maybe don't have access to the vaccine that others do".
08:39 AM
Covid passports for pubs from the autumn - report
Ministers are planning to make Covid-19 vaccine passports mandatory to enter pubs, bars, restaurants and nightclubs from the autumn, it has been reported.
According to The Times, certificates showing proof of both jabs or a negative test the day before would be required for entertainment venues in England.
The reported plans are designed to tackle stalling vaccine take-up, with fewer than 100,000 first doses being administered each day, on average, for the first time since April.
Infection rates are currently rising in the young, but the Government had avoided imposing domestic Covid certificates for Step 4 of the roadmap amid concerns it would discriminate against young people still waiting for their second jab.
08:31 AM
The fear of Long Covid is no excuse for delaying freedom
We cannot live our lives trying to prevent something that will only badly affect a small proportion of people, says our columnist Camilla Tominey.
The somewhat hysterical reaction in some quarters to Boris Johnson’s brave decision to go ahead with “Freedom Day” is entirely predictable. Having spent the last 16 months slavishly following the rules, it seems some people do not like the idea of not being told what to do after July 19. Ironically, these ardent rule-takers are now threatening to disobey the lifting of restrictions by continuing to social distance and wear facemasks.
Reopening comes with risks - but vaccination is our lifesaver
The July 19 great unlocking in England comes with risks but Britain's high vaccination rate allows it some reprieve, a Government scientific advisor has said.
Dr Mike Tildesley, a member of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling (Spi-M) Government advisory panel said it is not for him to say whether the reopening should go ahead, but added: "What I will say is it's a very difficult decision for the Government."
He told Times Radio "there is a risk" with the reopening exposing people to higher levels of infection, but said: "When we compare with most other countries we do have much higher levels of vaccine rates than most other countries."
Dr Tildesley urged people to ensure they get their second dose of vaccine due to the "much higher" levels of protection it provides against the Delta variant.
He said the risk "should decrease as we go through August and we get more people vaccinated".
The University of Warwick academic said "we might expect" hospital admissions and deaths to peak "possibly at some point in August" but that it is not likely to be on the same scale as January.
The UK's vaccination rollout is continuing apace - Andrew Milligan/PA Wire
08:13 AM
Hope for NHS staff exemption from self-isolation rules
NHS staff could soon be exempt from self-isolation and Covid certificates introduced for hospitality in the autumn to stave off a joint healthcare crisis and pandemic fourth wave.
Downing Street said on Friday that ahead of Step 4 of restrictions being lifted, expected on July 19, officials were examining whether NHS staff could be freed of the obligation to self-isolate if "pinged" by the Covid app.
Under current plans, those who are fully vaccinated will be able to forgo self-isolation even if the app detects they have been in contact with someone who has tested positive after August 16.
Prof Helen Stokes-Lampard, chair of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, said she was "delighted to see that the evidence has been reviewed and this is moving forward", adding: "This sounds like a sensible next step."
She said the number of healthcare staff having to take time off after being 'pinged' by the app, especially those with children who have been sent home from school, "means that the rest of the staff are under increasing pressure".
She added: "We're seeing hospitals cancelling operations, cutting back, we're seeing GP surgeries starting to cut back again on the more routine services that they provided."
07:44 AM
'Dangerous' to think that life can return to normal, say medics
Professor Helen Stokes-Lampard, chairwoman of the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme she had been "profoundly concerned" since the announcement that the country would likely open up on July 19.
The academy has released a statement warning things "will get worse before they get better", in terms of the pandemic.
"But there seems to be a misapprehension that life will return to normal from then (July 19), and that we can throw away all the precautions, and frankly, that would be dangerous," Prof Stokes-Lampard said.
She added: "We all want to make sure that the public is fully aware that this pandemic is far from over and that when the 19th comes, what we need is a responsible approach and a very cautious approach to relaxing restrictions."
She said: "It feels in hospitals and GP surgeries as like the middle of winter in terms of how busy we are, rather than July, which would normally see a very low number of infections."
06:58 AM
Netherlands reimposing some restrictions
The Netherlands, where infections rose sevenfold in one week, are set to reimpose controls on Saturday.
Officials have blamed on the surge on the delta variant and Prime Minister Mark Rutte has ordered the closure of all nightclubs and the curbing of restaurant hours, with visitors to eateries now required to adhere to a 1.5-metre social distancing rule.
But the new measures did not mean the Netherlands would return to a lockdown or curfew as in previous months, and Mr Rutte promised the Dutch people could still enjoy a "beautiful summer".
Mexico enters third wave with infections up 29 per cent
Mexico is entering its third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, as infections rose by 29 per cent compared to the previous week.
But the country's health department said on Friday the growth is largely coming from infections among younger, less vulnerable people. Case numbers are now as high as the beginning of the last surge in September; that wave peaked in January and steadily declined until June.
But at present only about 22 p er cent of the country's hospital beds are occupied; hospital beds in many parts of the country were essentially filled to capacity during the last wave.
Authorities said the relative decline of serious cases among older people is a result of the country's vaccination campaign, which as of Friday has given at least one dose to about 39 per cent of all adults.
People who have just been vaccinated exercise in an observation lounge during a vaccination drive for people ages 30 to 39 in Mexico City - AP
05:51 AM
Catalonia reimposes virus rules as delta strain wreaks havoc
The Spanish region of Catalonia was on Saturday set to reimpose virus restrictions in the face of rising coronavirus infections, as the highly contagious delta strain forced nations worldwide to put the brakes on a long-awaited return to normalcy.
The highly transmissible delta variant is sweeping the globe as countries race to inoculate their populations to ward off fresh outbreaks that are increasingly affecting the unvaccinated young.
After an "exponential" rise in cases in recent days, officials in the autonomous region in the northeast of Spain said they had no choice but to reimpose restrictions.
Nightclubs will be closed as of this weekend and a negative Covid-19 test or proof of vaccination will be needed to take part in outdoor activities involving more than 500 people.
Tourists and locals gather on a street in the Born neighbourhood, as indoor nightlife venues were shut again by Catalonia's regional government - Reuters
05:21 AM
South Korea hits third-straight daily high in cases
South Korea has set a new high in daily cases for the third straight day as officials prepare to enforce the strongest social distancing restrictions in the greater capital area where transmission have surged following months of complacency.
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency said on Saturday that more than 1,000 of the 1,378 new cases were from capital Seoul and nearby Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, a region where officials from Monday will clamp down on private social gatherings of three or more people from 6 pm. Nightclubs and churches will close, visitors will be banned at nursing homes and hospitals and weddings and funerals will be limited to family-only gatherings.
People wait in line for a coronavirus test at a temporary site set up at a public health centre in Seoul - Reuters
04:51 AM
Children dragged into crime due to lockdown school closures
School closures during lockdown have seen a generation of children dragged into crime both as victims and perpetrators, senior police officers and campaigners have warned.
Stark new figures reveal how the problem of youth crime has exploded during the pandemic with teenage homicide, county lines and child sexual exploitation all soaring during the last 16 months.
Children missing months of school, combined with youth clubs, sports centres and other facilities being closed, has allowed gangs, drugs dealers and paedophiles to exploit lockdown by targeting young people across the UK.
Indonesia short on oxygen, seeks help as virus cases surge
Just two months ago, Indonesia was coming to a gasping India's aid with thousands tanks of oxygen.
Today, the Southeast Asia country is running out of oxygen as it endures a devastating wave of coronavirus cases and the government is seeking emergency supplies from other countries, including Singapore and China.
A shipment of more than 1,000 oxygen cylinders, concentrators, ventilators and other health devices arrived from Singapore on Friday, followed by another 1,000 ventilators from Australia, said Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, the government minister in charge of Indonesia's pandemic response.
Beside those donations, Indonesia plans to buy 36,000 tons of oxygen and 10,000 concentrators - devices that generate oxygen - from neighbouring Singapore, Pandjaitan said.
He said he is in touch with China and other potential oxygen sources. The US and the United Arab Emirates also have offered help.
Indonesia has reported more than 2.4 million infections and 63,760 fatalities.
'This is a joke' – testing kits cost up to £117.99
The Government’s travel testing policy was in chaos on Friday night after it was forced to backtrack on claims that holidaymakers could purchase tests for as little as £1.99.
Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, boasted on national radio that tests could be bought for under £2.50 from the Department of Health and Social Care’s (DHSC) list of approved test providers, as he claimed the Government was driving down costs for prospective holidaymakers.
However, just hours later, the list had to undergo a major overhaul, with the advertised prices increased by almost 60-fold. One firm offering tests at prices from £1.99 on Friday morning was hiked to £117.99 by Friday afternoon.
The move followed an investigation by The Telegraph that found most of the cheapest test providers, all advertising kits at below £20, had been lambasted in consumer reviews by holidaymakers angry over non-existent or late test results, delays or blanked calls.
Grant Shapps initially said government-approved testing kits could be bought for under £2.50. They are now being sold for up to £117.99 - PA
02:26 AM
Cases soar in Australia
Australia's most populous state, New South Wales, has reported its largest daily rise in locally acquired cases of Covid-19 so far this year, as infections in the latest outbreak approached 500.
There were 50 new cases of community transmission, compared with 44 a day earlier, the previous 2021 record high. Of Saturday's cases, 26 spent time in the community while they were infectious, state Premier Gladys Berejiklian told a televised briefing.
"When you know that there are 26 cases infectious in the community, the only conclusion we can draw is that things are going to get worse before they get better," Ms Berejiklian said.
There are currently 47 cases in hospital, 19 of them under the age of 55. Sixteen people are in intensive care.
02:00 AM
Today's top stories
The Government’s travel testing policy was in chaos on Friday night after it was forced to backtrack on claims that holidaymakers could purchase tests for as little as £1.99
Passengers have claimed easyJet cancelled their flights to amber list countries before making the same seats available at “double the price”, following the changes to travel restrictions
Two vaccine doses are as effective at preventing Covid in those with high-risk health conditions as they are in everyone else, Public Health England (PHE) research suggests
Former NBA guard Darius Morris has died at the age of 33. He played for five teams during his four NBA seasons. Morris played college basketball at Michigan.
Jason Fitz and Frank Schwab join forces to recap the draft in the best way they know how: letter grades! Fitz and Frank discuss all 32 teams division by division as they give a snapshot of how fans should be feeling heading into the 2024 season. The duo have key debates on the Dallas Cowboys, New York Giants, New Orleans Saints, Los Angeles Rams, New England Patriots, Las Vegas Raiders and more.
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