Covid latest news: Virus infections highest in 10-19 year olds as cases fall in all adult age groups

• Europe's 'Anglo-Saxon' phobia is proving deadly

• No vaccine passports until everyone offered jab, suggests Boris Johnson

• Over-50s urged to book vaccine slot in next few days

• Exclusive: Nightingale courts will continue after lockdown

• Vaccines have already saved over 6,000 lives in UK

Coronavirus case rates in the UK are now highest among 10 to 19 year olds, according to new data.

For 10 to 19-year-olds, the rate stood at 100.7 cases per 100,000 in the week to March 21, the highest rate of any age group and up by just over 20 per cent week-on-week.

The infection rate rose from 39.9 to 63.5 among five to nine year olds, but age groups showed a week-on-week drop in rates. The lowest case rate is now among those aged between 70 and 79.

It comes as MPs voted 484 to 76 in favour of extending the Government's powers under the Coronavirus Act for another six months.

"As we restore the freedoms that we all cherish, we must do so in a way that doesn't put our NHS at risk," Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, told the Commons ahead of the next phase of the roadmap out of lockdown coming into effect on Monday.

​​Follow the latest updates below.

06:51 PM

Travel bans don't just affect holiday goers – I've no idea when I'll be able to see my family again

It’s been over a year since Stephen McCulloch last hugged his two-year-old twins. McCulloch’s wife, Úrsula Souza, lives in her native Brazil with their two children, writes Claudia Rowan.

Travel bans, the cost of mandatory hotel quarantine, and a succession of cancelled flights have meant that the family has been physically separated since February 2020.

The pandemic has dismantled their plans to settle in England together this year, and it remains unclear when they will be reunited.

“The kids might turn three while we are still apart,” Souza, 37, says. “Are we going to spend another year apart?”

Souza was due to travel to the UK in December 2020, but her flights were cancelled. Brazil has since become a “red list” country, and Northamptonshire-based McCulloch, who has work commitments in the UK, can’t afford the £1,750 he would have to pay for hotel quarantine if he were to visit them.

“Everything’s changing constantly,” McCulloch, 30, adds. “I get that a lot of it is out of the Government’s hands, but it’s just the uncertainty. Every time we’re closing in on the deadline, the goalposts get moved – that’s the killer really, the uncertainty.”

Read the full piece here.

06:36 PM

‘The day after my jab I did more work than I have done in over a year’

For those suffering from the effects of long Covid, this has been one of the worst years of their lives. But now there is a glimmer of hope, writes Jessica Salter.

Early studies and surveys of long Covid sufferers indicate that for some, the vaccine can reduce their symptoms or even make them go away completely.

The latest figures show that of nearly 600 long Covid sufferers who have received their first vaccine, one-third of people say they feel better, with 5.5 per cent saying their symptoms have “largely or completely resolved”.

“For those of us especially who caught Covid in wave one and continued to suffer from the symptoms, it has felt like an endless tunnel,” says Gez Medinger, who suffers from long Covid and who conducted the survey among patient support groups. “But this is finally the light that we need.”

Tiff McGinnis, 50, says that her energy levels increased after having the AstraZeneca vaccine last week. After catching Covid last March, she has been bed-ridden with pneumonia three times and suffered fatigue and brain fog.

“I was sceptical of feeling better after the vaccine. I thought it was part of a campaign to get people to have it,” she says. “I was also really concerned about relapsing. But after a few hours of the shot, I felt considerably better. The following day I did more work than I have done in over a year.”

Read more: Can the vaccine cure long Covid?

06:20 PM

Joe Biden aiming for 200 million US jabs by his 100th day in office

Mr Biden opened the first press conference of his presidency with a status update on the government's fight against the coronavirus pandemic, Rozina Sabur reports from Washington.

The US president announced an "ambitious" new target of administering 200 million Covid-19 vaccinations by his first 100 days.

“I believe we can do it,” he said. "I know it's ambitious...but no other country in the world has even come close,".

Mr Biden said 100 million cheques of $1,400 have been paid directly to Americans as part of his huge $1.9 trillion stimulus plan.

06:06 PM

Nasal spray could cure the pain of coronavirus jab

The pain of having a coronavirus jab could be taken away after Oxford University scientists appealed for participants to test a new vaccine administered by nasal spray, writes Henry Bodkin.

The team is reportedly aiming to begin a phase one trial of around 30 healthy adults aged up to 40, which could start as early as next week. Participants will receive at least one intranasal dose of the AstraZeneca vaccine, with half the group then randomised to receive a booster dose.

If successful, the trial could extend the reach of the vaccine delivery programme by making it potentially quicker and less off-putting for people with a fear of needles to be vaccinated.

It comes after The Telegraph revealed that children could start receiving the Covid vaccine as early as August.

Read the full story here.

05:43 PM

UK coronavirus deaths rise by 63

UK coronavirus deaths within 28 days of positive tests have risen by 63, the Department for Health has confirmed.

As at 9am today a further 6,397 people have tested positive.

The coronavirus positivity rate per 100,000 people now stands at 56 across the UK.

It comes after a record day for second doses, which 242,642 Britons receive their second dose of a coronavirus vaccine as part of the 580,307 vaccinations administered yesterday.

05:38 PM

Santander to close 111 branches this summer

Spanish lender Santander has become the latest banking giant to slash the number of branches and offices it owns after the pandemic left buildings largely deserted, Lucy Burton reports.

The footprint of banks across the country is shrinking after the mass experiment of working from home proves that staff do not need to be at their desks five days a week, while branches grow quieter and quieter as the pandemic pushes more people onto online banking.

Santander, which has a heavy presence on UK high streets, said it will close 111 branches across the country by the end of August after branch transactions plummeted 50 per cent last year. The move will affect around 840 jobs.

The closures come months after the City watchdog urged banks to hold back on axing branches until coronavirus restrictions are lifted following a wave of cutbacks across the industry. The battle to preserve branches was high on MPs’ agenda even before the pandemic amid concerns that vulnerable customers who do not use online banking could be cut off from their money.

Read the full story here.

05:26 PM

Vaccines have already saved more than 6,000 lives in the UK

Covid vaccines have saved the lives of more than 6,000 elderly people in England in less than three months, new data shows.

Matt Hancock, the Health Secretary, said the findings, which tracked the impact of vaccinations on the over-70s since the start of rollout, brought “hope” while health officials said more lives were being saved each day.

The findings come from two analyses, tracking mortality rates among those given the vaccines, compared with what would have been expected.

The data from Public Health England found that around 6,100 deaths among those aged 70 and over have been averted due to the Covid-19 vaccination programme so far.

Officials said there was now evidence "that the Covid-19 vaccination programme is already having a significant impact on severe Covid-19 disease in England beyond the effect of the national lockdown."

Laura Donnelly has the story.

05:23 PM

4 million secondary school tests carried out in a week

New data out from NHS Test and Trace today show that over 4 million lateral flow tests were carried out in secondary schools in the week ending March 17.

The surge in mass testing plays a part in figures that show the highest coronavirus case rates are now in those aged between 10 and 19.

05:14 PM

BREAKING: Coronavirus Act extended for another six months

MPs have voted by a majority of 408 to extend coronavirus powers for another six months.

484 MPs voted in favour of the legislation, with 76 voting against.

05:11 PM

Division!

MPs have divided to vote on motion no. 3 on the Coronavirus Act 2020, which will extend the temporary provision of the emergency powers in the Act for another six months.

It's widely expected to pass, but we'll know by just how much in a few minutes...

04:58 PM

Coronavirus Act measures 'regrettably remain necessary', says health minister

Health and social care minister Edward Argar says that the measures "regrettably do remain necessary".

"I do not believe there is any desire or intent in the Government to normalise such measures.

"While we have made huge strides forward through vaccinations, we are not yet out of the woods entirely and that is why we must, I believe, continue to be cautious and why the roadmap is necessary."

A zero-Covid strategy is not realistic or desirable and "residual elements" of Covid must be lived with in the years to come, Mr Argar says.

04:55 PM

Alex Norris: Roadmap will 'help protect the country as much as possible'

Alex Norris, the shadow health and social care minister, says that the Coronavirus Act and roadmap will "help to protect the country as much as possible" after the dreadful toll of the pandemic.

"We must hold the vulnerable very much in the forefront of our minds," he says. "It is wrong that this is a take-it-or-leave-it proposition, but I cannot agree that voting against it is the right course of action.

"We will lose all these provisions. I disagree with colleagues from the Liberal Democrats. At some points they have agreed, at some points they've abstained and at some points they've disagreed. And I don't think going in the wind is what we need in the pandemic.

"We've been consistent in supporting the Government on the restrictions."

04:41 PM

'Fundamental civil liberties' at stake with Coronavirus Act, says 1922 chair

Sir Graham Brady, chair of the 1922 committee of Tory MPs, says: of the Coronavirus Act: "The danger of what is being proposed is we risk normalising an extreme policy response".

"We should expect if the Government is given powers then it will seek to retain them [...] the danger is that the Government starts to believe that these fundamental civil liberties belong to ministers to grant to us or withhold."

04:37 PM

AstraZeneca may raise vaccine prices after EU attacks, warns Oxford's Sir John Bell

EU attacks on AstraZeneca may prompt it to raise prices and abandon its decision not to profit from its coronavirus vaccine, according to a leading member of the team of scientists that delivered the breakthrough.

Sir John Bell, the Oxford University professor who helped mastermind the AstraZeneca Covid vaccine, warned that the company's morale is being damaged by unwarranted criticism of its safety and efficacy.

He said AstraZeneca had "never had credit" for its early decision not to profit from the vaccine and that repeated attacks from the EU and figures including Emmanuel Macron have called it into question.

Sir John said: "There's a point at which AstraZeneca could just say, 'you've got to be joking, we're going to stop [charging cost price] now because we're not getting any credit for what we're doing.

"The share price has gone down, not up. We're making more vaccines than everybody else. This is a safe and effective vaccine, but nobody seems to care."

Hannah Boland, Lucy Burton and Julia Bradshaw have the story.

04:25 PM

Professor Chris Whitty uses Telegraph investigation to denounce junk food advertising in sport

Professor Chris Whitty has accused junk food advertising within sport of harming efforts to combat the UK’s obesity crisis following a Telegraph Sport investigation, Ben Rumsby reports.

England’s Chief Medical Officer became the biggest name yet to denounce the promotion of fatty and sugary food and drinks brands in the industry amid clear evidence linking the country’s record coronavirus death rate to obesity.

He did so during a lecture on Wednesday in which he cited the findings of a Telegraph Sport investigation that revealed how a rise in junk-food advertising in sport had coincided with increases in unhealthy eating and inactivity during a year of national lockdowns.

Those findings sparked calls for curbs on such advertising — particularly within children’s sport — something Prof Whitty suggested would help reverse the tide of rising obesity levels.

In the lecture at Gresham College, entitled ‘What Can We Do About Rising Obesity?’, Whitty used a slide featuring the Telegraph investigation and the sports sponsorships it highlighted.

Read the full story here.

04:14 PM

AstraZeneca vaccine use resumed by Sweden

Sweden's Public Health Agency has announced it is resuming use of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine after it was put on pause in mid-March over blood clot fears, but limited it to seniors, Verity Bowman reports .

Finland and Iceland made similar announcements earlier in the week, while Denmark said Thursday it was extending its total suspension for another three weeks.

"It can't be ruled out that there is a connection between the vaccine and the very rare blood clot cases," said Tanja Erichsen, acting director of pharmacovigilance at the Danish Medicines Agency, said during a news conference.

Last week the EU drugs regulator EMA said the vaccine was "safe and effective" and not linked to a higher risk of blood clots, but could not "rule out definitively" its role in a rare clotting disorder.

04:06 PM

Emmanuel Macron admits EU leaders didn't believe jabs would be ready so soon

European leaders failed to see that Covid-19 vaccines would be developed as soon as they were and this was why rollouts in the EU now lagged behind some other countries, Emmanuel Macron has said.

"Everybody, all the experts said: Never in the history of mankind was a vaccine developed in less than a year," the French president told Greek television channel ERT.

In a rare admission of failure, Mr Macron said: "We didn't shoot for the stars. That should be a lesson for all of us.

"We were wrong to lack ambition, to lack the madness, I would say, to say: It's possible, let's do it."

European Union leaders are struggling to speed up vaccinations, trailing countries such as Britain and the United States and facing supply delays.

Read the full story here.

03:55 PM

June 21 deadline is too little too late for reopening, says Mark Harper

Mark Harper says that society can be reopened more quickly than the June 21 deadline.

"There will be jobs that will be lost, businesses that fail and people who find the personal burden incredibly difficult who don't need to go through that for the next two months," the Forest of Dean MP says.

"On the point about the Coronavirus Act and the renewal of the temporary measures, there are some measures which are very sensible which I support. But there are many measures in that act which I think are egregious and I absolutely do not support.

"We do not have an up and down vote, we have to balance those. I think that the measures the Government wants to take forward are sufficiently bad and unwarranted that I am going to vote against the Act."

03:51 PM

In full: EU Parliament President news conference on vaccines

03:31 PM

Liam Fox: 'Real problem' of domestic vaccine passport proposals

On vaccine passports, Liam Fox says "we're all used to" issues of immunisation being considered while crossing borders.

"I think it is when it comes to domestic legislation that there is a real problem," he tells MPs.

"Were the Government to try to compel individuals to carry some proof of viral immunity through vaccine or a negative test, I think that would be completely unacceptable in a country where civil liberties are valued so highly and are so prized.

"However as Conservatives I think we should be very careful not to constrain the private sector in how they choose what customers they have. If they choose to have particular customers, that is up to them and I would not like to see the Conservative Government pick and choose which freedoms we choose to protect."

He says that there will be no third wave but a "continuing wave" until herd immunity through vaccination or recovery.

03:24 PM

'Inhumane policies' result from Covid laws, says Sir Desmond Swayne

Sir Desmond Swayne has attacked the "habit of inhumane policies" that have "trickled down" to the general public in his speech setting out why he would be voting against the Coronavirus Act.

"Tyranny is a habit, and the motions on the order paper this evening show we haven't quite kicked the habit", he said.

"We were told they were there purely for temporary purposes to deal with the emergency - well by any measure, the emergency is over and the hugely successful vaccination campaign is the guarantee against its return.

"And yet, the Government seeks to retain those powers, to control aspects of our lives, together with the punishment regime for those who disobey."

He says "after months of denial" we now know that people will be expected to show their "vaccine bone fides" to go to a pub, and that it will be extended to restaurants, theatres and sports events.

03:20 PM

Covid vaccine safe for pregnant women – immunity will be passed on to babies

Pregnant women can safely receive the Covid vaccine and pass on immunity to their babies, a study has found.

A trial in the US showed high levels of antibodies in expectant mothers who had taken the jab, and no greater chance of side effects than in the wider population.

It also demonstrated that vaccine protection from the virus can be passed on to babies both in the womb, via the placenta, but also after birth via breastmilk.

Pregnant women were left out of the major vaccine drug trials, meaning health officials have been fighting a wave of misinformation about the safety and efficacy of the drugs in the absence of positive data.

They have always insisted that there is no evidence that the jab poses a risk to pregnancy and have urged women to discuss having it with their doctor. Data shows that pregnant women face a greater risk of complications from Covid-19.

Henry Bodkin has the story.

03:17 PM

Rich nations will see economic benefit of schemes like COVAX

Rich nations will see $4.80 (£3.50) of economic benefit for every $1 (73p) they invest in getting Covid-19 vaccines to poorer countries, Jennifer Rigby reports.

The NGO said the figures - according to a new report from CARE International - showed once again the importance of equitable vaccine distribution.

If vaccines reach more people more quickly, the acute phase of the pandemic will end more quickly - allowing more of the world to get back to some kind of normal sooner and boosting economies worldwide.

The new report, Beyond the Vaccine Vial, also broke down the costs of getting vaccines to people in hard-to-reach locations on top of the cost of the vaccines themselves.

For example, for every $1 on vaccines, $2.50 (£1.82) needs to be spent supporting health workers, including training, equipment and salaries, alongside $1.70 ($1.24) on strengthening health infrastructure, like cold chains, $0.65 (47p) on education campaigns to increase vaccine acceptance, and $0.15 (11p) both on PPE and on setting up childcare provision for the mostly female workforce administering the jabs.

To reach the estimates, Care reviewed 100 published studies and the WHO figures for the Ebola vaccine strategy in 2016.

“Covid has proven that our world is intricately connected. None of us are safe from this pandemic, until all of us are safe,” CARE USA Vice President of Humanitarian Affairs, Deepmala Mahla said.

03:09 PM

German region to break ranks and lift its lockdown

The tiny German region of Saarland is to break ranks with the rest of the country and begin lifting its coronavirus lockdown after Easter, Justin Huggler reports from Berlin.

Cinemas, gyms and concert venues will be allowed to reopen from April 6, but anyone attending will have to present a negative coronavirus test no more than 24 hours old.

Outdoor areas of restaurants and pubs will be allowed to reopen. Up to five people from two households will be able to sit together without taking a test, larger groups will be permitted with a negative test. The regional government is promoting the scheme as a pilot project for the rest of the country.

Tobias Hahn, the regional prime minister, argues regular testing will make it possible to lift lockdown restrictions before all adults have been vaccinated.

“Contact restrictions alone cannot be the solution. After a year of the corona pandemic, we have to think of more than just closing and restricting,” Mr Hahn told Bild newspaper.

“We want to break new ground in combating pandemics. With a negative test, it should be possible to have a barbecue in the garden with neighbors, to meet friends on the outdoor terrace of a restaurant or for an ice cream on the market square.”

German regional leaders agreed to extend the country’s lockdown until April 18 at talks with Angela Merkel this week. Saarland, a small state of just under 1m people on the border with France, currently has a 7-day incidence of 70 cases per 100,000 people — one of the lowest in Germany.

02:50 PM

Government not following its 'data not dates' mantra, says Graham Stringer

Labour backbencher Graham Stringer says he will vote against the Government's proposals, saying that a demonstration in Greater Manchester about NHS pay saw one of his constituents fined £10,000.

"That is an extraordinary attack on civil liberties," he says. "The small group of people there were socially distanced, and no risk is zero but the risk of catching Covid in the open air is minimal. We need to stop these restrictions now."

Mr Stringer also says that the Government's "data not dates" slogan is "curious".

"There are lots of dates through it, and when we have asked ministers and scientists how we can check the data that things are going well or badly - so we can ask for it being sped up - no information is being given to us.

"They're not giving Members of Parliament the tools that they need to deal with this. A third point I would make is we've only been given one side of the story. People have died of Covid, but if you look at what cancer charities are telling us, they're expecting at least 50,000 to die because they weren't tested in the last 12 months."

02:46 PM

'Cherish freedom every day', says Sir Charles Walker

Sir Charles Walker says that "as sure as eggs are eggs, we will be asked to renew this legislation again".

"In the remaining days of this lockdown, I am going to allow myself an act of defiance - my own protest that others may join. I am going to carry around a pint of milk on my person, simply as a protest about the price of milk.

"The act of protest is a freedom - a freedom, not a right, and unless you cherish freedom of every day, and unless you fight for freedoms every day, they end up being taken away from you."

02:34 PM

UK vaccine doses rise by 580,307

A total of 580,307 new vaccinations were registered in the UK yesterday, the Department for Health has confirmed.

275,811 of those were first doses in England, which saw a further 208,013 second doses - a record day for second doses.

In Scotland the numbers of first and second doses were 36,099 and 13,984 respectively; 17,214 first doses and 11,992 second doses were administered in Wales; and in Northern Ireland 8,471 first doses and 8,653 second doses were given out.

This now takes the number of people who have had at least one vaccine dose to 28,991,188.

02:30 PM

Telegraph readers on vaccine passports in pubs: 'It’s a bureaucratic minefield'

Boris Johnson has been urged to think again on Covid vaccine passports for pubs, after suggesting on Wednesday that it "may be up to individual publicans" to decide whether to impose restrictions on those that have not been vaccinated.

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, has warned that vaccine passports would put “businesses in an impossible situation", while Tory MP Steve Baker has suggested that vaccine passports could lead to a "two-tier Britain.”

Are vaccine passports for attending the pub a good idea?

Read on for the best discussion points from our readers and share your view in the comments section.

02:15 PM

Jonathan Ashworth: Labour will support Coronavirus Act

Jonathan Ashworth, the Shadow Health Secretary, asks whether the Government intends to add countries like France and Spain to the red list amid a surge in cases on the continent.

Mr Hancock says that all of these questions will be answered through the Global Travel Taskforce, to be published on April 5, so urges Mr Ashworth to "wait until then".

In his own remarks, Mr Ashworth notes that infections are still running at more than 5,000 a day and says we "still have to work hard to break transmission chains" and opportunities for the virus to replicate.

He confirms that Labour will support the renewal of the Act, "but we do not support that renewal with any enthusiasm or relish".

02:10 PM

Virtual Parliamentary provisions extended until July 21

"I can't wait for the time when this chamber will be full and rowdy once again as a cockpit of our democracy where you can almost literally take the temperature of the nation," says Matt Hancock.

"After widespread consultation and on the basis of detailed public health advice, the Leader of the House has motioned the amendment to extend virtual [Parliamentary] participation until June 21.

"The measures before the House today show how we plan to put the pandemic behind us and restore life to normal. We're on the road to recovery, but we're not at the finish line yet.

"And by passing these measures, we can keep protecting lives and livelihoods as we get the nation back on its feet."

02:08 PM

'So many of us are worried' about Act powers, says Mark Harper

Liberal Democrat MP Munira Wilson says that the Coronavirus Act is full of legislation "which is not needed", and says that hundreds of people have been wrongly charged under the existing coronavirus laws.

"This fake news that furlough can't go on without renewing the Act is untrue because that is a permanent provision," she says.

Mr Hancock refutes this and says that Statutory Sick Pay is not a permanent provision, and so the Coronavirus Act should be renewed. He says that there are some "very valuable administrative aspects" of the act.

Mark Harper, the Conservative MP for Forest of Dean, highlights police powers which have been wrongfully used, and says "so many of us are worried" about the prospect of some measures being rolled further forward.

The Health Secretary says that if there are new variants that "we absolutely need to pin down", having "very targeted interventions for now is important and we've made the judgement now to propose that these are necessary for now."

02:04 PM

Coronavirus Act: 12 provisions will not be renewed

Mr Hancock says sections of the Coronavirus Act which required information from people in the food supply chain, created new forms of emergency volunteering laws, and which allowed for the postponement of General Synod elections "are not needed anymore, and we are not seeking to extend them".

Also suspended are provisions that allowed local authorities to ease some social care responsibilities, biometric data to be retained, and a single Treasury minister to sign on behalf of all commissioners. Further provisions around food supply will also expire.

Many of the temporary provisions in the act will not be removed altogether in order to run virtual court hearings, protect renters, and maintain statutory sick pay during self-isolation.

01:54 PM

June 21 should see 'all legal limits' on social contact lifted

Steve Baker asks Matt Hancock whether step four of the roadmap is not in the regulation only because it will entail no restrictions.

"I am an optimist, and it is my pleasure to be as one with my right honourable friend," Mr Hancock responds.

He talks through the measures from April 12 at the earliest and May 17 at the earliest respectively, which will see further curbs on socialising lift and the return of hospitality, entertainment and accommodation.

"Step four will begin no earlier than June 21. Bolstered by a mammoth testing effort and the protection of the vaccination programme, this is when we aim to remove all legal limits on social contact and restore our freedoms once again."

01:49 PM

Covid should be seen like flu in the long-term, says Matt Hancock

Matt Hancock says that regulations will be eased in a "careful and controlled way", putting in the remaining measures for step one on Monday.

The stay at home rule is set to end from March 29, with outdoor sport set to return as the 'stay at home' order finally comes to an end.

He repeats the Government's hope that it will be able to lift all restrictions completely on June 21.

"My goal is that we will eventually see Covid as something that has to be managed like flu. We don't put restrictions on normal life to tackle flu, but we do have a regular vaccination programme and that is where I hope we're able to get to."

The Health Secretary says it is "very difficult to know" what level of hospital occupancy will be consistent with protecting the NHS.

"If we've learned anything in this last year, we have to live with risk, that is our goal as a society."

01:47 PM

Most NHS nurses in history, Hancock tells House

Matt Hancock says that there are now 300,000 NHS nurses for the first time in its history.

"Nobody wants to have to reimpose measures as we've sadly seen elsewhere, so we must take this cautious and - we hope - irreversible approach," he tells the House.

Conservative MP William Wragg asks how many people have died in hospitals after having the vaccine, to which Mr Hancock says the data is already published by the MHRA.

He describes the risk as "extremely low", but is pressed further on why some specific data has not been published.

01:40 PM

Roadmap 'must not put our NHS at risk'

"We're now able to replace the short-term protection of the restrictions we've all endured with the long-term protection of the vaccine," says Matt Hancock.

"While we're confident we have broken the link between the number of cases and hospitalisations and deaths, no vaccine is perfect and take up isn't 100 per cent. That link, while broken, is not yet severed. New variants also remain a risk because we don't yet know with confidence the impact of the vaccines.

"As we restore the freedoms that we all cherish, we must do so in a way that doesn't put our NHS at risk."

01:37 PM

Matt Hancock: Extraordinary measures have been needed for extraordinary threat

Taking to the dispatch box, Matt Hancock says: "Over the past year we've all been engaged in a monumental national effort against coronavirus which has required the House to take extraordinary measures against this extraordinary threat.

"Today we debate our roadmap to recovery and what is legally needed to take the cautious but irreversible path out of this pandemic. We propose to remove some of the emergency powers that the House put in a place, and set the steps of the roadmap into law, replacing the current national lockdown."

Mr Hancock praises the success of the UK vaccination programme, revealing that more than 28 million adults have now been vaccinated and hospitalisations have now fallen by 90 per cent since the January peak, with deaths down by 94 per cent.

01:24 PM

Coming up: MPs debate Coronavirus Act

A vote on extending coronavirus laws for a further six months will take place in the Commons this afternoon amid talks between the UK and EU aiming to resolve a dispute over vaccine supplies.

MPs will be asked to approve the regulations for the route out of lockdown and keep some of the emergency powers in the Coronavirus Act in place until September.

The vote is likely to comfortably pass, with Labour not expected to oppose the measures.

Follow along for live text updates, or watch live at the top of this blog.

01:20 PM

UK needs vaccine imports from EU to fulfil second jabs, says Ursula von der Leyen

The UK needs European Union imports to ensure 26 million Britons can have their second shot of the coronavirus vaccine, Ursula von der Leyen told EU leaders before their summit today.

The European Commission president ordered briefings of ambassadors to highlight the UK's dependency on supplies from the Continent before Thursday's summit, where divided leaders are expected to withhold explicit backing for a ban amid fears it could spark a vaccines trade war.

The European Council, forced online because of the third wave of coronavirus sweeping Europe, is being held as new trade rules come into force which allow Brussels to target countries, like Britain, with higher vaccination rates than the EU.

The commission has already threatened to block the export of millions of AstraZeneca vaccines from the company's Halix plant in Leiden, the Netherlands. It wants the UK to forego its first refusal on supplies from AstraZeneca’s two British plants so they can supply the bloc.

James Crisp has this report from Brussels.

01:03 PM

People who have recovered from Covid could be allowed into pubs under passport scheme

People who have recovered from Covid and have 'antibodies' could be allowed into pubs under a 'passport scheme' alongside those who have had vaccines, Michael Gove has indicated.

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, who heads up the review into domestic vaccine certificates, clarified Government thinking after Boris Johnson’s pub comments on Wednesday.

Mr Johnson said it "may be up to individual publicans" whether they require customers to have a "Covid vaccination certificate".

However, Mr Gove said allowing landlords to require punters to show only that they have had a Covid jab to enter would be opposed by ministers, but a wider set of requirements would be acceptable.

Mr Gove mentioned three possible checks - that you have had a Covid vaccine, or that you have tested negative for Covid recently, or that you have antibodies against the virus.

Ben Riley-Smith and Cat Neilan have the story.

12:41 PM

Business groups' silence over lockdown is ‘completely pathetic', says former Pizza Express owner

Founder of Punch Taverns and former owner of Pizza Express, Hugh Osmond, isn’t afraid to pile pressure on the government to reopen a struggling hospitality sector - but, according to the businessman, he’s one of few.

He tells The Telegraph’s Planet Normal podcast, which you can listen to below, why a fear of seeming "callous or inhuman" means few prominent voices in the sector have spoken out against the government policy. "I think the CBI, the Institute of Directors and others have been absolutely pathetic."

Mr Osmond is taking his fight to the courts, launching a High Court judicial review calling on ministers to justify opening indoor hospitality later than non-essential retail.

“Public Health England, the Office for National Statistics and other government bodies have continuously published hard data about where infections occur, and at no point whatsoever can you link large numbers of infections to any sort of hospitality, indoors or out”, he tells podcast hosts and Telegraph columnists Liam Halligan and Allison Pearson.

• Why Hugh Osmond is launching a High Court challenge

• Read Liam Halligan's columns here

12:34 PM

'I don't want my local pub turned into an authoritarian nightmare by vaccine passports'

George Orwell described his favourite pub in The Moon under Water, an essay for The Evening Standard in 1946, which has long been cited as the perfect Orwellian fantasy, writes Adrian Tierney-Jones.

owever, after the Prime Minister said it would be up to individual licensees whether or not to ask for a vaccine certificate before pulling a pint, the Orwellian fantasy takes on a more sinister aspect.

As someone who is looking forward to returning to the pub (or at least a pub garden) on April 12 with all my being, the idea of proffering a vaccine passport before ordering a well-hopped IPA seems authoritarian at best – as well as being another layer of bureaucracy for a sector that has been well and truly hammered over the past 12 months.

After all, the two other outings I have planned for April 12 are to my gym and for a haircut, neither of which (at least at this point) will require me to show evidence of my recent jab.

Then there might be the more forgetful among us who, in our haste to slake our thirsts, will get to the bar and discover that our certificate is still sitting on the kitchen table. Raised voices over the pumps? It hardly makes for a relaxing night out for both drinkers and pub staff.

Read the full piece here.

12:25 PM

Boris Johnson: Vaccine passport review by April but there could be 'moral complexities'

Here's the footage of the Prime Minister's comments about vaccine passports (see 12.18pm post):

12:18 PM

Vaccine passports may only be possible once everyone offered jab, says PM

It may not be possible for vaccine passports to be used until everybody has been offered a jab, Boris Johnson has said.

Mr Johnson insisted "no decisions have been taken at all" around the use of a vaccine passport, saying that the review into their possible use will report back in the first or second week of April.

The Prime Minister said that "I do think there is going to be a role for certification", which he had previously used in relation to some foreign travel.

"There are three basic components. There's the vaccine, there's your immunity you might have had after you've had Covid and there's testing - they are three things that could work together," Mr Johnson said during a visit to Monkey Puzzle nursery in Guildford.

"You might only be able to implement a thoroughgoing vaccination passport scheme, even if you wanted such a thing, in the context of when absolutely everybody had been offered a vaccine."

He also acknowledged the "ethical complexities" of such a scheme after the idea received a backlash from publicans and his own backbenchers.

12:07 PM

Jean-Claude Juncker blasts EU over 'stupid vaccine war'

Jean-Claude Juncker has railed against the European Union for waging a "stupid vaccine war" with Britain, Catherine Neilan and Tony Diver report.

The former president of the European Commission said he was "disappointed" with his successor's handling of the bloc's vaccine programme, suggesting the sluggish rollout was in part because the EU had been too "budget conscious" and "too cautious".

Speaking ahead of a key Brussels summit, he told the BBC he was "not a fan" of Ursula von der Leyen's threat of an export ban, warning it would "create major reputational damage" for the EU.

"We used to be the world's free trade champion," he said. "We have to pull back from a vaccine war.

"We have special relations with Britain, there's room for dialogue... Nobody in Britain, nobody in Europe understands why we are witnessing such a stupid vaccine war. What the EU is asking for cannot be dealt with in a war atmosphere.

"We are not in war and we are not enemies - we are allies."

Read the full story here.

11:51 AM

Vaccine passports: Boris Johnson urged to think again on 'impossible' and 'discriminatory' idea

Boris Johnson has been urged to think again on "impossible" Covid vaccine passports for pubs, after he suggested it would be down to individual landlords to impose, reports Catherine Neilan.

The Prime Minister on Wednesday said it "may be up to individual publicans" whether they require customers to have a "Covid vaccination certificate", with a review into their usage expected to conclude in May.

But Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, said it would be "putting our businesses in an impossible situation", in which venues may "have to discriminate against those who have not had vaccine".

The boss of the Shepherd Neame chain said making jabs mandatory was a "fairly poorly thought-out idea".

Steve Baker, deputy chairman of the Covid Recovery Group, said the plans could lead to a "two-tier Britain that prevents pregnant women from taking part in society".

• Read more: Covid passports 'ghastly trap we must not fall into'

• Vaccine passport for pubs may be up to landlord, says Boris Johnson

11:46 AM

As gyms prepare to reopen again, will any of us return after lockdown?

Prior to March 2020, John Gillard and his wife had been gym members since 2001, writes Nick Harding.

Both had David Lloyd Health Clubs memberships. For a monthly £90 each they attended three classes a week and used the club’s pool and café. Then lockdown hit and the gyms closed.

Gillard, 51, from Epsom, Surrey, says: “We started looking at the cost of equipment and realised that saving several months membership would give us a healthy budget for a decent set of kit that we would own and use whenever we wanted.” They invested around £900 in two sets of weights, a spin bike and an annual membership to an on-demand fitness class service.

Next month, when gyms reopen, although the couple will miss the social element of the gym, they will not be going back.

Gillard explains: “I probably put in as much effort with the at-home classes as I did in the gym, and I do more sessions. We’re certainly not sitting here regretting paying £900 for kit that we don’t use. The investment paid for itself within a few months and some of the classes we enjoyed at the gym had been cancelled and timetables changed, so this suits us much better and makes more financial sense.”

• Read more: Will gyms have to change the way they work?

• Gyms to reopen April 12: The new rules to expect

11:29 AM

Lockdown rules: What you can and can't do from March 29

As the Easter holidays begin, the Government has allowed limited changes to lockdown rules to allow families to reunite.

On Monday, March 29, for the first time in 12 weeks, people across England will no longer be ordered to "Stay Home", with limited contact between different households being allowed and many outdoor activities able to resume.

This includes meeting in private gardens as the Government attempts to make it easier for friends and families to get together over the Easter Bank Holiday weekend.

Our Special Correspondent Hayley Dixon has all the details.

11:16 AM

Nightingale courts to continue after lockdown to clear backlog

Nightingale courts are to be extended for use after lockdown ends in an attempt to clear the backlog of cases in the criminal justice system, reports Mason Boycott-Owen.

The Telegraph understands that the temporary courtrooms brought in during the Covid crisis will be used after their funding runs out over the summer.

The latest figures from the Ministry of Justice show that the backlog for crown court cases rose to 56,544 at the end of January – up from 38,411 before the pandemic.

The ministry and the courts service are looking at extending the leases on Nightingale court buildings, although some are likely to return to their intended use when restrictions are eased.

There are currently 56 Nightingale courtrooms open in the UK, with a further four due by the end of the month as part of a £113 million package to support the justice system. Some have operated in buildings that have been out of use because of Covid restrictions, such as the Lowry theatre in Manchester.

• Read the full story here

• Juries will work 'shifts' to reduce Covid delays

11:05 AM

Europe’s ‘Anglo-Saxon’ phobia is proving deadly

Floundering Europe is poised to press the nuclear button with a vaccine ban on exports, but there is no doubt in their minds who bears the blame, writes Russell Lynch.

Despite a litany of procurement failures by the European Commission, MEP Phillippe Lamberts became the latest politician to pour petrol on a raging diplomatic row when he accused AstraZeneca of a “culture of dishonesty, overpromising and underdelivering by massive amounts”.

A combination of panic over a third wave and lingering bruises over Brexit may be behind the latest slurs, but critics say Astra – an Anglo-Swedish firm run by a Frenchman – is also bearing the brunt of decades of deep-seated suspicion over Anglo-Saxon capitalism on the Continent.

Even though he withdrew the remarks, Boris Johnson gave succour to that phobia this week with his comments to MPs over the role of “capitalism and greed” in driving the UK’s vaccine success.

That is anathema to the far different models of capitalism practised by the French and Germans, which makes the fury all the more acute.

Russell's piece is a must-read - catch his full analysis here.

10:07 AM

Biden's first press conference as President to focus on jabs

President Joe Biden is expected on Thursday to lay out a new goal for US vaccinations against Covid-19 at his first formal White House news conference, where topics will likely include immigration, infrastructure, gun control and foreign relations.

Biden's news conference is likely to offer a sharp contrast to the marathon sparring sessions his predecessor, Donald Trump, held with reporters, where the Republican president's insults and off-the-cuff remarks regularly made news. Ratings for the major cable television networks have dipped since Trump left the White House.

His popularity has remained high in his first two months in office, after a $1.9 trillion stimulus package passed Congress and millions were inoculated against the coronavirus with at least one dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Biden said last week that his goal of having 100 million vaccine shots administered was being met early and promised to announce a new goal this week, which he is likely to do on Thursday.

Our foreign team will have have all the details as they come in.

09:47 AM

EU move on vaccine support 'very regrettable', says Wellcome director

Sir Jeremy Farrar, director of Wellcome, a global charitable foundation to support science, said the move by the EU on vaccine exports was "very regrettable".

He told the BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I hope that the communique that was issued last night of moving towards a diplomatic and political solution to this ... comes through in the coming hours and days because we are all dependent on this. Supply chains of how we make vaccines are, by necessity, international, they cross borders.

"We need to make vaccines available to everybody, we need to have a free flow of contracts, contracts honoured, so that we can get vaccines not just to our own countries but all around the world."

He said the biggest risk to the UK at the moment is from importing coronavirus variants.

"Every government's prime responsibility is to its own citizens, but supplying vaccines to the world is actually the way we can protect ourselves in our own countries as well because the biggest risk at the moment of this pandemic is that new variants appear anywhere in the world, and eventually come back to haunt us in our own countries.

"And if we allow that to happen by increasing transmission around the world, and by not offering vaccines around the world, then this pandemic will continue for months and years to come. The best way out of this is to make vaccines available globally."

09:39 AM

Minister hopes UK-EU joint statement 'calms tensions'

Children's minister Vicky Ford said she hopes a joint statement between the UK and the European Union on the vaccine supply row has "calmed down some of the tensions".

She told ITV's Good Morning Britain: "I think it is really helpful that both the UK and the EU worked together yesterday on that joint statement saying they want to work together to make sure there is that reciprocity and making sure the vaccine continues to flow across borders.

"That is so important and that is what we will all continue to work towards."

Mrs Ford added: "We need to all work on this together and I hope that the joint statement that came out of the EU and the UK yesterday has calmed down some of the tensions."

09:31 AM

'The key way we are going to deal with this issue is by vaccinating people'

Covid Recovery Group chairman Mark Harper said the vaccination programme should signal a return to normality rather than lead to people being required to show proof of vaccination to access hospitality venues.

Speaking to Sky News about vaccine passports, he said: "I actually agree with the Prime Minister - that is the Prime Minister of February when he said that he didn't think there was a case for expecting people to show papers to go to the pub and said there were very significant problems with ethical, moral questions about this issue.

"I've heard some heads of pub chains this morning set out some of those significant problems.

"The key way we are going to deal with this issue is by vaccinating people, and we've already almost finished vaccinating, with their first doses, the top nine groups who are most vulnerable, who account for 99% of those who died of Covid and over 80% of the hospitalisations.

"That's how we get out of this."

09:19 AM

Former chief whip to oppose 'very significant draconian powers'

Former chief whip Mark Harper, leader of the Covid Recovery Group of lockdown-sceptic Tory MPs, said he is opposed to ministers looking to extend "very significant draconian powers" for a further six months.

It came as MPs prepare to vote on whether to keep some of the emergency powers in the Coronavirus Act in place until the autumn.

Mr Harper, who said he thinks plans to ease the lockdown "could safely go more quickly", told Sky News: "The biggest problem today is the extension of some very significant draconian powers in the Coronavirus Act which the Government doesn't want to extend until June, it actually wants to extend all the way into October.

"And these are quite significant powers; they are powers, for example, for the police to detain people indefinitely and to continue having powers to shutdown events and so forth all the way through to October.

"And I haven't heard a single good answer about why the Government wishes to do that, given that the Prime Minister has said he wants to be out of all of our legal restrictions by June."

09:19 AM

Victorious festival to go ahead this year

The organisers of Victorious have announced their festival will go ahead this year, after 2020's event was cancelled due to Covid.

The Telegraph understands the plan is to run at full capacity, providing Government guidelines allow.

Among the top acts are Madness, The Streets, Royal Blood, Craig David, Blossoms and Richard Ashcroft.

Festival director Andy Marsh said: "This year’s line-up is my personal favourite. It feels like we have achieved an exciting combination of headliners, rising artists, and the return of some family favourites too.

"We believe there really is something for everyone to enjoy this Summer and we can’t wait to welcome you all."

08:57 AM

Review needed before vaccine passports, minister says

Children's minister Vicky Ford said she wanted to wait to see the results of the Government's taskforce review into vaccine passports before expressing an opinion on their use in Britain.

It comes after the Prime Minister told senior MPs on Wednesday that the "concept of vaccine certification should not be totally alien to us".

Mrs Ford told LBC radio: "Obviously I want to get back to the pub with my friends as much as everybody else. I know there has been a lot of focus on this today."

Pressed on whether she agreed with asking people to show a Covid status certificate, she added: "I think we need to wait for that review.

"It has lots of ethical questions, etcetera, but it is being done, it has been promised that that will be there before that final stage of the lockdown in June.

"It will look at testing and whether or not you should prove you have been tested recently, as well as other things."

08:56 AM

Poll: Do you support the idea of pub vaccine passports?

Have your say below.

08:27 AM

Wait for result of vaccine passports review, minister says

Children's minister Vicky Ford said she wanted to wait to see the results of the Government's taskforce review into vaccine passports before expressing an opinion on their use in Britain.

It comes after the Prime Minister told senior MPs on Wednesday that the "concept of vaccine certification should not be totally alien to us".

Mrs Ford told LBC radio: "Obviously I want to get back to the pub with my friends as much as everybody else. I know there has been a lot of focus on this today."

Pressed on whether she agreed with asking people to show a Covid status certificate, she added: "I think we need to wait for that review.

"It has lots of ethical questions, etcetera, but it is being done, it has been promised that that will be there before that final stage of the lockdown in June.

"It will look at testing and whether or not you should prove you have been tested recently, as well as other things."

08:16 AM

Miliband: 'Don't leave vaccine passports to discretion of pub landlords'

Labour shadow business secretary Ed Miliband said ministers should not leave the use of vaccine passports to the "discretion" of pub landlords if they thought it was the right move for public health.

Put to him on ITV's Good Morning Britain that scientists might recommend the rollout of vaccine passports to encourage people to take up the offer of a jab, Mr Miliband said: "Maybe. I don't think that's really the thing that is going to persuade people to get the vaccine.

"I think we've done brilliantly in this country at rolling out the vaccine and people taking up the vaccine and the key thing is a campaign of persuasion for people to take up the vaccine. That is the biggest priority.

"Now, if the Government has got evidence that this is necessary for people to go to hospitality venues, let's look at that evidence.

"That isn't quite what the Prime Minister said yesterday.

"And indeed if it was necessary, why would you be leaving it up to individual landlords? If this was really a public health measure, you wouldn't be saying, 'Well, it is going to be a landlord discretion' - you'd be saying, 'This is the Government's view, this is what's safe'.

08:13 AM

Making vaccines a pre-requisite to visit the pub 'poorly thought out idea'

Jonathan Neame, chief executive of Shepherd Neame pub group, has said making vaccination a mandatory prerequisite to attend a pub is "a fairly poorly thought-out idea" which could lead to young staff having to deal with intimidation from customers.

He told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I'm very concerned about the pressure we put on our young people - 50 per cent of people (working) in pubs are under 25 - you're going to force them to make some very challenging judgments, because they're not qualified or trained as door staff, as they might be in the nightclub sector.

"So those people might therefore be subject to intimidation, if people think they are being unfairly discriminated against, and then there's the question about who's going to enforce this - are police going to do random checks?

"I don't think so, I don't think that's the society we want."

He added: "This is a fraught with difficulty I think, and it is, in my view, a fairly poorly thought-out idea at this stage."
You can read more on this story here.

08:01 AM

Pub vaccine passports were part of roadmap, minister insists

The possibility of allowing the use of so-called vaccine passports to permit entry into pubs and other venues was outlined as part of the Prime Minister's road map for lockdown easing, a Government minister has suggested.

Children's minister Vicky Ford, when asked why Boris Johnson appeared to U-turn on vaccine passports during his appearance before the Liaison Committee on Wednesday, told Sky News: "When we set out the road map way back in February to show us the way out of this lockdown, one of the things we said was that there would be reviews of different situations and there was always in that road map a review of the certifications (of having received a vaccine) and use of testing.

"And that review - which looks at how you would use vaccines, how you would use testing to keep settings safe when we go to that widest reopening - that is due before the fourth stage of the lockdown, so it has always been very clear we would be looking at all the different measures in order to take that really widest step."

07:39 AM

MPs to vote on extending Covid laws

A vote on extending coronavirus laws for a further six months will come to the Commons on Thursday.

MPs will be asked to approve the regulations for the route out of lockdown and keep some of the emergency powers in the Coronavirus Act in place until September.

The legislation for restrictions over the coming months, as the Government sets out its road map for coming out of lockdown, will see some restrictions remain in place in England until at least June 21.

The vote on Thursday is likely to comfortably pass, with Labour not expected to oppose the measures.

But Conservative MP Steve Baker, deputy chairman of the Covid Recovery Group of Tory lockdown sceptics, said the vote was a "rare opportunity" for MPs to "say no to a new way of life in a checkpoint society".

07:35 AM

Over-50s urged to book vaccination slot in next few days

The national medical director for the NHS is urging the over-50s and those at risk to book their Covid-19 vaccines quickly before slots dry up.

Professor Stephen Powis called on anyone who qualifies for a jab but has not yet received a first dose to book an appointment in the next few days.

The NHS is expecting a slowdown in UK vaccine supply for the whole of April, meaning medics will concentrate on delivering second doses, with fewer first appointments available.

NHS England has said no first appointments should be booked for people under the age of 50 unless they fall into a higher priority group, such as those who are clinically vulnerable.

Read more about this here

07:10 AM

Today's front page

Here is your Daily Telegraph on Thursday, Mar 25.

06:51 AM

Commons set to vote on extending lockdown powers

A vote on extending coronavirus laws for a further six months will come to the Commons amid talks between the UK and EU aiming to resolve a dispute over vaccine supplies.

On Thursday, MPs will be asked to approve the regulations for the route out of lockdown and keep some of the emergency powers in the Coronavirus Act in place until September.

It comes as Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he could see an "end" to the pandemic that would involve managing coronavirus "more like flu" with repeated and updated vaccinations.

EU leaders are set to discuss proposals aimed at tightening restrictions on vaccine exports at a virtual European Council summit, after London and Brussels moved to calm tensions following weeks of ramped up rhetoric.

A joint statement said the two sides were seeking a "win-win" deal to increase supplies across the UK and EU as the bloc's dispute with AstraZeneca continued.

Read more: Boris Johnson warns EU that vaccine ban targeting the UK will backfire

06:00 AM

Passport for pints?

Coronavirus vaccine certificates could be introduced by pubs when they reopen later this year, Boris Johnson indicated on Wednesday.

People may have to prove that they have had a Covid jab or tested negative for the virus before entering a pub, and Mr Johnson said: "I think that that's the kind of thing – it may be up to individual publicans, it may be up to the landlord."

His lack of opposition suggests the Government will not intervene if pubs – and potentially other private companies – decide to require proof of Covid status.

The position is a stark departure from two months ago, when Government ministers were arguing that making people reveal such information within the UK was "discriminatory" and against British values.

Read more: Pubs may demand Covid passport before they will pull your pint

04:18 AM

AstraZeneca jab '3pc less effective at preventing Covid'

AstraZeneca on Wednesday revised down by three percentage points the effectiveness of its Covid vaccine after American authorities raised concerns that results reported from its US trial were outdated.

The company now says its vaccine is 76 rather than 79 per cent effective at preventing any kind of symptomatic Covid.

It remains 100 per cent effective against severe Covid, it added.

The move came after an independent panel of experts appointed to supervise the trial expressed concern that AstraZeneca had failed to include updated data in its initially released figure.

04:12 AM

Today's top stories

• Coronavirus vaccine certificates could be introduced by pubs when they reopen later this year, Boris Johnson indicated on Wednesday
• The Prime Minister warned Brussels on Wednesday that pharmaceutical giants would take their business to Britain after the European Commission set out plans to ban vaccine exports to countries with higher vaccination rates than the EU
• European leaders failed to see that Covid-19 vaccines would be developed as soon as they were and this was why rollouts in the EU now lagged behind some other countries, Emmanuel Macron said on Wednesday
• Germany on Wednesday scrapped plans for a five-day hard shutdown over Easter to contain coronavirus, less than 36 hours after they were agreed
• Lateral flow testing is too inaccurate to be used in mass screening to enable children to go to school or allow people back to work, experts have said following a major review
• Nightingale courts are to be extended for use after lockdown ends in an attempt to clear the backlog of cases in the criminal justice system