Britain records 9,765 Covid cases in smallest daily rise since OCTOBER

Britain today recorded just 9,765 coronavirus cases in the smallest daily rise since October, in yet more proof that the worst of the pandemic has been and gone.

Health bosses also announced another 230 lab-confirmed deaths. Both daily tolls were down by 30 per cent on last Monday’s 14,104 infections and 333 fatalities. 

It is the first time cases have dipped below the 10,000 mark since October 2 — a month before the second wave began to spiral out of control. And the number of daily victims was the fewest since December 26, when another 230 were also announced.

Despite the Government’s figures offering yet more hope that the UK is hurtling towards the end of its relentless cycle of lockdowns, the vaccine drive — which is crucial to prevent the NHS from ever being overwhelmed again — has once again stalled. Just 240,000 doses were dished out yesterday — the fewest in three weeks.

In other promising signs, Covid cases have dropped in 95 per cent of all 315 authorities across England. And the number of infected inpatients us now at half of its January peak in England – with 17,694 down from 34,336.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said today that there is still ‘some way to go’ in ending the second wave of Covid in the UK but said there was hope jabs would stop the virus spreading. Boris Johnson will lay out his roadmap out of lockdown next Monday.

It comes as MailOnline’s analysis today revealed coronavirus infection rates have tripled or more in 0.6 per cent of council wards across England, with a six-fold surge in one village in East Yorkshire mystifying its residents. 

South Cave, a village 13 miles (21km) west of Hull and home to 5,000 people, saw its infection rate surge from 123 cases per 100,000 people in the week to February 2 to 750 by February 9. During the latest week 55 people there tested positive for the virus in just seven days. Residents told local news website Hull Live they were ‘gobsmacked’ that cases had shot up. 

Nationally, the same weekly data shows 21.3 per cent of almost 6,500 council wards saw their positive test rates rise between February 2 and 9,  despite England’s lockdown still being in full force. Forty-two of these saw Covid infections triple. 

The small areas — which are home to around 8,000 people each, on average — with the highest infection rates were in Rutland, Dorset, Staffordshire, Knowsley, Bedford, Walsall, Fenland, Doncaster and Liverpool, as well as South Cave.  

Boris Johnson says he wants to make ‘cautious but irreversible’ changes with roadmap to freedom due next Monday

Boris Johnson today insisted he wants the UK to make ‘cautious but irreversible’ progress when lockdown starts to be lifted as he prepares to unveil his exit strategy on Monday next week.

The Prime Minister, who will hold a Downing Street press conference at 5pm, said the roadmap out of lockdown will include specific target dates for reopening different sectors of the economy and society.

But he stressed dates will be when the Government aims ‘to do something at the earliest’ and if there is a spike in infection rates ministers ‘won’t hesitate’ to delay the reopening.

His comments came as scientific experts said they ‘confidently expect’ the current national shutdown to be the last one – as long as a new vaccine-busting variant is not discovered.

Earlier, Matt Hancock hailed a ‘little step towards freedom for us all’ after the Government hit its 15million vaccinations target as he slapped down Tory demands to lift all lockdown rules by the end of April.

The Health Secretary said ‘there is a long way to go’ before life can return to normal and while coronavirus cases are falling ‘sharply’ the number of people in hospital with the disease is still ‘too high’.

He also said it is ‘too early to say’ whether the falling number of deaths is ‘directly due’ to the vaccine roll-out.

Mr Hancock’s comments represent a firm rebuke to the Covid Recovery Group of Conservative MPs which has demanded Mr Johnson remove all legal restrictions in England by the start of May.

Ministers are said to be discussing plans to allow shops to re-open, families to be re-united and self-catering staycations to be given the go ahead if Covid-19 infection rates continue to plummet.

Plans to ease lockdown were boosted yesterday by figures showing the dramatic impact vaccines are already having as Mr Johnson last night confirmed the country had hit its target of vaccinating the 15million most vulnerable people two days ahead of schedule.

Mr Hancock described hitting the target as an ’emotional moment because it is the moment that protects us and also it is just a little step towards freedom for us all’.

The PM said the number of new cases has already dropped ‘very considerably’ preparing the way for lockdown measures to be relaxed.

It is thought that this could mean the re-opening of High Street shops within weeks as well as the easing of restrictions on outdoor exercise and socialising.

Ministers are also said to be considering plans to allow for families of a single household to travel across the UK for an Easter holiday in self-catered accommodation.

It has led to growing hope that families will be able to meet outside by Easter as early as next month to allow grandchildren to reunite with their grandparents.

In other coronavirus developments today:

  • Boris Johnson insisted he wants the UK to make ‘cautious but irreversible’ progress when lockdown starts to be lifted as he prepares to unveil his exit strategy on Monday next week;
  • Air passengers arriving in London criticised Number 10’s ‘ridiculous’ hotel quarantine rules as they started ten days of isolation despite mixing with dozens of travellers not from nations on the ‘red list’; 
  • The PM promised Brits will not need to carry a ‘vaccine passport’ to go to the pub when the country eventually escapes lockdown — but conceded that some form of proof of vaccination will likely be needed to get international travel back up and running in the future; 
  • The scientist who led the WHO’s Covid fact-finding mission to Wuhan revealed the first evidence that the virus was circulating widely in China before Beijing alerted the world to its existence;
  • Britain’s coronavirus vaccine postcode lottery was laid bare today after a number of celebrities revealed they have already been given their first dose, including US singer Courtney Love who today thanked the NHS after getting jabbed.

Granular local data show positive test rates increased in 1,453 out of 6,791 wards known as middle super output areas, each of which generally has a population of between 5,000 and 20,000 people.

In 42 of these areas in England, the week-on-week increase in cases between February 2 and February 9 was 200 per cent or more — meaning that the number of people testing positive tripled.

In Northallerton South and Leeming Bar, in North Yorkshire, the rate rose seven-fold, with 21 new cases – this was the only area to see a bigger increase than South Cave, Newbald and Little Weighton.

The South Cave area now has the fifth highest MSOA infection rate in the country, according to data published by the Department of Health.         

During the latest week 55 people – more than one per cent of the population there – tested positive for the virus in just seven days.

Locals told the Hull Daily Mail that they had no idea what caused the spike in cases, saying it doesn’t have a ‘large industry’ that an outbreak could be traced back to.

However, HMP Humber is located nearby. But the Department of Health’s interactive map appears to show the prison falls in the next MSOA and isn’t in the South Cave reporting area. 

The rural authority had by far the biggest spike in infections in all of the East Riding of Yorkshire in that week with cases up 511 per cent, more than double the second biggest rise of 225 per cent. 15 out of 42 wards in the area saw cases rise. 

Only one of the tiny council wards in England had an infection rate higher than one per cent in the week ending February 9, which was Market Overton, Cottesmore and Empingham in Rutland, East Midlands, with a rate of 1,201. 

Rutland’s outbreak — which has made it the UK’s Covid hotspot — was driven by a cluster of cases in the local prison.

Others rounding out the top 10 all had infection rates higher than 650 positive tests per 100,000 people – 0.6 per cent of the population within a week. 

They were Underhill and the Grove in Dorset (861); Featherstone West, Coven and Shareshill in Staffordshire (844); Kirkby South East in Knowsley (761); Harpur in Bedford (742); Leamore in Walsall (714); Wisbech North in Fenland (686); Hatfield East in Doncaster (680) and Fazakerley South in Liverpool (656). 

The areas are evenly distributed across the country, with two each in the North West, North East, Midlands and East of England, and one in the South West, but none in the South East or London.

A bigger-picture analysis of infection rates found that, across England, cases came down in 95 per cent of the 315 local authority areas – these are larger than middle super output areas and envelop them.

Just 12 areas saw their positive test rates increase, while the numbers fell in 301 places. Two did not rise or fall in the week to February 10.      

Academy chief casts doubt on ‘optimistic’ plans to get all pupils back into school at the start of March 

An academy chief today cast doubt on ‘optimistic’ plans to get all pupils back into school at the start of March as he warned dates were ‘being pulled out of thin air.’

As the PM faces mounting pressure to send children in England back to school, Downing Street has suggested that all primary and secondary children can return to classrooms three weeks today.

But Steve Chalke, the head of the Oasis Academies Trust, described Number 10’s plan as ‘impossible’.

He suggested ministers take a ‘regional approach’ by vaccinating all staff before sending pupils back.

He also warned schools needed to create more space including having marquees in playgrounds, to avoid children being ‘like sardines in a can’.

Mr Chalke is the founder of the Oasis Trust, which runs 53 schools around the country.

He warned against the chaotic scenes last September, when all children were sent back after the summer break, ‘like sardines into a can.’

He told BBC Radio 4 Today’s programme: ‘We’re optimistic because the vaccine seems to be working, we all want to get children back…because we know all children will learn better with their peers in a classroom than at home online or whatever.

‘But optimism can be born of two things – dreams and hopes or planning and preparation.

‘What we don’t need is a false start. It’s one thing to open schools – it’s another thing to keep them open.’

The highest case rate was in Rutland, with 280 new cases recorded in the seven days to February 10 – which equated to a rate of 405.7 cases per 100,000 people. This was up 50 per cent on the previous week. It was followed by neighbouring Corby.

The highest week-on-week increase for these bigger areas was in Copeland, Cumbria, where the rate rose from 178 cases per 100,000 to 238, with 162 new positive tests.

Calderdale in West Yorkshire had the second highest rise, up from 164 to 207, with 438 new cases.

Newark and Sherwood in Nottinghamshire had the third highest, up from 213 to 248, with 304 new cases. 

Nationally, the number of people testing positive for coronavirus has plummeted in recent weeks.

NHS Test & Trace figures show that 92,399 people were diagnosed with the virus across the UK last week, down from 128,504 the week before. This was a decline of 28 per cent in a week.

And it was significantly lower than the 400,640 people who tested positive in the first week of January while the second wave was at its peak.

It comes after the PM today insisted he wants the UK to make ‘cautious but irreversible’ progress when lockdown starts to be lifted as he prepares to unveil his exit strategy on Monday next week.

The Prime Minister, who will hold a Downing Street press conference at 5pm, said the roadmap out of lockdown will include specific target dates for reopening different sectors of the economy and society.

But he stressed dates will be when the Government aims ‘to do something at the earliest’ and if there is a spike in infection rates ministers ‘won’t hesitate’ to delay the reopening.

His comments came as scientific experts said they ‘confidently expect’ the current national shutdown to be the last one – as long as a new vaccine-busting variant is not discovered.

Earlier, Matt Hancock hailed a ‘little step towards freedom for us all’ after the Government hit its 15million vaccinations target as he slapped down Tory demands to lift all lockdown rules by the end of April.

The Health Secretary said ‘there is a long way to go’ before life can return to normal and while coronavirus cases are falling ‘sharply’ the number of people in hospital with the disease is still ‘too high’.

He also said it is ‘too early to say’ whether the falling number of deaths is ‘directly due’ to the vaccine roll-out.

Mr Hancock’s comments represent a firm rebuke to the Covid Recovery Group of Conservative MPs which has demanded Mr Johnson remove all legal restrictions in England by the start of May.

Ministers are said to be discussing plans to allow shops to re-open, families to be re-united and self-catering staycations to be given the go ahead if Covid-19 infection rates continue to plummet.

Plans to ease lockdown were boosted yesterday by figures showing the dramatic impact vaccines are already having as Mr Johnson last night confirmed the country had hit its target of vaccinating the 15million most vulnerable people two days ahead of schedule.

Mr Hancock described hitting the target as an ’emotional moment because it is the moment that protects us and also it is just a little step towards freedom for us all’.

The PM said the number of new cases has already dropped ‘very considerably’ preparing the way for lockdown measures to be relaxed.

It is thought that this could mean the re-opening of High Street shops within weeks as well as the easing of restrictions on outdoor exercise and socialising.

Ministers are also said to be considering plans to allow for families of a single household to travel across the UK for an Easter holiday in self-catered accommodation.

It has led to growing hope that families will be able to meet outside by Easter as early as next month to allow grandchildren to reunite with their grandparents.

How WILL lockdown be lifted? Schools will open first on March 8, followed by outdoor sports including golf and tennis and picnics with friends in the park – and grandparents could see grandchildren BEFORE Easter (with UK minibreaks ‘back on by April’)

Britons could be out and about playing golf and tennis and enjoying time in the park with friends and family within weeks under plans being drawn up to ease the lockdown.

Boris Johnson this morning pledged a ‘cautious but irreversible’ approach to easing restrictions that have been in place since the new year.

The Prime Minister is due to unveil a ‘roadmap’ out of lockdown on February 22 that is expected to confirm at least some children will return to school on March 8.

But he and ministers are refusing to reveal and other firm dates – and have warned that any they do announce will be the ‘earliest’ measures could be lifted – reserving the right to push the lifting back if there are any new spikes in Covid cases.

However reports suggest that some of the more gruelling social aspects of the lockdown – like preventing grandparents from seeing grandchildren and barring people from enjoying outdoor spaces unless exercising –  could be among the first to be lifted.

Non-essential shops could also lift their shutters March.

There are even suggestions that domestic holidays could return in time for Easter – but limited to family bubbles staying in self-catering accommodation. 

Pubs and restaurants are also expected to open in April –  initially to serve people outdoors.

Plans to ease lockdown were boosted yesterday by figures showing the dramatic impact vaccines are already having as Mr Johnson last night confirmed the country had hit its target of 15 million vaccinations ahead of schedule.

The Prime Minister said the number of new cases has already dropped ‘very considerably’ preparing the way for lockdown measures to be relaxed.

Here is how the lockdown lifting could pan out: 

Boris Johnson this morning pledged a 'cautious but irreversible' approach to easing restrictions that have been in place since the new year.

Boris Johnson this morning pledged a ‘cautious but irreversible’ approach to easing restrictions that have been in place since the new year.

February 22: Boris Johnson unveils his roadmap

Mr Johnson will unveil his lockdown-easing roadmap to MPs and the nation on Monday.

But after a year of anti-coronavirus measures that have been marked by often misplaced optimism and criticism over doing too little, too late, the  Prime Minister today stressed the need to be ‘very prudent’, while lockdown-sceptical Tory MPs pressure for a swift reopening. 

‘No decisions have been taken on that sort of detail (dates) yet, though clearly schools on March 8 has for a long time been a priority of the Government and of families up and down the country,’ Mr Johnson told reporters during a visit to Orpington Health and Wellbeing Centre in south-east London.

He added that ‘we will do everything we can to make that happen’, but cautioned that infection rates are still ‘comparatively high’ and Covid-19 patients in the NHS remain higher than the April peak.

‘So we’ve got to be very prudent and what we wanted to see is progress that is cautious but irreversible and I think that’s what the public and people up and down the country will want to see,’ Mr Johnson added.

March 8: Children return to school 

The only firm date so far in the PM's lockdown diary is March 8, when children will return to school for face-to-face lessons for the first time since January.

The only firm date so far in the PM’s lockdown diary is March 8, when children will return to school for face-to-face lessons for the first time since January.

Steve Chalke, the head of the Oasis Academies Trust, described Number 10's plan as 'impossible'

Steve Chalke, the head of the Oasis Academies Trust, described Number 10’s plan as ‘impossible’

What are the UK priority groups for vaccinations? 

1. Residents in a care home for older adults and staff working in care homes for older adults

2. All those 80 years of age and over and frontline health and social care workers

3. All those 75 years of age and over

4. All those 70 years of age and over and clinically extremely vulnerable individuals (not including pregnant women and those under 16 years of age)

5. All those 65 years of age and over

6. Adults aged 16 to 65 years in an at-risk group 

7. All those 60 years of age and over

8. All those 55 years of age and over

9. All those 50 years of age and over

10. Rest of the population

The only firm date so far in the PM’s lockdown diary is March 8, when children will return to school for face-to-face lessons for the first time since January.

The remaining question is over how many children will go back straight away.  Reports have suggested that a staggered approach may be taken, with secondary schools going back a week later than primaries. 

Mr Johnson said today that no decisions have been made on whether year groups across schools in England will return together or whether primaries and secondaries could be staggered.

An academy chief today cast doubt on the ‘optimistic’ plans as he warned dates were ‘being pulled out of thin air.’ 

Steve Chalke, the head of the Oasis Academies Trust, described Number 10’s plan as ‘impossible’.

He suggested ministers take a ‘regional approach’ by vaccinating all staff before sending pupils back.

He also warned schools needed to create more space including having marquees in playgrounds, to avoid children being ‘like sardines in a can’.

Professor Neil Ferguson, who advises the Government as part of the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag), said modelling suggests ‘there probably is leeway to reopen all schools’ from March 8 but acknowledged there will be ‘slightly more of a risk’ in a rise in cases than if just primary schools were reopened.

Professor Gabriel Scally, president of the epidemiology and public health section at the Royal Society of Medicine and a member of Independent Sage, said schools must be made safe before reopening.

He told Good Morning Britain: ‘By taking on extra space, by improving ventilation, by extending mask-wearing in schools – all of these things will help.’  

Early March: Outdoor rules loosened, return of golf and tennis

After the schools are reopened, some of the social measures in place in the lockdown are likely to be among the first to be lifted.

Exercise is the only regular reason people in England have been allowed to leave home, but this rule is likely to be among the first to be relaxed to bring respite to people cooped up at home, especially without a garden.

People are expected to be allowed to meet friends and family outdoors on a one-to-one basis – with social distancing – and in a boost for families this two-person total may not include children. 

A Government source also told The Telegraph: ‘If grandparents had had the vaccine, that would be likely to be okay.

‘Given that people will have immunity, that would be a fair assumption, but nothing has been decided.’

Mr Johnson also wants to bring back the rule of six for outdoor gatherings, which would allow families to meet in groups for walks or picnics. 

The rules could also allow for the resumption of outdoor individual sports and those where competitors do not come into close contact with each other. Golf and Tennis have both been banned during the lockdown but could be among the first to resume.

Late March: non-essential shops  

Plans to ease lockdown were boosted yesterday by figures showing the dramatic impact vaccines are already having (packed high street pictured during December last year before the latest lockdown was imposed)

Plans to ease lockdown were boosted yesterday by figures showing the dramatic impact vaccines are already having (packed high street pictured during December last year before the latest lockdown was imposed)

High Street shops will be allowed to reopen within weeks if Covid infection rates keep dropping.

 High Street shops will be allowed to reopen within weeks if Covid infection rates keep dropping.

High Street shops will be allowed to reopen within weeks if Covid infection rates keep dropping. 

Government sources expect this will happen towards the end of March, or the beginning of April at the latest.

Rishi Sunak’s furlough scheme and other job-prevention measures were extended late last year to cover the period up to the end of April. But firms will be able to access emergency loans only until the end of March.

Any reopening before would act as a welcome economic stimulus and ease – if only a little – the massive level of public spending during the pandemic.   

Easter: Pubs could reopen, self-catering holidays allowed

Ministers are said to be considering plans to allow hospitality firms to serve customers outside by Easter, which falls on the weekend of April 2.

But a full reopening which service and seating inside pubs as well is not expected until May at the earliest. 

Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin today warned that the industry is ‘on its knees’ and must reopen to save jobs. 

Aditionally, Mitchells & Butlers, which owns All Bar One, Toby Carvery and Harvester said it will raise £350million from its largest investors to shore up its finances.

M&B, which is Britain’s largest listed pub company, operates around 1,700 restaurants and pubs across the UK but cut about 1,300 jobs last year.

The developments follow a bust-up between pub groups and the Government which has seen companies pull out of regular business roundtables in frustration.

The head of industry body UK Hospitality warned today said there will need to be more support for businesses if restrictions continue.

Kate Nicholls said that flexible furlough and grants would need to be extended past  March 31 cut-off without some way of opening to make money.

It is thought that due to the vaccine rollout success ministers are currently looking at plans that would allow families that live in the same household to go away for self-catered staycations as soon as the Easter holidays (Cornwall pictured)

It is thought that due to the vaccine rollout success ministers are currently looking at plans that would allow families that live in the same household to go away for self-catered staycations as soon as the Easter holidays (Cornwall pictured)

She told Good Morning Britain: ‘If we are to stay closed or severely restricted for much longer then we are going to need to have additional government support over and above that (which has been provided to date). Flexible furlough and grants going on beyond March 31 so that our businesses can survive.’

Ms Nicholls called for a ‘very clear phased exit strategy from the lockdown and then from the restrictions that the hospitality sector is facing’.

She said: ‘Even if we open up under lockdown, we’re opening up under very strict restrictions that meant we didn’t break even last year when we were trading from July, so we can be confident that we can be safe when we reopen and when the time is right.

‘We need to see not just that initial date but the phasing out of those restrictions linked to the rollout of the vaccine.’

In a recent letter to Mr Johnson, chief executive of pub giant Young’s, Patrick Dardis, said: “There is no reason why pubs cannot open in April, giving people back their liberty and their much-loved pub.”

Speaking on BBC Radio 4’s World At One on Monday, Mr Dardis described reports of allowing pubs to serve customers outside only as “a nonsense” and “just a lockdown in another name”.

But Dr Bharat Pankhania, senior clinical lecturer at the University of Exeter medical school, said talking about pubs reopening in April is “premature” and pub bosses need to realise there is a danger of going “back to square one”.

Mr Johnson today promised Britons will not need to carry a ‘vaccine passport’ to go to the pub. He shot down growing reports the controversial scheme is being looked at as a tactic to keep the economy open when restrictions are finally lifted.

But Mr Johnson conceded that some form of proof of vaccination will likely be needed to get international travel back up and running in the future. 

‘I think inevitably there will be great interest in ideas like can you show that you had a vaccination against Covid in the way that you sometimes have to show you have had a vaccination against Yellow Fever or other diseases in order to travel somewhere,’ he said.

‘I think that is going to be very much in the mix down the road, I think that is going to happen. What I don’t think we will have in this country is – as it were – vaccination passports to allow you to go to, say, the pub or something like that.’

It is thought that due to the vaccine rollout success ministers are currently looking at plans that would allow families that live in the same household to go away for self-catered staycations as soon as the Easter holidays.

This has raised fears that letting people travel long distances to their destinations could lead to ‘big movements’ across the UK – potentially leading to a spike in coronavirus cases once again. 

The Save Future Travel Coalition, made up of 12 leading travel trade organisations, has said it is vital that the Government works with the industry to develop a road map to reopen travel.

The coalition warns that the industry cannot afford to wait until everyone in the UK is vaccinated before people start to travel again, otherwise insolvencies and redundancies will be inevitable.

The industry argues that a risk-based approach to travel, including a co-ordinated approach to vaccine certificates and use of passenger testing will be critical in opening up the overseas travel market.

Last week Downing Street said the Government is doing ‘everything we can to make sure people can have a holiday this summer’ but Mr Johnson and other ministers have repeatedly cautioned that it is too early to be certain about what people will be able to do regarding holidays.

May: Weddings? 

A group of senior Tory MPs has demanded Boris Johnson allow Covid-safe weddings to resume from March 8 and unrestricted ceremonies from May 1.

Some 13 Conservative backbenchers, including 1922 Committee chairman Sir Graham Brady, have backed the What About Weddings campaign.

The group is pushing for the Prime Minister to include the moves in his lockdown exit plan which he is due to unveil next week.

Philip Davies and Esther McVey, who got married last September, are among 13 Tory MPs who have backed the What About Weddings campaign

Philip Davies and Esther McVey, who got married last September, are among 13 Tory MPs who have backed the What About Weddings campaign

The MPs want Mr Johnson to deliver some hope to the hundreds of thousands of people who are waiting to get married and who have seen their plans ruined by lockdown.

The group is being led by Tory MPs Esther McVey and Philip Davies who got married last September. 

Current lockdown rules state that people should ‘only consider booking a wedding or civil partnership (or continuing with one that is already booked) in exceptional circumstances’, for example in cases of terminal illness or life changing surgery.

The What About Weddings campaign represents 400,000 people who work in the £14.7billion UK wedding industry and the estimated half a million couples waiting for restrictions to be lifted so they can get married.

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