Coronavirus news – live: WHO says everyone must wear face masks in public as Matt Hancock urges people not to attend George Floyd protests
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Your support makes all the difference.The World Health Organisation has updated its coronavirus guidance in response to recent research to say everyone should wear face coverings in public where there is a risk of virus transmission.
The change came as Matt Hancock, the health secretary, announced all hospital visitors would have to wear face coverings from 15 June and urged the public to not attend upcoming George Floyd protests due to concerns about the potential for large gatherings to spread Covid-19.
Meanwhile, as the official UK death toll passed 40,000, scientists halted a trial of the anti-malaria drug touted by Donald Trump after researchers at the University of Oxford found hydroxychloroquine was ineffective as a treatment for coronavirus.
Follow the latest developments in the liveblog below:
No separate test and trace system for police, says Downing Street
The prime minister's official spokesman has squashed rumours that police forces were planning their own 'track and trace' systems for officers.
He said the NHS test and trace system was for "everyone, including police officers".
"Any member of the emergency services who has symptoms of coronavirus should self-isolate," he added.
"I think what the NPCC has said is that there are ongoing discussions with Public Health England (PHE) about how the NHS test and trace service will work for officers in cases where there may be operational or security issues to consider."
It followed reports that police forces were concerned taking part in the government scheme would put officers in danger or compromise sensitive information if they had to give details of their movements.
The National Police Chiefs' Council (NPCC) has also insisted forces were not setting up their own separate scheme.
"In order to ensure information about policing activity and the privacy of members of the public is protected, police officers and staff will not be able to disclose sensitive information to the NHS test and trace service," it said in a statement.
"The NPCC is in discussions with PHE to resolve this issue, and has proposed a system whereby police officers and staff in certain roles have their cases referred to a national vetted public health outbreak team.
"Officers with symptoms will still be required to engage with the test and trace process at the outset. They will still be able to access appropriate medical advice and treatment if they have tested positive for coronavirus, or are made aware that they have come into contact with someone who has tested positive."
One further death in Northern Ireland
The total number of coronavirus deaths recorded by the Department of Health - which primarily includes hospital deaths - has increased by one to 536.
There have been another three confirmed cases of the virus, bringing the total since the outbreak began to 4,776.
Hospital deaths in England rise by 123
NHS England has announced 123 new deaths of people who tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in hospitals in England to 27,282.
Most took place in June, but the figures also include 19 deaths in May, four in April and one on 25 March.
'Patients refusing treatment because of fake news'
Social media companies are putting lives at risk by failing to “detox” their platforms of misinformation about public health issues such as coronavirus, NHS staff have warned.
Some Covid-19 patients have been rushed to intensive care after delaying seeking medical help for symptoms because of fake news about the disease, a doctor told a parliamentary inquiry.
UK scientists halt trial of anti-malaria drug touted by Trump
British scientists have stopped a large trial exploring the use of the anti-malaria drug hydroxychloroquine in patients with Covid-19 after initial results showed no evidence of benefit.
"We reviewed the data and concluded there is no evidence of a beneficial effect of hydroxychloroquine in patients hospitalised with Covid, and decided to stop enrolling patients to the hydroxychloroquine arm with immediate effect," said Martin Landray, an Oxford University professor who is co-leading the RECOVERY trial.
"This is not a treatment (for COVID-19)," he added.
The RECOVERY trial continues to test several other treatments, including convalescent plasma collected from donors who have recovered from Covid-19.
Coronavirus pandemic 'not over', warns WHO
The Covid-19 pandemic is “not over”, the World Health Organisation (WHO) has warned after Brazil reported a daily record number of deaths on Thursday.
Stringent lockdown restrictions are being lifted across much of Europe and the west but a number of countries have seen an “uptick” in cases, according to the WHO.
'This is not a treatment for Covid'
Researchers found a slightly larger proportion of patients died in the hydroxychloroquine trial group (25.7 per cent) compared to those receiving standard care (23.5 per cent), although the difference is regarded as "not significant".
There was also no evidence of beneficial effects on hospital stay duration or other outcomes.
Professor Martin Landray said: "This trial has moved at incredible speed, there was a huge upsurge in cases if you go back a month or so, we have to base our decisions on the latest data and that came through just last night."
He added: "We never say never, but I think this is not a treatment for Covid."
Professor Landray said 1,542 patients were on the hydroxychloroquine part of the trial and that the data was reviewed for the first time on Thursday evening.
Prof Landray said: "Our conclusion is that this treatment does not reduce the risk of dying from Covid among hospital patients, that clearly has a significant importance for the way that patients are treated, not only in the UK but all around the world.
"There are hundreds of thousands, potentially millions of patients around the world being treated with hydroxychloroquine," he added.
See the full statement here
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