Coronavirus news: Boris Johnson postpones further lockdown lifting as Scottish people told not to visit areas of northern England
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Boris Johnson has postponed the next stage of easing lockdown restrictions planned for Saturday, which would have seen the return of casinos, bowling alleys, skating rinks, indoor performances and wedding receptions for up to 30 people.
The prime minister also announced pilots of sporting events with crowds and gatherings in conference centres will be delayed.
Face coverings will become mandatory in places such as museums, galleries, cinemas and places of worship in England from 8 August, Mr Johnson said on Friday.
Meanwhile, Nicola Sturgeon warned Scottish people not to travel to parts of northern England hit by a spike in coronavirus cases unless their trip is “absolutely essential”.
Her comments come after the UK government imposed tougher lockdown restrictions in the areas affected, with people from different households in Greater Manchester, parts of East Lancashire and West Yorkshire banned from meeting each other indoors again.
The UK health secretary said these new restrictions on gatherings – which were announced shortly before the Muslim festival of Eid-al-Adha – were not aimed at curtailing celebration, but that ”immediate action” was needed in these areas.
Muslim leaders slammed the government for giving ”shockingly short notice” for the ban on different households mixing inside their homes or gardens in parts of northern England.
Asked if he agreed with comments by a Tory MP in one of the impacted areas claiming that the BAME community was not taking the situation seriously enough, Mr Johnson said: "On your first point about ... are certain communities responding enough to the guidance - well, I think it's up to all of us in government to make sure that the message is being heard loud and clear by everybody across the country, and to make sure that everybody is complying with
the guidance."
Boris Johnson has announced that wedding receptions are not permitted to take place.
On 17 July, the prime minister held a Downing Street press conference in which he said that small receptions of up to 30 people could ahead from 1 August.
However, the government has now gone back on this statement following a rise in coronavirus cases across the country.
Up to 30 people allowed to meet outdoors in Wales
Up to 30 people will be allowed to meet outside in Wales while maintaining social distancing from Monday.
Mark Drakeford said children under the age of 11 will also no longer need to keep to the two-metre rule while outdoors due to the falling transmission rate.
The first minister said the changes would help "family and friends" but would be restricted to outside locations "because we know it's much safer to be meeting in the outdoors and the sunlight."
The latest set of relaxed measures comes alongside the reopening of indoor service for pubs, restaurants, bars and cafes from Monday.
Mr Drakeford told Sky News: "We believe we have some further headroom. The circulation of the virus in Wales continues to fall.
"That gives us the opportunity to reopen bars, restaurants, cafes and so on, indoors, and to afford some extra flexibility to family and friends to meet in the outdoors."
'Complete shambles'
Mike Kane, MP for Wythenshawe and Sale East and shadow transport minister, said the way the new Covid-19 restrictions were announced was "a complete shambles".
He told PA news agency: "As much as I always support the government, it's a complete shambles the way it was announced.
It's been released on social media with hours notice. It puts people in a place of uncertainty, fear and confusion."
He said local MPs were invited by regional public health officials on Thursday morning to discuss how the pandemic was affecting the area, but he said no one had known about the impending new restrictions that were announced that evening.
"The government has got to do better than this in informing people and give people the heads up," he added.
"These things shouldn't be binary, it shouldn't be switched on and then switched off."
One third of Edinburgh Airport staff to lose jobs
Gordon Dewar, chief executive of Edinburgh Airport, has said one-third of his 750 staff are to lose their jobs, travel correspondent Simon Calder reports.
“This is a bitterly sad day for the airport and for those colleagues who are losing their jobs through no fault of their own but due to the impact of this dreadful pandemic," he said.
“The situation has been exacerbated by the introduction of an ill-thought out and unworkable blanket quarantine policy which has massively impacted on passenger numbers.
“It will be a very long road to recovery, and we cannot successfully make that journey while we are set up as a 15 million-passenger airport.
“Aviation jobs rely on passengers and flights. That has been lost in this argument.”
Scotland 'strongly advises' against travel to affected parts of northern England
Travel to parts of northern England subject to newly reimposed restrictions “should be avoided”, the Scottish Government has warned.
Shortly after Boris Johnson addressed leaders of the devolved nations on Thursday, Holyrood updated its own advice, urging that travel between Scotland and Greater Manchester, East Lancashire and parts of West Yorkshire “should only be undertaken if absolutely essential”.
Boris Johnson has announced that face coverings will become mandatory in "other indoor settings where you're likely to come into contact with people you do not normally meet".
Sarah Young and Sabrina Barr have this explainer on what that means in practice.
West Yorkshire Police Federation chair criticises government's 'haphazard announcements' of new restrictions
"Yet again we are struggling to police - and get to grips with - what can only be described as haphazard announcements made by the Government in relation to tighter Covid-19 restrictions," Brian Booth said in a statement.
"It is an absolute nonsense that we as the police service have not been afforded the time to put things in place prior to an announcement.
"Many people in Kirklees, Calderdale and Bradford will have woken up this morning to the news that they are subject to tighter restrictions on their lives. And it will be up to my colleagues to police these restrictions.
"We must also remember that a lot of the areas subject to lockdown have communities who would have been intending to celebrate Eid and who will now be disappointed by this announcement. And it will be our West Yorkshire Police colleagues who will now be on the front line of having to manage the situation and stop separate households from meeting each other at their homes."
Vietnam records first ever coronavirus death after 99 days without a local case
Vietnam had been seen as a global success story in combating the coronavirus with zero deaths and no confirmed cases of local transmission for 99 days.
But last week an outbreak began at Da Nang Hospital. It has grown to 104 confirmed cases in six parts of the country, including three of the largest cities, forcing authorities to reimpose virus restrictions.
Vietnam's health ministry announced on Thursday that a 70-year-old man had died after contracting coronavirus while being treated for a kidney illness at the Da Nang hospital.
Da Nang is Vietnam's most popular beach destination, and thousands of visitors were in the city for summer vacation. Across the country, authorities are rushing to test people who have returned home from the coastal city, which was put under lockdown on Tuesday.
Music venues 'saddened by not surprised' by cancellation of planned gigs, representative body says
"Music Venue Trust and the network of grassroots music venues across the UK are saddened but not surprised to hear that live music events planned from Saturday 1 August in response to government advice must now be cancelled," Music Venue Trust said in a statement.
"Since May 2020, Music Venue Trust has repeatedly informed the government that live music events in grassroots music venues would be extraordinarily difficult to stage, not economically viable, and at risk of being cancelled at short notice during the current pandemic.
"A number of venues across the country have attempted to stage such events based on advice from the government, incurring substantial costs to make their venues safe. That expenditure now adds to the growing mountain of debts accrued by those venues working within the government guidelines.
"Music Venue Trust has consistently asserted that no grassroots music venue will be able to stage live music events before 1 October at the earliest, yet the prime minister has stated that the new reopening date might be as earlier as 15 August.
"Music Venue Trust would like to restate and emphasise the position of the sector, which is that a clear and decisive position on the part of government to provide support for grassroots music venues in the form of efficiently distributed crisis funding until such time as they can re-open safely and viably would provide the much needed clarity that venues, artists, audiences and the wider public need."
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