Coronavirus news: Boris Johnson urges public to abide by new Covid rules through ‘unquestionably difficult’ winter

Follow all the latest updates and statistics on the pandemic

Boris Johnson warns of more coronavirus restrictions if public don't follow new rules

In a televised address following the announcement of new rules including early pub curfews and stricter face mask requirements, Mr Johnson warned further restrictions would follow if the public flouted the rules and claimed the government would “use the army if necessary” to enforce the laws.

Read more:

The new rules for travelling abroad

Why is 10pm the magic time for a pub curfew?

What are the new places you need to wear a face mask in England?

Key Points

• PM refuses to apologise for ‘gross incompetence’ leading to restrictions
• New coronavirus restrictions ‘could last for six months’
• Indoor sport banned in England
• Number of wedding attendees in England to be cut from 30 to 15
• Retail workers and taxi passengers must wear face masks in England
• ‘Small increase’ in deaths with Covid-19 registered
• UK herd immunity ‘not having appreciable effect as yet’
• Plans to allow sports fans back to sports stadiums postponed
• Back to work message to be scrapped in latest U-turn
• Pubs, bars and restaurants to be forced to shut at 10pm

[22 September 2020 21:40 · Andy Gregory]

Number of schools only partially open due to Covid quadruples in a week

The number of schools in England reporting partial closures due to suspected or confirmed Covid-19 cases has quadrupled in a week, government figures show.

Around one in eight pupils were absent from class on Thursday, the Department for Education (DfE) statistics suggest.

The number of state schools that were not fully open on 17 September due to suspected or confirmed Covid-19 cases rose to 4 per cent, up from 1 per cent a week earlier.

[22 September 2020 21:54 · Chris Baynes]

Lucas spoofs Johnson in returning Great British Bake-off

Boris Johnson’s coronavirus address was not the only TV event taking place tonight.

The Great British Bake Off has also returned, and kicked off with new presenter Matt Lucas mimicking the prime minister’s pandemic briefings.

The Little Britain star appeared ahead of the show's return to Channel 4 wearing a blonde wig and standing at a lectern featuring the slogan: "Stay Alert, Bake Cake, Save Loaves."

Bake Off's broadcast was delayed by 15 minutes to make space in the schedule for speeches by Johnson, Welsh first minister Mark Drakeford, and Scottish first minister Nicola Sturgeon, following the announcement of new restrictions.

[22 September 2020 21:55 · Chris Baynes]

West Ham manager and players test positive for coronavirus

West Ham manager David Moyes has tested positive for coronavirus along with players Issa Diop and Josh Cullen.

The trio found out they had contracted the virus moments before the club’s Carabao Cup third-round hosting of Hull City on Tuesday night, reports Alex Pattle.

[22 September 2020 22:12 · Chris Baynes]

Airline passengers could be given rapid antigen tests

German airline Lufthansa is planning to make rapid antigen tests available to passengers fromOctober and is weighing the option of opening test centres at airports in the United States and Canada, according to a company executive.

While the global aviation industry has largely backed the use of tests which take several hours to process in a lab, airline trade group IATA today touted antigen tests that can be processed on site and typically give results within about 15 minutes. 

Abbott Laboratories recently won the US Food and Drug Administration approval for BinaxNOW, a $5 disposable device the size of a credit card. Some other antigen tests are read using a small, portable device.

"You know that companies like Abbott or Roche are bringing these tests to the market and we are definitely looking into this," said Bjoern Becker, senior director, product management, ground and digital services for the Lufthansa Group.

"You will see us applying them for new products within the next few weeks in October," he told reporters during a video call. "That's definitely the next thing to come."

Becker said Lufthansa is considering making the new antigen tests initially available to its first-class and business class passengers, given limited supply.

It comes as airlines and airports urge countries to accept a passenger's negative Covid-19 test as an alternative to travel restrictions and quarantines that have hugely depleted demand for travel.

[22 September 2020 22:25 · Chris Baynes]

‘Boris In Last Chance Saloon’: How newspapers are covering UK’s new coronavirus restrictions

All UK’s national papers tomorrow are leading on Boris Johnson’s announcement of tigthened coronavirus rules. Here’s a selection of the front pages:

(Indepenedent)

[22 September 2020 22:47 · Chris Baynes]

Asylum seekers forced to travel miles to sign on again with Home Office despite fears of second wave

Asylum seekers and other migrants are being told to report to the Home Office in person again following a suspension of the measures during lockdown, prompting fears that vulnerable people are being placed at risk as coronavirus cases rise across the country, reports May Bulman.

People who are awaiting a decision on their application to remain in the UK – including modern slavery victims and torture survivors – are required to regularly sign on at their local reporting location.

This requirement was temporarily suspended in March because of the pandemic, but over the last two months the Home Office has been sending texts to people stating that they must start reporting in person again “due to the easing of Covid lockdown measures”.

Campaigners have said the decision is placing some vulnerable and disabled people at risk, and that doing so at a time when coronavirus infections were rising suggested that the government was placing “more importance on looking tough on immigration than keeping people safe”.

[22 September 2020 23:13 · Chris Baynes]

Fauci issues warning over surging Covid cases as US death toll reaches 200,000

The US government’s infectious disease expert Anthony Fauci has warned the country must significantly reduce its daily average of new cases with simple public health protocols or risk another surge in infections, as the nation’s death toll for Covid-19 eclipsed the loss of more than 200,000 lives.

“The idea of 200,000 deaths is really very sobering and in some respects stunning,” Fauci told told CNN’s Sanjay Gupta on Tuesday.

“We have the capability to do things that we’ve been speaking about for so long … that could prevent the transmission, and by preventing transmission, ultimately preventing the morbidity and mortality we see," he added.

Fauci warned guidelines urged by public health officials for months – such as wearing face coverings, avoiding groups, physically distancing from others – “are not being universally implemented,” Alex Woodward reports.

[22 September 2020 23:59 · Chris Baynes]

We’re closing this live blog for the night and will be back with more rolling coverage in the morning. Thanks for reading.