Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus outbreak this Wednesday night. We have another update for you tomorrow morning.
1. Williamson apologizes to her for disrupting school and exams
Gavin Williamson has apologized to students for restricting learning during the pandemic. The secretary of education also said that every student would get “credible, strong results” – after an approach to determining degrees in England was criticized as “chaotic”. It follows a U-turn in Scotland on how degrees were estimated for exams. A-level and BTEC results are due Thursday morning across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Meanwhile, police in Manchester have warned students against running together and spreading the virus.
2. Recession is unusual, says Sunak
Chancellor Rishi Sunak says the government is “wrestling with something unprecedented” after figures showed the UK economy was suffering its biggest blow on record – as two consecutive quarters of decline were caused by the Covid-19 lockdown. The economy shrank by 20.4% between April and June compared to the first three months of the year.
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3. British death toll reduced by 5,000
The UK has seen one of the highest official deaths from coronavirus in Europe, with more than 40,000 people dying from the virus in early June. However, after a review of the way the figure is calculated, the government has announced that the official number has been reduced by more than 5,000 to 41,329. The recalculation is based on a new definition of who died at Covid in England – making England’s way of counting in line with the other UK nations. There’s more here.
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Suhail Patel
4. ‘We have been waiting for months for a flight fee’
A new report by consumer group Which? says airlines still take too long to return passengers. Among the unfortunate customers are David Hanson and Jemima Rodwell who had to cancel their dream trip to New Zealand due to Covid-19 in March – and are still waiting five months for their money back.
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David Hanson
5. How Ebola One Doctor Prepares for Covid-19
The Democratic Republic of Congo was still engaged in Ebola when Covid-19 arrived. But for staff of Doctors Without Borders Papy Dieya, learning important lessons from Ebola has helped him in treating patients with coronavirus.
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And do not forget …
… wearing a mask is mandatory in some circumstances, although the rules may differ in the UK nations. We have put together a user guide for wearing a face mask.
You can find more information, advice and manuals on our page with coronavirus.
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