Coronavirus - 26th February 2021

• The next phase of the UK's vaccine rollout will be based on age rather than occupation, with those in their 40s next in line
  
• There is a "moral duty" to put saving lives first in the rollout, Health Secretary Matt Hancock says
  
• Hancock tells a Downing Street briefing that the aged-based approach is "fastest and simplest way"
  
• The health secretary also calls on people to "stick at it" in terms of observing the stay-at-home rules
  
• "Do not wreck this now... it is too early to relax", England's deputy chief medical officer Prof Jonathan Van-Tam adds
  
• A further 345 people in the UK have died within 28 days of a positive Covid test - a fall of 35% compared with last Friday
  
• The Ivory Coast receives its first shipment from the global vaccine-sharing scheme Covax
  
• Covid-19 R number across the UK is 0.6-0.9 - that's unchanged since last week
  
• Vaccinating people in order of age is the fastest way to cut Covid deaths in the next phase of the rollout, experts say
  
• Police and teaching unions criticise the decision not to prioritise their professions in vaccine rollout
  
• Czech Republic is set to tighten restrictions again, amid a big surge in cases
  

Latest developments in the UK and around the world

• The Queen has urged the public to "think about other people" and get a Covid jab when they are offered one. The British monarch, 94, and the Duke of Edinburgh, 99, received their first doses of the vaccine in January
  
• It will be "impossible" for NHS Scotland to recover from the pandemic if senior staff cannot be retained, the British Medical Association Scotland says
  
• Delayed decisions and party politicking has undoubtedly cost lives during the Covid-19 pandemic, according to Northern Ireland Health Minister Robin Swann
  
• A British man has been sentenced to two weeks in prison and almost £550 for breaking quarantine rules in Singapore. Nigel Skea, 52 and from Southampton, left his room on three occasions in September
  
• Greece and Austria urge other EU states to adopt coronavirus vaccination "passports" which could help revive Europe's tourist industry
  
• Sri Lanka reverses a controversial mandatory order to cremate the bodies of all those who died of Covid-19
  

Friday's front pages focus on the Queen's vaccine comments

• A smiling Queen is pictured on many front pages after she encouraged people to come forward and get vaccinated.
  
• "It's selfish not to have the jab," is how the Daily Mail summarises her message which it describes as "historic" and "astonishing". It says it's "highly unusual for the sovereign to take such a firm public stand on contentious issues".
  
• "Do one's duty," is the Daily Mirror's headline which sees her remarks as a "stern rebuke to anti-vaxxers".
  
• The Daily Telegraph explains that it's been told by royal sources that it's the Queen's "passionately held belief" that everyone should get a jab. It draws a parallel with her decision in 1957 to let it be known that Prince Charles and Princess Anne had been given the polio vaccine to counter public fears.
  

Summary

• The French prime minister, Jean Castex, has warned the government will impose new Covid measures, including weekend lockdowns in Paris and 19 other regions, from the start of March if signs of the coronavirus accelerating persist. France has also agreed with Germany to require coronavirus tests for workers commuting across their shared border.
  
• South Korea has launched its vaccination campaign. The first injections of the AstraZeneca’s vaccine were given to nursing home workers and patients across the country.
  
• Japan will decide on whether to relax its state of emergency in five prefectures on Friday, a week ahead of schedule, after a dramatic fall in new cases across the country.
  
• The former British prime minister, Tony Blair, says the length of the Covid outbreak could have been cut by three months if world leaders had collaborated on vaccines, testing and drugs. Blair, who was Labour PM from 1997 to 2007, urged the UK to take the lead in developing a new “health security infrastructure” that would ensure countries coordinate better in identifying emerging new threats as well as developing, testing and manufacturing vaccines and treatments.
  
• The Queen has said her Covid vaccine “didn’t hurt at all” and urged those wary of receiving the vaccine to “think about other people”. The 94-year-old was vaccinated along with her husband Prince Philip in January, telling health officials leading the rollout in a video call that she now felt “protected”.
  
• The European commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has warned against virus fatigue in member states. At a virtual summit, she reassured EU leaders over vaccine distribution, saying she would ban vaccines from leaving the EU if suppliers failed to deliver again.
  
• In the US, Joe Biden has hailed the 50m coronavirus vaccine doses given since he took office, but warned that the country must not relax. “We’re halfway there: 50 million shots in 37 days,” Biden said, referring to his ambition of 100m doses in his first 100 days as president. “That’s weeks ahead of schedule.”
  
• New Zealand has reported one new community case of Covid-19, though the infected person has been in quarantine since February 23. The latest Auckland outbreak, now a dozen people strong, has seen Australia declare the city a “hotspot” and close its borders to New Zealand citizens. Air New Zealand has halted all flights to Australia until Sunday, pending review.
  

Brit jailed in Singapore over quarantine breach

Thousands sign petition against vaccine passports

EU urged to adopt 'vaccine passports'

First travellers can leave quarantine hotels

People aged 40-49 next in line for Covid-19 vaccine

'Evidence of faster decline in deaths in vaccinated people'

'Speed is most important factor'

Latest Europe headlines

• The EU is still lagging far behind Israel, the US and UK in terms of people vaccinated, so EU leaders have vowed to speed up deliveries and sort out the bottlenecks. The 29m vaccinated so far is 6.4% of the EU’s population. The bloc has ordered more than 2bn doses, for a total population of about 450m. But it is also committed to sending vaccines to neighbouring non-EU countries
  
• AstraZeneca CEO Pascal Soriot said shortages of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine were down to the “very complex biological process that involves thousands of elements to track”. He told MEPs “we are working 24/7 to increase capacity and deliver on these commitments”
  
• The AstraZeneca vaccine is not being given to the over-65s in France, Belgium and Germany. The authorities cite insufficient data on its effectiveness in the oldest age group. French President Emmanuel Macron has controversially voiced doubts about the vaccine, but on Thursday he said he would gladly have the AstraZeneca jab, if that was offered to him
  
• Dr Klaus Reinhardt, president of the German Medical Association, described the AstraZeneca vaccine as “just as effective” as the Pfizer and Moderna ones. However, more than a million AstraZeneca doses are currently in storage in Germany, as vaccination progress remains slow
  
• The Czech Republic is set to tighten restrictions again, amid a big surge in cases. The plan is to extend a state of emergency to the end of March, banning all but essential travel between regions and closing schools, reimposing distance learning. The European countries with the highest Covid deaths per million people are: Belgium (1,900), Czech Republic (1,850), Slovenia (1,830) and the UK (1,790).
  

Latest world headlines

• The US Food and Drug Administration’s vaccine advisory panel will meet today to decide on whether to authorise a coronavirus jab made by Johnson & Johnson, having already concluded it is safe and effective
  
• The government in Vietnam say they will acquire 150 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines, through Covax and direct purchases after health officials approved use of Russia's Sputnik V vaccine and the Moderna vaccine
  
• A group of diplomats from Russia had to make an unusual exit out of North Korea by using a hand-pushed rail trolley due to strict coronavirus restrictions on travel in and out of the country
  
• A British man has been sentenced to two weeks in prison for breaking Singapore's quarantine rules
  

UK infections continuing to decrease - ONS

South Korea starts vaccinations

Teaching union 'disappointed' by vaccine decision

'Absurd' not to prioritise police officers in vaccine rollout

Spotlight on Indonesia's private vaccines

Germany probes 'bribes for masks'

Wales to hit 1m vaccinations by tomorrow

R rate remains unchanged in UK

Yorkshire and Humber only England region where cases have not declined

Prioritising by occupation 'could have slowed down' vaccine rollout

What's been happening in the UK today?

• The next priority group for Covid vaccinations across the UK will be people in their 40s, who will receive their first dose once the current phase of vaccinations has been completed
  
• Prioritising by jobs rather than age would be "more complex" and could slow things down, the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation said - but there's been some criticism for this approach, including from teaching and police bodies
  
• Levels of coronavirus have continued to fall across the UK, according to Office for National Statistics data. The figures show that in the week to 19 February there were about 421,300 in the community who had the virus - it's a similar infection rate to how things were last October
  
• The R number in the UK remains unchanged at between 0.6 and 0.9, according to latest figures
  
• The Queen has urged the public to "think about other people" when they are offered a Covid-19 vaccination and take up the offer. She had her first dose of the vaccine in January and said it was "very quick"
  
• This year's Pride in London event is due to take place in September, organisers have said. Last year's Pride was cancelled due to the pandemic
  
• A British man has been sentenced to two weeks in prison for breaking Singapore's quarantine rules by leaving his hotel room to see his fiancee
  

'I felt more like a prisoner than a guest'

Poland raises age limit for AstraZeneca vaccine to 69

Sir Tom's funeral to be 'quite spectacular'

Kenya to receive first Covid vaccines next week

Vote expected on US virus package

Ivory Coast receives shipment of Covax vaccines

Thousands with asthma will feel 'angry and ignored'

Hong Kong begins its vaccination drive

UK deaths rise by 345

UK vaccination first doses surpass 19 million

Hancock to lead Downing Street briefing

The battle is not won, Van-Tam warns

Do not wreck this now, Van-Tam pleads

How are European countries tackling the pandemic?

Decline in US Covid cases 'may be stalling'

  President Biden:
The week before I took office, 6 million COVID-19 vaccine shots were administered. This coming week, our Administration will likely administer over 12 million shots. That’s double the pace in just six weeks.

Fears of a Covid-19 resurgence in Beijing

Austria interested in Russian vaccine

Canada authorises AstraZeneca vaccine

Coronavirus levels 'burning quite hot' in some of UK

Portugal extends lockdown until 16 March

Greece extends restrictions to other parts of country

What's happened around the world today?

• Greece and Austria are urging other EU states to adopt coronavirus vaccination “passports” which could help revive Europe’s stricken tourist industry.
  
• A group of diplomats from Russia had to make an unusual exit out of North Korea by using a hand-pushed rail trolley due to strict coronavirus restrictions on travel in and out of the country
  
• South Korea started its vaccination rollout on Friday with the first doses going to nursing home workers and some patients
  
• A German MP is being investigated on suspicion of large-scale bribe taking linked to the supply of Covid face masks. He has called the allegations “baseless”
  
• Poland is raising the upper age limit for people receiving the AstraZeneca vaccine to 69 from 65 due to limited vaccine supplies. At the start of February the Polish Medical Council recommended senior citizens should not be given the AstraZeneca vaccine in line with many other EU countries
  
• The Ivory Coast has received its first shipment of the vaccine as part of the Covax scheme
  

Evening round-up from the UK

• There's been much talk today of the UK's decision not to prioritise key workers like police officers or teachers for a Covid jab. Instead, it's been recommended that the quickest way to proceed is to prioritise people by age groups, with the next phase focusing on people in their 40s
  
• Health Secretary Matt Hancock said in a Downing Street press briefing that this is the "moral thing to do" as it will "save the most lives"
  
• During the briefing, England's deputy chief medical officer Prof Jonathan Van-Tam also warned it is "too early to relax" and that people must stick to lockdown restrictions
  
• A study at a hospital has found the Pfizer vaccine appears to slow the spread of coronavirus as well as preventing people getting seriously ill. The findings from Addenbrooke's Hospital, in Cambridge, support similar research by Public Health England, as well as an Oxford-AstraZeneca study
  
• Coronavirus cases in London have reduced "significantly" enough for Sadiq Khan to downgrade the Covid-19 "major incident" status in the capital. Residents have been urged to stay on high alert, however
  
• ITV has brought the final of this year's series of Dancing On Ice forward by a week after a string of celebrities pulled out through illness and injury, including one of the contestants testing positive for coronavirus
  
• The R number in the UK remains unchanged, at an estimated 0.6 to 0.9
  
• A total of 19,177,555 people have received their first dose of the coronavirus vaccine in the UK, according to the latest figures. A further 8,523 have tested positive for the virus, with another 345 deaths reported of people who had tested positive within the previous 28 days. Read more on the data here.