Summary for Wednesday, 26th May
- Ministers clarify advice for eight areas worst hit by Covid, after a day of confusion over whether new advice amounted to local restrictions
- Amended guidance asks people to minimise travel to and from hotspots - earlier advice said avoid non-essential travel altogether
- Transport Secretary Grant Shapps admits the communications "could have been clearer"
- Dominic Cummings, the PM's ex-senior adviser, is being questioned by MPs as part of an inquiry into "lessons learnt" in the pandemic
- Cummings says: "When the public needed us most the government failed"
- At PMQs, Boris Johnson defends the handling of the pandemic, saying "at every step" the government tried to "save lives" and "protect the NHS"
- He's due to be grilled for four hours - we'll bring you the headlines here but there is full coverage from our colleagues in a separate live page
- About a million people aged 30 and 31 in England are being invited to book in their first dose of a Covid vaccine
- Several French social media influencers say they have had a mysterious financial offer to spread negative publicity about the Pfizer vaccine
The latest headlines in the UK
- Advice has been updated for eight areas in England worst-hit by the Indian coronavirus variant after the government clarified it was not imposing local restrictions. Amended advice asks people to minimise travel out of the hotspots - rather than avoid non-essential travel altogether
- Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s ex-senior adviser, Dominic Cummings, will be questioned by MPs at 09:30 BST as part of an ongoing inquiry into "lessons learnt" about coronavirus. You'll be able to follow along on the BBC News website
- About a million people aged 30 and 31 in England are being invited to book their first dose of Covid vaccine
- Amateur choirs have said how they feel devastated after a rule change meant groups in England could only gather in groups of six people indoors and 30 outdoors.
What's happening around Europe?
- The Czech government today appoints its fourth health minister since the Covid pandemic began. Adam Vojtech was actually health minister at the start of the crisis and was widely praised for his performance but resigned because of a row over masks with the prime minister, Andrej Babis. The man Vojtech replaces - hospital director and plastic surgeon Petr Arenberger - has stood down following media reports into extensive property holdings he didn’t declare before he was appointed.
- Germany’s seven-day incidence rate has fallen below 50 cases per 100,000 people for the first time since October last year. The RKI public health institute says it’s now at 46.8. Another 2,626 cases have been reported in the past 24 hours.
- France’s academy of medicine has called for compulsory Covid vaccinations for a series of professions, including education, health and security and emergency services. It’s also recommended that jobs that involve contact with the public, such as hotel and catering, should require the Covid jab, as well as for anyone donating blood or organs.
- Serbia and Slovenia have agreed to mutually recognise each other’s coronavirus vaccination certificates. The deal covers vaccines yet to be approved by the EMA. The Sinopharm vaccine has been the most widely-used in Serbia, and the non-EU country has also begun producing Russia’s Sputnik V.
- Sweden’s state epidemiologist Anders Tegnell is confident infections are in decline, partly because of vaccinations and warmer weather allowing people to head outdoors. In some areas including Stockholm cases have fallen by 40% in a week. Tegnell says it’s a similar pattern to last year and he believes the decline will continue.
Today so far…
- The European Medicines Agency will announce on Friday whether it has approved the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus jab for 12- to 15-year-olds, the regulator has said. If approved, it will be the first vaccine to get the green light for young people in the 27-nation European Union.
- The US and other countries have called for a more in-depth investigation of the pandemic origins, after an international mission to China earlier this year proved inconclusive.
- France has set up extra Covid testing centres after a cluster of around 50 people in Bordeaux were found to be positive with a new virus variant described by the regional health authority as “very rare”.
- India’s total coronavirus infections crossed 27 million on Wednesday, swelled by 208,921 new cases over the last 24 hours, while daily deaths from Covid-19 rose by 4,157
- The Maldives will restrict movement to curb a surge in coronavirus infections that is putting pressure on the island’s healthcare facilities.
- Taiwan has reported its highest daily number of Covid-19 fatalities, with 11 deaths recorded on Tuesday, and tightened restrictions on the population.
- In Germany, the rate of infections continues to fall, reaching a seven-month low.
- AstraZeneca and Nipro Corp have signed an agreement to supply the British-Swedish company’s Covid-19 vaccine in Japan.
- The United Arab Emirates said vaccinations against Covid-19 will be mandatory for people attending all “live events” from 6 June.