Coronavirus - 26th January 2022

• A report into parties at Downing Street and in government during lockdown is expected to soon be handed over to Boris Johnson
  
• The inquiry, led by senior civil servant Sue Gray, is said to be largely complete and could be published in some form today
  
• Foreign Secretary Liz Truss tells the BBC No 10 has still not received the report but says Johnson has her full backing
  
• It is a pivotal moment for the PM as many Tories had said they would wait for the report before deciding whether to try to oust him
  
• The Met Police has now opened its own investigation into a number of events
  
• Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer says cabinet ministers need to ask themselves why they are still supporting the PM
  
• If more than 54 Conservative MPs submit letters of no confidence to a committee, Johnson will face a vote on his leadership
  

Good morning and welcome to today's live coverage of the coronavirus pandemic

• Boris Johnson said he welcomes a police inquiry into Downing Street parties and will help “draw a line” under matters. Earlier, Metropolitan police said they would begin investigating parties held at No 10 during coronavirus lockdowns. The development piles further pressure on the prime minister after fresh revelations of two more gatherings, including one to celebrate his birthday.
  
• Sue Gray’s inquiry report is reportedly set to come this week after the Met said there is no need to hold material back.
  
• The UK reported 439 deaths within 28 days of a Covid-positive test. That’s the highest tally since February 2021. Tuesday’s data showed 94,326 new daily cases. The figures are often higher on a Tuesday when most deaths at the weekend are included in the tally. Last Tuesday, 438 deaths were reported.
  
• The UK’s health secretary, Sajid Javid, said 77,000 NHS workers remain unvaccinated, and Covid policies – including on mandatory jabs for NHS staff – should be kept “under review”.
  
• Scotland will allow people to return to offices from Monday, in a “phased” plan announced by Nicola Sturgeon. The first minister asked employers to begin a phased return to work by introducing hybrid working next week after a continuing decline in Omicron variant cases in Scotland, in an update to MSPs at Holyrood.
  
• Italy’s daily cases have more than doubled in a day to 186,740. This is up from 77,696 a day earlier, the health ministry said. The number of deaths jumped to 468 from 352, though more tests had been taken in the past day than on Monday.
  
• In Germany, the anti-vaccination movement is ramping up, with thousands of people taking part in weekly protests across the country. More than 2,000 rallies were held on Monday.
  
• Russia has cut the isolation time for Covid contacts from 14 days to seven, amid a surge in infections driven by the Omicron variant. On Tuesday, daily cases reached the record high of 67,809, official figures show.
  
• Doctors have discovered an “antibody signature” that can help identify patients most at risk of developing long Covid.
  
• Malta will start to scrap a requirement for people to present a vaccination certificate for entry to restaurants and other venues from next month.
  
• Bars, restaurants and theatres in the Netherlands can reopen on 26 January, Prime Minister Mark Rutte said, further relaxing restrictions despite record infection levels.
  

• The US Department of Labor said it will withdraw its Covid-19 vaccine-and-testing requirement for large employers after the Supreme Court blocked the rule.
  
• An appeals judge has temporarily restored New York’s mask mandate on Tuesday, a day after a judge in a lower court ruled that Governor Kathy Hochul’s administration lacked the constitutional authority to order people to wear face coverings.
  
• Elton John has postponed two farewell concert dates in Dallas, Texas, after contracting Covid-19.
  

• South Korea’s daily count of new cases topped 8,000 for the first time, despite the recent extension of strict social-distancing rules.* Two years since its first infection, Australia recorded one of its highest number of Covid-related deaths in a day.
  
• Japan expanded regions subject to tighter curbs to cover 70% of the country, as the government tried to counter a record wave of Covid-19 cases caused by the Omicron variant.
  

• An Israeli government advisory panel has recommended offering a fourth vaccine dose to all adults, on condition that at least five months have passed since they received the third or recovered from the illness.
  

The Netherlands to ease restrictions, reopen bars and restaurants

The Netherlands has missed you.
Today we are taking a big step to further unlock the Netherlands. That feels contradictory while the contamination figures are going through the roof, and we have to be clear that we are taking a risk.

South Korea hits new daily case record

Two-thirds of people with Omicron in England had Covid before, study finds

The Czech Republic has recorded 39,614 new Covid-19 infections

Poland is another country setting Covid records

Denmark proposing to end all remaining Covid restrictions next week

Today so far

• Two-thirds of people recently infected with the Omicron variant say they had Covid previously, according to a new British study. Almost two out of every three Covid-positive participants reported having had Covid before, according to the findings published by the Imperial College London. “Among the 3,582 swab-positive individuals reporting whether or not they had had previous infection, 2,315 (64.6%) reported a confirmed previous infection,” the report read.
  
• The prevalence of Covid in the UK has fallen overall in recent weeks, but has risen in school-age children, say researchers who have warned the uptick could pose a risk to adults. The latest data from the React-1 study, which is based on more than 100,000 swabs from randomly selected individuals in England collected between 5 and 20 January this year, shows that the overall weighted prevalence of Covid was 4.41%
  
• Around nine in 10 young teenagers in the UK are likely to have Covid-19 antibodies, new analysis by the Office of National Statistics (ONS) suggests. The ONS figures are based on a sample of blood test results.
  
• The self-isolation period in Wales is to be cut to a minimum of five full days, the Welsh government has said. The new rules come in to force from Friday 28 January, and mean people will be able to end their isolation as long as they have two negative lateral flow tests on days five and six.
  
• Denmark aims to scrap all remaining Covid-19 restrictions next week, the most far-reaching easing of curbs yet seen among the Nordic countries.
  
• A wave of Covid record setting is going across central and Eastern Europe. Among countries setting new daily records for cases today are Germany, Poland, Hungary, the Czech Republic, Bulgaria, Russia and Romania. Russia has cut the isolation time for Covid contacts from 14 days to seven.
  
• Germany’s lower house of parliament is discussing the proposal to make vaccination mandatory later today. Options before lawmakers include requiring all adult residents to be vaccinated against Covid, or only those above 50, or merely requiring all those who have not been vaccinated to receive counselling.
  
• The Australian navy’s largest ship has docked at disaster-stricken Tonga and was allowed to unload humanitarian supplies in the South Pacific nation – despite crew members being infected with Covid-19, officials have said.
  
• South Korea’s daily new coronavirus cases has exceeded 13,000 for the first time, according to data from the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency.
  
• The US Department of Labor said it will withdraw its Covid-19 vaccine-and-testing requirement for large employers after the supreme court blocked the rule.
  

Austria ends lockdown on unvaccinated as pressure on hospitals eases

We came to the conclusion that the lockdown for unvaccinated people in Austria is only justifiable in the event of the threat of an imminent over-burdening of intensive-care capacity.

German parliament debates compulsory vaccination as Covid surges

Sweden extends pandemic curbs by two weeks as Omicron spreads

Scotland to relax strict work-from-home guidance from Monday

Elton John has Covid-19, postpones US tour dates

New record number of daily Covid-19 cases across Croatia

UK records another 102,292 Covid cases and 346 deaths

Sri Lanka reports 16 Covid-19 deaths on Wednesday, toll rises to 15,346

Peru PM tests positive for COVID-19

• Police in Berlin have been authorised to crack down on protesters wearing badges resembling yellow star badges and other symbols associated with the Nazi era at demonstrations against vaccine mandates or other pandemic restrictions.
  
  
• The Americas have seen their highest daily Covid caseloads since the pandemic began, and Omicron has clearly become the predominant variant, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) said. There were more than 8 million new cases, 32% higher than the previous week, while fatalities throughout the region increased by 37%, with 18,000 new deaths caused by Covid. The US continues to have the highest number of new infections, although cases decreased by nearly one million over the last week, the regional health agency said on Wednesday. Mexico’s southern states have seen new infections triple and Brazil has seen new cases surge 193% over the last seven days, PAHO said.
  
  
• The UK has reported a further 102,292 Covid infections and 346 deaths within 28 days of a positive test, according to the latest data from the government’s coronavirus dashboard. That compares with 94,326 cases and 439 fatalities in the 24 hours prior.
  
  
• Lower vaccination take-up among some ethnic groups in England contributes to an increased risk of Covid-19 death, particularly for people from black African and Caribbean backgrounds, new ONS research suggests. [see 1.08pm.].
  
  
• Sweden will extend its current pandemic measures by another two weeks, the minister for health said on Wednesday, as the Omicron variant is spreading at record speed. The curbs mean bars and restaurants have to close at 11pm and there is a cap of 500 people inside larger indoor venues. “We have an extremely high level of spread,” the health minister Lena Hallengren told a news conference. “The restrictions must remain in place for two weeks. If everything goes as planned and if the situation allows, the restrictions will be lifted after that.”
  
  
• In the UK, adults aged 18 to 69 who had received their first two vaccines appeared to be 41.1% less likely to report experiencing long Covid symptoms if they contracted the virus, according to new data from the Office for National Statistics.
  
  
• The lower house of the German parliament began debating proposals to either require or robustly encourage residents to be vaccinated, as a new daily record of 164,000 Covid cases was reported.
  
  
• As pressure on hospitals eases, Austria will end its lockdown for people not fully vaccinated against the coronavirus on Monday, though some restrictions on public life will remain. Since 15 November, those not vaccinated against the coronavirus have been under lockdown restrictions, meaning they are only allowed to leave their homes for a limited number of reasons such as shopping for essentials or working. The measure, which was suspended over Christmas, has been criticised as very difficult to enforce. However, while that restriction on their movement will be lifted, the unvaccinated will remain barred from taking part in a range of leisure activities including eating in restaurants or shopping for non-essential items.