22nd October – Coronavirus News Updates

UK STATISTICS

Total UK Cases: 8,641,221 positive tests
Latest UK daily figure: 52,009 new cases
Number in UK hospital: 8,142
New deaths across UK: 115
Total UK deaths: 139,146
England Cases per 100,000: 455.7
R number in UK: 0.9 to 1.1

Vaccine data:

Total 1^st doses given: 49,554,407 – 86.2% of UK aged 12+
Total 2^nd doses: 45,460,122 – 79%
Daily 1^st doses: 49,080
Daily 2nd doses: 26,365

Latest Cheshire East data:

Total Cheshire East cases: 48,247
New cases in past 7 days: 2,721 to 17 Oct
Total deaths: 861
Cases per 100,000: 703.7
R number in North West: 0.9 to 1.1

Coronavirus cases in the UK: daily updated statistics
The latest number of coronavirus (COVID-19) tests, cases and deaths in the UK. The way deaths are reported is based on a 28-day limit between the date of a positive lab-confirmed test and date of death.

Slides, datasets and transcripts to accompany coronavirus press conferences
Slides, datasets and transcripts from press conferences at 10 Downing Street in response to coronavirus

COVID-19: background information
Information on COVID-19 including epidemiology, virology and clinical features – updated with latest global case numbers.

The R value and growth rate
The R range for England is 0.9 to 1.1 and the growth rate range for England is -1% to +2% per day as of 15 October 2021

UK NEWS UPDATES:

Doctors call for Covid Plan B to start in England
An “unacceptable” level of Covid cases means ministers should trigger their Plan B for the pandemic in England, doctors say. The British Medical Association accused the government of being “wilfully negligent” for not reimposing Covid rules such as mandatory face masks. Daily UK infections have been above 40,000 for eight days in a row. Health Minister Edward Argar said the NHS is not under “unsustainable pressure” to justify restrictions. He told BBC Breakfast there were about 95,000 beds in NHS hospitals, with 7,000 occupied by Covid patients and 6,000 currently empty.

“We know how those numbers can rise swiftly, which is why we’re looking at that day by day, hour by hour. But at the moment we do have the ability to manage,” he said.

Government borrowing fell in September compared with a year earlier as the economy continued to recover from coronavirus lockdowns
Borrowing – the difference between spending and tax income – stood at £21.8bn, which was £7bn less than in September 2020. But the figure was still the second highest for September since monthly records began in 1993. Borrowing hit record levels during the pandemic. The government spent billions of pounds on emergency measures to protect wages, such as the furlough scheme, which wrapped up last month.

Tesla reports record sales and profits
Electric car maker Tesla has brushed off supply chain issues and the global microchip shortage to report record quarterly sales and profits. Revenues rose to $13.76bn in the third quarter of the year, up from $8.77bn 12 months earlier.

The company, led by billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk, posted a net profit of $1.6bn and sold 241,391 cars. “We achieved our best-ever net income, operating profit and gross profit,” Tesla said. The firm said China remained its main exporting hub and it planned to roll out a different type of battery in its standard vehicles worldwide. The new lithium iron phosphate batteries are cheaper than traditional batteries but offer lower range, Reuters reported. Analysts said this could help keep costs down and address part shortages.

Unilever warn of price rises
The company behind brands such as Marmite, PG Tips and Dove has said it will raise prices to cope with “elevated levels” of cost inflation which it expects to continue next year. Consumer goods giant Unilever said it had already taken “appropriate pricing action”. Unilever said this would continue across its global operations and within each of its product divisions. The company reported a 2.5% rise in sales for the third quarter. Growth was supported by a 4.1% increase in prices while the volume of goods sold fell by 1.5%. On Wednesday, the Office for National Statistics said that the UK consumer prices index (CPI) measure of inflation slowed to 3.1% in the year to September.

UK government secures groundbreaking COVID-19 antivirals
The new antivirals could be rolled out through a clinical study from winter.
Thousands of vulnerable patients could be taking ground-breaking COVID-19 antivirals this winter after the government announced deals to secure 2 new treatments. The deals made by the Antivirals Taskforce are a significant step in its ambition to secure at least 2 new effective treatments by the end of the year for those who have either tested positive for COVID-19 or have been exposed to someone with the virus. Should the treatments be approved by the UK’s renowned medicines regulator – the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) – thousands of NHS patients will be able to access the treatments to prevent the infection from spreading and speed up recovery time.
The 2 new antivirals are expected to be given to those most at risk from the virus, helping reduce the severity of symptoms and ease pressure on the NHS over winter.

REGIONAL & LOCAL NEWS:

North-West labour rates rise for third month in a row
Skilled self-employed labour rates have risen for the third month running in the North-West and London. Average weekly earnings for self-employed tradespeople in the North-West increased by 3.3% to £887 while in London rates increased by 1.8% to £938 during September. According to the industry’s biggest employment contract services firm, Hudson Contract, the two areas have become pinch points for this skills shortage, while across the rest of country as a whole, pay rates actually dipped in September.

Major investment programme progresses North-West hydrogen plans
A subsidiary of global chemical firm, Ineos, has announced investment plans to increase production of hydrogen from its Runcorn plant.

Inovyn, which has produced hydrogen by electrolysis at its site in Runcorn for over 100 years, is set to ramp up production as part of plans for a low-carbon industrial cluster and associated hydrogen fuel-cell infrastructure, HyNet North West, as part of the region’s efforts to achieve net-zero carbon. Inovyn’s investment will deliver dedicated on-site facilities for the purification and compression of existing low carbon, fuel cell quality hydrogen for subsequent loading and transportation and distribution to fuelling stations across the UK. The firm is Europe’ largest operator of electrolysis

SECTOR SPECIFIC CORONAVIRUS-RELATED NEWS:

BUSINESS:

Submit your Kickstart Scheme vacancies
Submit your Kickstart Scheme vacancies after you’ve received a successful outcome to your online Kickstart Scheme grant application.

CARE:

Adult Social Care Infection Control and Testing Fund: round 3
Sets out the measures that round 3 of the Infection Control and Testing Fund supports, including distribution of funds, conditions and reporting requirements.

COMMUNITY:

Private providers of coronavirus (COVID-19) testing
Lists of and information about private providers who have self-declared that they meet the government’s minimum standards for the type of commercial COVID-19 testing service they offer – updated the general list of providers.

CONSTRUCTION:

End of timber shortages in sight
Near record-breaking softwood timber imports have replenished stocks to a level needed to meet the demand surge from construction. This brings the prospect of an easing in supply bottlenecks once ongoing delivery issues from a shortage of HGV drivers are resolved. According to the Timber Trades Federation more than 7 million m³of timber and panel products were imported by the UK between January and July. This is nearly 2 million m³ above the same period in 2020, and half a million m³ above 2019 levels – the UKs last ‘regular year’ before COVID-19 – which is about an 8% increase.

HEALTH & WELLBEING:

Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey, characteristics of people testing positive for COVID-19, UK: 21 October 2021
Characteristics?of people testing positive for COVID-19 from the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey. This survey is being delivered in partnership with University of Oxford, University of Manchester, Public Health England and?Wellcome?Trust.?This study is jointly led by the ONS and the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) working with the University of Oxford and Lighthouse Laboratories to collect and test samples.

Wider impacts of COVID-19 on health monitoring tool
National monitoring tool that brings together metrics to assess the wider impacts of coronavirus (COVID-19) on health.

Regulatory approval of Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca)
Information for healthcare professionals and the public about Vaxzevria (previously COVID-19 Vaccine AstraZeneca) – added Guillain-Barré syndrome [GBS] as a very rare side effect.

PROPERTY:

Another jump in house prices confirmed by government figures
House price inflation accelerated to 10.6 per cent in August, up from 8.5 per cent in July as buyers rushed to beat the end of the stamp duty holiday.
Government figures from the Office for National Statistics data show that the average house price across the UK reached £264,000 in August, some £25,000 more than a year earlier. Yet again London saw the lowest annual growth – for the ninth consecutive month – with prices up 7.5 per cent annually but on a monthly basis prices jumped 5.6 per cent in August alone in the capital.

RETAIL:

John Lewis Cheadle one of 10 JL stores to open Christmas Emporium
The John Lewis department store has opened the doors to its Christmas Emporiums across 10 of its UK stores. The retailer is hoping to offer a one-stop Christmas shopping experience, with the emporiums hosting in-store events, festive workshops, and offering personalised gifting experiences. Some of the Christmas emporiums will also offer food experiences, including personalising a bottle of champagne with a photograph and Quality Street personalisation stations. Christmas Emporiums can also be found in John Lewis stores in Bluewater, Oxford Street, Peter Jones, Southampton, Trafford, Cribbs Causeway, Kingston, Milton Keynes and Newcastle.

TRAVEL:

Morocco bans flights amid Covid fears
Morocco has banned all flights from the UK over concerns about escalating Covid rates. The ban also applies to Germany, Netherlands and Russia, which will severely affect Morocco’s tourism industry just as it was recovering.

It comes as UK Covid rates in the last seven days reached 40,000 per day.

Royal Air Maroc said it would allow unlimited changes of ticket date and destination, free of charge until 15 December 2021 to the same or another destination.

The government is working on a means for children to show they have recovered from Covid and are fit to travel, the health secretary has confirmed.
At a press conference on Wednesday (20 October), Sajid Javid was asked about children who had contracted Covid and recovered before the offer of a vaccine and what the government would do to provide them with proof of recovery so they can travel during half-term and beyond. He replied: “In many countries where they have a vaccination rule for entry… they would treat anyone under 16 as being fully vaccinated, as the UK does. That doesn’t apply to every single country, so we are working on a plan that would give some proof of antibodies, but it will be up to the country the child is travelling to to decide to accept that.” How to quarantine and test at home if you’ve been in a red list country and have permission to quarantine at home
Quarantine and testing requirements for people allowed to quarantine at home after arriving in England from a red list country, including rules for their households – updated household quarantine section: added information on what household members should do if they will not be staying in the place of quarantine during the quarantine period; explained what household members must do if the traveller’s stay in the UK is less than 10 days.Added information about what the traveller and household members must do if the traveller tests positive for COVID-19. Added a new section on what to do if household members test positive for COVID-19. Updated the contact email address for MQS.

Summary of updates to international travel, October 2021
Changes made to international travel rules during October 2021.

Useful links:

Publishing information about your claimsIn January HMRC published the list of employers who claimed under the CJRS for periods from December onwards, on GOV.UK.

Repayment period for Bounce Back Loans extended to ten yearsBusinesses that took out government Bounce Back loans to help them through the Coronavirus crisis now have more time to repay. Companies will be contacted with options to extend the length of the loan from six to 10 years as part of a new ‘pay-as-you-grow’ initiative. The new proposals give businesses three new options:

1. Extending the length of the loan from six years to 10;

2. Making interest-only payments for six months, then repaying the principal on a phased basis with other interest-only periods;

3. Delaying repayments entirely for up to six months.

COVID-19 Winter Plan
The government’s plan for managing COVID-19 through the end of 2020 and into the start of 2021.

Government extends JRS furlough scheme at 80% for period of lockdown
The government has said the furlough scheme, due to have closed on 31^st October, would now be extended until December.

Check if your employer can use the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Check which employees you can put on furlough to use the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Calculate how much you can claim using the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Steps to take before calculating your claim using the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

Check if you can claim for your employees’ wages through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme

New National Restrictions from 5 November
Information on the new national restrictions, including what they mean for working from home and business closures, why they are being introduced and the financial support available.

Job Retention Bonus (JRB)
Employers are able to claim a one-off payment of £1,000 for every eligible employee furloughed and claimed for through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS), kept continuously employed until at least 31 January 2021 and who meets the other eligibility criteria. Claims can be made between 15 February and 31 March.

Become a Green Homes Grant Supplier II – Trustmark and PAS 2030The new Green Homes Grant will give over 600,000 homeowners in England up to £10,000 to install insulation, heat pumps, draft proofing and more to help households cut energy bills.

Check if you’re eligible for the coronavirus Local Restrictions Support Grant
The Local Restrictions Support Grant (LRSG) supports businesses that have been required to close due to temporary COVID-19 local lockdown restrictions imposed by the government.

Self-Employment Income Support Scheme grant extension
The grant is being extended from 1 November 2020. Find out if you’re eligible and how much you can get.

Hospitality venues in England are now legally required to enforce the rule of 6 or face a fine of up to £4,000.
Designated businesses and organisations, including hospitality, close contact services and leisure venues, will also be legally required to log details of customers, visitors and staff for NHS Test and Trace and required to display official NHS QR code posters under law

NHS Test and Trace service in the workplace
Guidance on the NHS Test and Trace service for employers, businesses and workers updated to reflect the new legal requirements for designated venues to collect contact details and display official NHS QR code posters from 24^th September

Claim money back through the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme
Find out how to claim the reimbursement for discounts given to diners with the Eat Out to Help Out Scheme. The Eat Out to Help Out Scheme closed on 31 August 2020 – the page updated with removal of registration links.

Kickstart Scheme
The Kickstart Scheme provides funding to employers to create job placements for 16 to 24 year olds.

Kickstart Scheme employer resources
If you’ve been offered Kickstart Scheme funding, you can use these resources to show your support for the scheme.

Kickstart Scheme employer contacts
List of regional contacts for employers applying for a grant through the Kickstart Scheme.

Coronavirus outbreak FAQs: what you can and can’t do
Frequently asked questions on what you can and can’t do during the coronavirus outbreak – guidance updated in line with new regulations coming into force on 4 July

Business Survey:
https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/dcms-coronavirus-impact-business-survey/dcms-business-survey-headline-measures

Apply for the coronavirus Future Fund
The Future Fund will provide UK Government loans to UK-based companies ranging from £125,000 to £5 million, subject to at least equal match funding from private investors.

Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme set to launch
Employers will be able to make claims through the Coronavirus Statutory Sick Pay Rebate Scheme from 26 May.

Government – Guidance on Returning to Work safely
https://www.gov.uk/guidance/working-safely-during-coronavirus-covid-19

Government – Setting out of Road Map to recovery – 11^th May 2020
Our plan to rebuild: The UK Government’s 60 page COVID-19 recovery strategy
The UK Government’s COVID-19 recovery strategy. The strategy sets out a cautious roadmap to easing existing measures in a safe and measured way, subject to successfully controlling the virus and being able to monitor and react to its spread.

Coronavirus Act 2020: status
A table setting out the status of each measure in the Coronavirus Act 2020.

Government – Financial Support
New 100% government backed loan scheme for small business

Government – Financial Support
CBILS – A guide to whether it may be the best options for a business

Government – Financial Support
Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme – online claims portal open

Government – Business Support:
Government launches new coronavirus business support finder tool

Government – Business Support Hub:
https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus/business-support

Government – Financial Support: HMRC has published guidance on how it will work out income and profits for the self-employed or those in a partnership who have lost profits due to coronavirus.

Government – Business Support:
https://www.businesssupport.gov.uk/coronavirus-business-support/

Government – Business Support: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19

Government – Financial Support: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-business-support-grant-funding

Government – Business Support: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/guidance-to-employers-and-businesses-about-covid-19/covid-19-support-for-businesses

Bank of England – Financial Support: https://www.bankofengland.co.uk/news/2020/march/the-covid-corporate-financing-facility

Cheshire and Warrington Growth Hub