UK

Boris Johnson will make a statement to MPs on Monday, amid expectations that a three-tier local lockdown system will be introduced across England. New coronavirus restrictions for North West England could be implemented as soon as Wednesday, Sky News understands. During a meeting on Friday between local leaders and Westminster figures including the Housing Secretary,

The Queen’s birthday honours list is dominated by COVID-19 heroes, from famous faces such as Marcus Rashford and Joe Wicks, to key workers and volunteers who helped with Britain’s fight against coronavirus. The list would usually be released in June but was postponed to include people, such as medical workers and fundraisers, who have been

Hundreds of thousands of vulnerable people living in coronavirus hotspots could be told to “shield” this winter as infections continue to rise. Ministers are expected to outline a three-tier local lockdown system next week, which may see those most at risk if they catch COVID-19 being told to stay at home for a month. A

The UK has recorded 17,540 new coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours – 3,300 more than yesterday. Nottingham now has the highest weekly rate of new cases in England after more than 2,000 cases were recorded in the city in one week – this is the equivalent of 689.1 cases per 100,000 people A

Boris Johnson is expected to order tough new COVID curbs next week on pubs in northern England, which could include closing them altogether in Liverpool, Manchester and Newcastle. In an announcement that could come before the end of this week, the prime minister is expected to unveil a clampdown in response to alarming rises in

Amy Tinkler is the highest-profile gymnast so far to accuse British Gymnastics of ruling over a bullying and fat-shaming culture. The 21-year-old alleged she was called “fat” by one coach and celebrated for looking better after coming out of hospital after having food poisoning by another coach. The gymnast, who won a bronze medal at

Senior politicians from four major northern councils have warned the government that existing coronavirus restrictions are “not working”, describing some as confusing and others as counterproductive. Their intervention reflects growing divisions in politics and in the scientific community over how to tackle the growing number of infections. The letter to Health Secretary Matt Hancock was

The UK reported 14,542 new coronavirus cases on Tuesday – an increase of almost 2,000 compared with yesterday. It comes after several days of confusion as 16,000 cases in England were missed by the NHS Test and Trace scheme. Downing Street said that as of 9.30am this morning, 63% of the positive cases had been

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has defended encouraging people back to pubs and restaurants over the summer, prior to the government being forced to take fresh action to limit the spread of coronavirus. Mr Sunak’s “Eat Out To Help Out” scheme handed Britons discounted meals during August, as ministers attempted to restart the economy after the UK’s

Almost half of the nearly 16,000 people with coronavirus missed by the Test and Trace system still have not had their contacts traced, the health secretary has admitted. An “IT failure” within Public Health England – a problem with an Excel spreadsheet reaching its maximum size – has been blamed by ministers for a delay

There has been a delay in nearly 16,000 positive coronavirus results being added to the official figures, the government has announced. It comes as a further 22,961 lab-confirmed cases of the coronavirus were recorded in the UK, taking the total number to more than 500,000 since the outbreak began. The government said that, due to

The coronavirus pandemic “will be bumpy through to Christmas” and potentially beyond that, Boris Johnson has warned, as he said it is is “too early to say” whether local lockdowns are effective in bringing down infection rates. The prime minister was asked specifically about Oldham, which has seen its COVID-19 infection rate double despite being

There have been a further 12,872 lab-confirmed cases of the coronavirus in the UK, according to government figures. The figure, which was recorded as of 9am on Saturday, brings the total number of confirmed cases to 480,017 but a technical glitch may mean that the actual daily figure is somewhat smaller. The government said that,

“Significant gaps remain” between the UK and the EU as Brexit negotiations continue, the European Commission’s president said, but talks will continue in an attempt to strike a deal. On Twitter, Ursula von der Leyen said she has had a “good phone call” with Boris Johnson, during which they discussed how negotiations have been progressing

Liverpool, Warrington, Hartlepool and Middlesbrough have become the latest regions to enter local lockdowns, resulting in more than a third of the UK population living under heightened restrictions. The new restrictions on northwest England, similar to those imposed in the North East earlier this week, took effect from 12.01am on Saturday. During his announcement Health Secretary

There is “some limited evidence” that the recent sharp increase in new coronavirus cases in England is levelling off, the UK’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said. New cases of COVID-19 in England were around 8,400 per day in the latest week up to 24 September – down from around 9,600 per day during