Covid UK news – live: Sajid Javid tests positive amid warnings of autumn lockdown

Following a rise in new coronavirus infections on the popular holiday island of Mykonos, Greece has banned music in restaurants and bars.

The country’s civil protection ministry said music would be banned on the island around the clock. The ministry added that movement around the island would be restricted between 1am and 6am – only those going to and from work, or traveling for health reasons will be allowed to do so.

“We call on the residents, visitors and professionals on our beautiful island to strictly follow the measures … so that we can quickly control and contain the spreading of the virus and Mykonos can return to normality,” the ministry said.

The restrictions are set to last until 26 July.

Because of rising infections in recent weeks, the government has been forced to implement stricter coronavirus restrictions across the country, including mandatory vaccination for healthcare workers and nursing staff.

In the hospitality industry, only vaccinated customers are permitted indoors at restaurants and clubs.

In a video posted to his twitter account, health secretary Sajid Javid announced that he has tested positive for Covid-19 and is awaiting results from a PCR test to confirm the results from a lateral flow test taken this morning.

Mr Javid said: “Hi everyone, I just wanted to update you all that I’ve tested positive for Covid. I was feeling a bit groggy last night so I took a lateral flow test this morning and it’s come out positive.

“So I’m now self isolating at home with my family until I get the results of a PCR test. I’m grateful that I’ve had two jabs of the vaccine, and so far, my symptoms are very mild.

“And I also want to take this opportunity to thank everyone that’s been involved in our national vaccine roll out programme. Truly, the best of its kind anywhere in the world.

“If you haven’t had your jabs yet, please get out there and have them as soon as you can.

“And if like me, you might feel a bit groggy, or you think you might have come into contact with someone who’s positive, please also take a lateral flow test.

“If everyone plays their part, you’re not only protecting yourself and your loved ones, you’re also safeguarding the NHS and helping to preserve our way of life.”

Despite having received both Covid Jabs, health secretary Sajid Javid has tested positive for Covid 19.

On Saturday, Russia reported 25,116 new Covid-19 infections, bringing the complete tally to 5,933,115 since the pandemic began.

The Russian government’s coronavirus task force said 787 people had died of coronavirus-linked causes over the past 24 hours bringing the country’s official death toll from the virus to 147,655.

Russia’s federal statistics agency has kept a separate tally for coronavirus deaths, recording around 290,000 deaths related to the pandemic from April 2020 to May 2021.

Like many countries, Russia is currently experiencing a surge in cases because of the Delta variant.

France is adapting its border measures to require travellers who are not fully vaccinated arriving from the UK, Cyprus, Spain, Greece, the Netherlands and Portugal to complete a PCR or antigen test less than 24 hours before embarking on their journey.

Jean-Baptiste Leymoyne, France’s tourism minister, tweeted about the new measures on Saturday morning.

“We are adapting border measures to fight the virus,” he said, before listing the countries and the additional test requirements.

In a second tweet he added that constraints had been lifted for travellers who had been fully vaccinated with vaccines recognised by the European Medicines Agency – Pfizer/BioNTech, AstraZeneca, Moderna and Johnson&Johnson – and advised against travelling to the 24 “red list” countries.

A final tweet in the series said that Tunisia, Mozambique, Cuba and Indonesia had been added to France’s “red list”.

France will allow international travellers who have been vaccinated with AstraZeneca’s Indian-manufactured vaccine to enter the country starting Sunday.

The move comes after a global outcry over the EU’s decision to only recognise AstraZeneca vaccines manufactured in Europe.

Several other EU countries have also accepted the Indian version of the vaccine which has been widely used in the UK and across Africa.

France only recognises vaccines authorised by the EU drug regulator – those made by Pfizer/BioNTech, Moderna, Johnson&Johnson and AstraZeneca; it does not recognise Russian and Chinese Covid vaccines.

The Beta variant, first identified in South Africa in 2020, has been deemed a “variant of concern” by the World Health Organisation.

Similar to the Alpha, Gamma and Delta strains, it has been found to be more contagious, more virulent, and more resistant to vaccines than the original strain of the virus.

Professor John Edmunds, of the government’s Sage advisory committee, told BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme that the Beta variant had remained a threat throughout the pandemic.

He added that while it was likely less infectious than the Delta variant dominant in the UK, it was more able to escape vaccine immunity.

Although the Beta variant appears to be responsible for the UK government’s decision to continue to require fully vaccinated Britons returning from France to quarantine for 10 days from 19 July, it does not appear to make up a large proportion of Covid cases in France.

According to the French government’s Tous Anti Covid app, circulation of the Beta variant is low in metropolitan France, with 88 cases in the four weeks to 1 July, and cases of the variant are declining. In recent weeks, it made up just 3.4 per cent of all cases.

It appears to be responsible for the majority of cases in La Réunion, a French island in the Indian Ocean.

My colleague Lamiat Sabin reports.

Fans were permitted entry into Wembley Stadium for the last rounds of Euro 2020 without needing to prove their Covid status, The Independent has learned.

For the tournament’s final and semi-final matches, the UK’s largest stadium was allowed to operate at three-quarters capacity, welcoming more than 60,000 fans, after hundreds of fans who attended the lower-capacity group stage match tested positive for the virus.

While the government said those attending the high-profile matches would require proof of a negative test or full vaccination, ticket-holding fans have told The Independent they were allowed into the stadium without being properly checked.

Stewards were accepting screenshots of vaccine certificates or emails confirming lateral flow tests, without scanning QR codes for confirmation.

Keith Maple, who has tested positive for coronavirus since attending the semi-final and final games at Wembley said: “They didn’t ask for ID, nor did they scan the screen. For Track and Trace there is no way of saying I have Covid and I was in the stadium that day,”

The Beta variant of coronavirus poses a “threat” to the UK as evidence suggests it may evade the effect of vaccines, a scientist advising the government has warned.

Professor John Edmunds, of the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said he understood how concerns over the variant led to the last-minute U-turn on self-isolation for fully vaccinated travellers returning from France.

Speaking on BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme, Prof Edmunds said: “The Beta variant has remained a threat throughout. It is probably less infectious than the Delta variant that is spreading here in the UK at the moment.

“Where it has an advantage is that it is able to escape the immune response to a better extent.”

“As the population here becomes more and more immune, the conditions are right then for the Beta variant to get an advantage, so I can understand the concern.”

“Of the variants that are out there and are known about, that one has always been a threat to us. There is some good evidence from South Africa that it can evade the immune response generated by the AstraZeneca vaccine more efficiently.”

A coronavirus outbreak has hit a Scottish prison, with nearly 100 inmates infected so far.

The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) said that 97 prisoners at HMP Perth had tested positive for the virus, adding that mass testing is now underway as everyone living in the facility is now isolating.

During this period of isolation and testing, inmates will not have access to courts, lawyers, or family visits, but will be allowed fresh air and showers, as well as the use of mobile phones, SPS said.

The facility is home to male offenders on remand alongside short and long-term offenders, and holds an average of 678 prisoners per day.

“The safety and wellbeing of all those living and working in our establishments is a priority for the Scottish Prison Service,” a spokesman said, adding that a further update would be provided on Monday.