Covid UK news – live: Supermarkets urge against panic buying amid ‘pingdemic’

The Independent’s Joe Sommerlad looks at the UK’s food supply after barren supermarket shelves have been seen across the country as staff absences prompted by app self-isolation orders rise.

Boris Johnson’s government will review its £27bn roads investment plan because of “fundamental” changes in travel patterns brought on by the Covid pandemic, the transport secretary has announced.

Grant Shapps said it was right to look again at the strategy to expand the road network – arguing that the rise in homeworking and online shopping was unlikely to be “fully reversed” even as the economy recovers from lockdowns.

“In the last eighteen months, fundamental changes have occurred in commuting, shopping, and business travel,” the minister said in a written statement on Thursday.

Adam Forrest has the details.

The UK has recorded a further 39,906 Covid-19 cases, the Government said.

A further 84 people have died, bringing the UK total to 128,980.

Separate figures published by the Office for National Statistics show there have been 154,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.

A passenger punched a bus driver after he requested him to wear a mask in northwest London.

Police released a CCTV image on Thursday of a man they want to speak to in connection with the assault, which took place in Harrow, and urged the public to come forward with information.

The incident happened at around 4pm on 5 May, when masks were mandatory indoors and on public transport, the Metropolitan Police said.

Charlene Rodrigues reports

There is no need for the public to be stockpiling products from supermarkets, the chief executive of the British Retail Consortium has insisted, amid concerns about the effect of self-isolation rules on the UK’s food supply chain.

Helen Dickinson told the PA news agency that there was “plenty of food in the country” despite reports of empty shelves in some shops.

“What we’re seeing is pockets of issues in specific places where case numbers are particularly high and the most important thing is that the government acts now before the situation does get more serious, so that we don’t see more empty shelves in more places,” Ms Dickinson said.

“So what we’re seeing is pockets of issues in certain parts of the country and that’s being driven by a perfect storm of various things all happening at the same time: summer, labour shortages in the lead-up to the opening up of the economy but most significantly, as the case numbers start to rise, more and more people are being asked to self-isolate.”

She added that there were lots of factors coming together to create problems but self-isolation was the “biggest issue” that retailers were raising.

Labour’s shadow health secretary has warned that high Covid case rates among 20- to 29-year-olds will “slow down” the UK’s vaccination programme after it was revealed that infections are at record levels this month in the group.

Commenting on The Independent’s article on the figures, Jonathan Ashworth said: “More infection amongst young people at just [the] time they should be getting jabbed.

“Not only bad for those getting sick with Covid, given you have to wait 28 days after infection for jab this is also going to slow down the vaccination programme…”

Stormont ministers have delayed final decisions on relaxing the majority of Covid-19 restrictions in Northern Ireland proposed for next week, according to the PA news agency.

Ministers reportedly gave the green light to two further relaxations at a meeting on Thursday but stopped short of ratifying a series of other planned moves.

From Monday, a cap limiting the number of households allowed to participate in 15-person outdoor gatherings will be removed and close contact services, such as hairdressers, will be able to accept walk-in customers.

PA understands that ministers have agreed to meet again on Monday and Thursday to consider whether to press ahead with other relaxations, such as allowing theatres and concert halls to reopen, that had originally been earmarked for next week.

They are due to receive updated health data ahead of their deliberations on Monday.

The government must produce a “clear, unambiguous list” of which workers will be allowed to avoid Covid self-isolation in order to keep the country running, Labour has said.

Shadow business minister Seema Malhotra accused ministers of being in a “tailspin” over the proposals, which are expected to be published later today.

“It makes sense to exempt certain fully vaccinated professionals, such as those working in emergency services, from self-isolation rules through a targeted test to release scheme to keep our country running,” Ms Malhotra said.

“But the government has made a mess of its own policy and is undermining the effectiveness of the rule change.

“If ministers don’t know or can’t decide what the plan is, how can employers possibly be expected to understand what’s required of them?”

She added: “The government must today come forward with a clear, unambiguous list of critical workers and a workable plan for how exemptions will be applied.

“This chaotic decision-making and make it up as you go along approach starts right at the top with Boris Johnson – it’s bad for public health and it’s bad for our economy too.”

Covid case rates among people in their twenties are at the highest-ever recorded level for all age groups in England, according to the latest figures.

Data from Public Health England showed that a total of 1154.7 infections per 100,000 people were recorded between 12 and 18 July among those aged 20 to 29.

Our science correspondent, Samuel Lovett, has the full story below: