Politics

It is “absolutely vital” that people in areas of England where the South African variant of coronavirus has been identified minimise all social contact, the health secretary has said. Speaking at the Downing Street news conference, Matt Hancock said the emergence of the COVID-19 variant was a “stark reminder the fight against this virus is

AstraZeneca is set to supply nine million more doses of its COVID vaccine to the EU after a high-profile row over shortages. European Commission President Ursula Von der Leyen announced the extra jabs will come in the first three months of the year, making a total of 40 million doses for that period. She said

Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit border arrangements became “collateral damage” in the EU’s “nasty row” over COVID vaccines, Ireland’s prime minister has said. Micheal Martin claimed EU officials were “blindsided” by the bloc’s dispute with drugmaker AstraZeneca when they acted to override part of the Brexit agreement, risking a hard border on the island of Ireland. Amid

Tony Blair has said the EU’s short-lived move to override the Brexit deal on Northern Ireland under its vaccine export controls was “very foolish”. The former prime minister, a vocal supporter of the UK remaining in the bloc, said Brussels’ action in triggering Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol to control the movement of

The EU “recognise they made a mistake” by invoking a Brexit deal clause to prevent coronavirus vaccine shipments entering the UK, Michael Gove has said. The bloc has faced widespread criticism after its short-lived move to override part of the agreement on Northern Ireland over export controls. And Minister for the Cabinet Office Mr Gove

Boris Johnson says he is “in awe” at the way parents have been been looking after their children during the pandemic. In an open letter, the prime minister says the COVID crisis has been “tough for all of us” but has “brought out the very best in a great many people”. “I’m particularly in awe

Prisoners in England should start being offered coronavirus vaccines from today, the prisons minister has told Sky News. “The vaccination rollout in prisons has commenced in Wales and should be commencing today in England,” Lucy Frazer said. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible

The SNP is facing fresh claims that senior party figures conspired against its former leader Alex Salmond.     One of its own MPs has told Sky News that high-ranking members of the party shared dozens of messages about the former first minister in a social media group chat, calling themselves the “Vietnam” group. In

Boris Johnson has dismissed the prospect of a second Scottish independence referendum and questioned “what it’s all meant to be about”. The prime minister called for a “focus on the issues that really matter” and urged Scottish voters to ignore “pointless constitutional wrangling”. “I think endless talk about a referendum without any clear description of

Boris Johnson is flying into a storm of protest with a visit to Scotland that First Minister Nicola Sturgeon claims is not an essential journey. The prime minister is heading to Scotland on a one-day trip aimed at highlighting the value of the United Kingdom in fighting the coronavirus pandemic. The PM’s controversial visit is

Schools in England will not reopen after the February half-term, the prime minister has confirmed. Addressing MPs in the Commons, Boris Johnson said there is not enough data to justify all pupils returning to the classroom. Instead, the prime minister said it was the government’s ambition for them to return from 8 March. Live COVID

Labour is calling for “wartime juries” – by slashing the number of jurors from 12 to seven – in order to help clear a Crown Court backlog of 54,000 cases. All four justice chief inspectors recently expressed their “grave concern” about the impact of the backlog on the criminal justice system in England and Wales.

Boris Johnson has told the country he is “deeply sorry for every life that has been lost” as the UK surpassed 100,000 coronavirus-related deaths. A further 1,631 people were reported to have died within 28 days of testing positive for COVID-19 on Tuesday, taking the total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic

Travel industry sources have told Sky News they expect mandatory hotel quarantine to be introduced imminently, as the government tries to suppress new variants of coronavirus. They anticipate an announcement could come as soon as Tuesday, but even those close to discussions remain unclear how broad the restrictions will be. Sources believe differing views among

Almost four in five of those aged over 80 have received a first dose of a COVID vaccine, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said. Speaking at a Downing Street news conference, Mr Hancock said the government was “on track” to meet its deadline of offering a first dose of a coronavirus jab to 15 million

The prime minister and education secretary are coming under increasing pressure to reopen schools. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson is expected to confirm this week that there will be no return to the classroom after the February half-term break and Health Secretary Matt Hancock has already refused to guarantee that schools would reopen before Easter. Rob