Hospitals are struggling to cope in their worst week of the Covid-19 crisis so far as fears mount that another national lockdown could be just around the corner.
Coronavirus admissions are now higher than in the peak of the first wave of the pandemic.
A record daily high of 41,385 new cases was recorded on Monday, with some patients treated in ambulances as no hospital beds were available.
It comes as the tier system is due to be reviewed next on Wednesday, December 30, as millions continue to live under a strict Tier 4 lockdown, with "stay at home" restrictions in place.
However, with the situation changing so rapidly, the government may decide to move places from tier to tier before the official review date this week.
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A new 'Tier 5' lockdown is even being considered for England to tackle a steep rise in cases.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been told by scientists to introduce stricter measures after a dramatic rise in the number of people testing positive for Covid-19.
The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) has reportedly said a tougher lockdown should be imposed - including the closure of secondary schools - in January, according to Politico.
The Government said a further 357 people have died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Monday, bringing the UK total to 71,109.
The Government said that, as of 9am on Monday, there had been a further 41,385 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK.
It brings the total number of cases in the UK to 2,329,730.
For all of today's coronavirus updates, follow our live blog below.
Key Events
Critical London covid patients 'transferred to Yorkshire hospitals'
ntensive care patients in London hospitals could be transferred to Yorkshire as the NHS comes under immense pressure.
The Health Service Journal reports there have been requests to transfer patients out of ICU’s in the capital to several major hospitals in Yorskhire.
Whether those transfers have already gone ahead is not yet clear.
Record numbers of hospital patients across England
Five of the seven NHS regions in England are currently reporting a record number of Covid-19 hospital patients: Eastern England, London, the Midlands, south-east England and south-west England.
The other two regions, north-east and north-west England, remain below peak levels that were set in mid-November.
5,371 patients in London hospitals - higher than first wave
The number of Covid-19 patients in hospital in London is now higher than levels recorded at the peak of the first wave of the virus.
A total of 5,371 hospital patients were confirmed as having Covid-19 as of 8am on December 29, according to the latest figures from NHS England.
During the first wave, the number of patients in London peaked at 5,201 on April 9.
"Extreme concern" as Covid infection rate reaches "unprecedented levels"
Dr Susan Hopkins, senior medical adviser for Public Health England, said the “unprecedented levels” of Covid-19 infection across the UK was of “extreme concern”.
“Whilst the number of cases reported today include some from over the festive period, these figures are largely a reflection of a real increase,” she said.
“It is essential, now more than ever, that we continue to work together to stop the spread of the virus, bring the rate of infection down and protect the most vulnerable and the NHS.
“A critical part of this is each and every one of us abiding by the restrictions in place however hard it may seem at this time of the year.
“It is critical that we reduce our contacts, especially mixing between households. We must observe the basic measures — wash your hands, wear a mask and keep your distance from others.”
Over 53,000 new cases across the UK
The Government said a further 414 people have died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Tuesday, bringing the UK total to 71,567.
Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies for deaths where Covid-19 has been mentioned on the death certificate, together with additional data on deaths that have occurred in recent days, show there have now been 87,000 deaths involving Covid-19 in the UK.
The Government said that, as of 9am on Tuesday, there had been a further 53,135 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK.
It brings the total number of cases in the UK to 2,382,865.
First Pfizer vaccine patient has second jab
Margaret Keenan, who became the first person in the world to have the Pfizer vaccine as part of the mass vaccination rollout, has had her second jab, hospital chiefs have said.
The 91-year-old grandmother had her follow-up injection at Coventry’s University Hospital on Tuesday and was now at home and recovering well, the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust said.
Mrs Keenan, who has lived in Coventry for more than 60 years but is originally from Enniskillen, Northern Ireland, became the first person in the world to have the jab following formal clinical approval, on December 8, describing it as a “whirlwind” day.
Professor Andy Hardy, the Coventry and Warwickshire hospital trust’s chief executive, said: “We were delighted to welcome Margaret Keenan back to Coventry’s University Hospital today to safely receive the second dose of the vaccination after she became the first person in the world to receive the Pfizer Covid-19, following its clinical approval.
“Our hardworking staff who have been involved in the vaccination programme have remained in contact with Margaret’s family since that day and we are delighted that Margaret has been continuing to recover well at home following her discharge from hospital.
“It’s important that everyone comes forward to get the jab when they are invited to do so and, like other hospitals and GP surgeries across the country, we’ll be following the latest expert advice and evidence to invite people to get vaccinated at the time they need it.”
People should not visit each other's homes over New Year
People should not visit each other’s homes over New Year, Nicola Sturgeon has said.
The First Minister said the 1,895 cases recorded on Tuesday in Scotland – the highest daily number recorded – illustrated a rising trend.
She said: “We see quite a big jump in cases today from tests reported yesterday – 1,895 new cases. Now there may be a bit of a Christmas lag in that but it is nevertheless indicative of a rising, or what appears to be a rising, trend of cases again.”
She added: “That really must make all of us yet again sit up and take notice of this. We also think that the new strain is contributing to faster spread of the virus and so my main message to people really is to make sure that you are not visiting other people’s houses right now.
“That is the most important thing of all and, unfortunately, that includes Hogmanay and New Year.
“This year I know we are all desperate to kick 2020 into touch but we must do that safely and the safest way to do that this year is to be in our own homes with our own households.”
365 more deaths in English hospitals
A further 365 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in England, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths reported in hospitals to 49,225, NHS England said on Tuesday.
Patients were aged between 26 and 101. All except 12, aged between 43 and 92, had known underlying health conditions.
The deaths were between December 12 and 28.
There were 11 other deaths reported with no positive Covid-19 test result.
Scotland records another seven deaths over Christmas
Scotland recorded seven deaths from coronavirus between December 25 and 29, Scottish Government figures have shown.
It brings the death toll under this measure – of people who first tested positive for the virus within the previous 28 days – to 4,467.
The Scottish Government noted that register offices have been closed over the public holidays.
The figures showed 1,895 new cases of Covid-19 were reported on December 29.
The latest statistics show 122,786 people have now tested positive in Scotland, up from 120,891 the previous day.
The daily test positivity rate is 14.4%, up from 12.2% on the previous day.
There are 1,092 people in hospital confirmed to have the virus.
Of these patients, 65 are in intensive care.
'The faster we can roll out vaccination, the better'
Prof Ferguson also reiterated the importance of the vaccination drive, saying the Government’s target of two million doses a week is “what we need to be getting to very quickly indeed”.
He told the World At One: “The faster we can roll out vaccination, the better.”
Neil Ferguson outlines 'balancing act' needed to maintain 'some semblance of normal society'
Professor Neil Ferguson, a member of the Government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats advisory group (NervTag), told BBC Radio 4’s World At One programme there had been a “balancing act” since lockdown was initially eased to try to keep control of the virus while maintaining “some semblance of normal society”.
He said: “This new variant has just made that more difficult, we have even less wiggle room.
“Clearly nobody wants to keep schools shut.
“But if that’s the only alternative to having exponentially growing numbers of hospitalisations, that may be required at least for a period.
“There are no easy solutions here. My real concern is that even if universities, schools, do have staggered returns or even stay closed, how easy it would be to maintain control of the virus… is unclear now, given how much more transmissible this variant is.”
Government 'still planning staggered opening of schools' after Christmas
The Government is “still planning for a staggered opening of schools” after Christmas but is keeping the plan under constant review, Downing Street has said.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman told a Westminster briefing: “We’re still planning for a staggered opening of schools and we are working to ensure testing is in place.
“As we have said throughout the pandemic, we obviously keep all measures under constant review.”
The spokesman also confirmed that Health Secretary Matt Hancock would announce any changes to tier areas in a statement to the Commons on Wednesday afternoon.
Wales reports another 2,510 coronavirus cases and 33 deaths
There have been a further 2,510 cases of coronavirus in Wales, taking the total number of confirmed cases to 144,425.
Public Health Wales reported another 33 deaths, taking the total in Wales since the start of the pandemic to 3,416.
Challenge of balancing student wellbeing with community transmission
Chris Foley, head teacher at St Monica’s RC High School in Prestwich, Manchester, said it was a “huge challenge getting the balance right between supporting pupils’ wellbeing and reducing community transmission”.
He told the PA news agency: “I think our pupils, and hopefully parents, appreciate all the work that we have done to get our pupils back in routines for learning, but this continues to be labour-intensive.
“We do feel that we want our school to be open, and we are equally concerned by the impact of uncertainty on the pupils.
“We have wonderful year 11 pupils who just want to get on with their studies, take their exams and then move onto the next stage of their life.
“The disconnect between national policy, and then the delivery of policy directives at a school-level has been the most challenging part of this, to be honest.
“School leaders have embraced the role of community leadership during this interesting time.”
'We don’t know for sure' the impact of the new variant
Robert Halfon, chair of the Education Select Committee, has questioned whether the new strain of Covid-19 has as much of an impact as has been reported.
Speaking to Good Morning Britain, he said: “We haven’t had the advice from the chief medical officer and the chief science officer, previously they were saying time and time again that the risks to Covid for children were low and that there were marginal transmission rates.”
He added: “I asked a very senior public health England official only just before Christmas whether or not this new variant made a difference and he said there was no evidence for that.
“So what we need to do is hear from the chief medical officer and chief science officer what exactly is the scientific evidence, because at the moment we’ve had a few media reports, but we don’t know for sure.”
NHS is 'truly in the eye of the storm'
A senior nurse has said the health service is “truly in the eye of the storm” as Covid-19 infection rates continue to rise.
Professor Steve Hams, a chief nurse at Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, told BBC Breakfast: “We’ve had a 30% increase in the community transmission rate over the last week, we currently have 200 (Covid-19) patients in our hospital beds, 10 in critical care.”
During the first spike in April, the trust had had 60 Covid-19 patients, Prof Hams said.
He added: “We have seen that exponential rise. We truly are in the eye of the storm at the moment.”
“It has probably been one of the most challenging times of my 25-year nursing career but one that I am most proud of.”
One of the UK’s biggest teaching unions calls for schools to remain closed
The head of one of the UK’s biggest teaching unions has called for schools to remain closed until Covid-19 testing schemes have been set up properly.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) said: “Eminent scientists have said that schools should remain closed; that’s what unions I think have been responding to.”
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, he said: “None of this is to create problems because we know those tests are going to help more young people to keep from being disrupted – it’s a really good idea.”
Mr Barton welcomed the Government’s plans for soldiers to offer remote support for testing, but warned it was unlikely to be enough.
New Covid restrictions for England needed to prevent 'catastrophe'
National coronavirus restrictions are needed to prevent a “catastrophe” at the start of 2021, a member of the Government’s New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group (Nervtag) has warned.
Andrew Hayward, professor of infectious diseases epidemiology at University College London, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think we are entering a very dangerous new phase of the pandemic and we’re going to need decisive, early, national action to prevent a catastrophe in January and February.
“A 50% increase in transmissibility means that the previous levels of restrictions that worked before won’t work now, and so Tier 4 restrictions are likely to be necessary or even higher than that.
“I think we’re really looking at a situation where we’re moving into near lockdown, but we’ve got to learn the lessons from the first lockdown.”
Schools should remain closed 'week or two' after Christmas
Schools should remain closed for “a week or two” after the Christmas holidays to enable the effective rollout of coronavirus testing, an education chief has said.
Steve Chalke, founder of Oasis, one of the largest multi-academy trusts in England, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We would ask Government to pause, to come up with a clear strategy for the continuity of education.
“We think that means a short delay to think things through.
“We would suggest a week or two’s delay to think it through, to do it well – and we think that if you really care about kids you would do this well – to invest now, to give time now makes sense.”
Union boss calls for schools to remain closed until testing schemes are set up
The head of one of the UK’s biggest teaching unions has called for schools to remain closed until Covid-19 testing schemes have been set up properly.
Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) said: “Eminent scientists have said that schools should remain closed; that’s what unions I think have been responding to.”
Speaking to BBC Breakfast, he said: “None of this is to create problems because we know those tests are going to help more young people to keep from being disrupted – it’s a really good idea.”
Mr Barton welcomed the Government’s plans for soldiers to offer remote support for testing, but warned it was unlikely to be enough.
“We’re educationists, we can support the Government and it is good we are going to have some members of the Army,” he said.
“But for 3,500 secondary schools, 1,500 troops doing webinars probably isn’t the Government response that we were looking for.”
Hospital admissions now worse than the peak of the pandemic
Figures released by NHS England have revealed there are now more Covid-19 patients in NHS hospitals in England than there were during the April peak of the first wave.
The data showed there were 20,426 patients in NHS hospitals in England as of 8am on December 28, compared to the 18,974 patients recorded on April 12.
Hospitals becoming 'very, very busy'
NHS hospitals are “very pressurised” and “very, very busy” because of the surge in coronavirus cases, the head of a London NHS trust has said.
Matthew Kershaw, chief executive of Croydon Health Services NHS Trust, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “We have expanded our capacity here in Croydon, as have hospitals around the capital and indeed across the country.
“So we have increased our critical care capacity, we’ve also got expansion capacity for general beds as well.
“So we have responded, thus far, well to the needs of our population.”
He added: “It is very, very busy… and it’s a really important and difficult moment but we are responding well at this moment.”
