Politics

The list of sectors able to avoid quarantine as part of a pilot scheme is being extended – and the number of testing sites across England is being increased. To support the expansion of the daily testing pilot scheme, some 1,200 new sites are being added to 800 already in operation. The expanded scheme will

University students could need to be fully vaccinated against coronavirus to attend lectures and stay in halls this coming academic year. “We aren’t ruling it out,” a senior government source told Sky News about the prospect of mandating COVID-19 vaccination passports for universities. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world Please use

The UK’s former cyber security chief has raised the alarm over the sale of a Welsh microchip manufacturer to a Chinese-backed company. Ciaran Martin, the former chief executive of the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC), said the purchase of Newport Wafer Fab by Nexperia, a Dutch subsidiary of the Chinese company Wingtech, poses a greater

The health secretary has apologised for saying people should no longer “cower from” coronavirus. Sajid Javid said he had deleted the tweet, which he posted on Saturday to say he had made a “full recovery” a week after testing positive for COVID-19. Live COVID updates from the UK and around the world I’ve deleted a

Throughout his life and political career, Boris Johnson has believed the rules don’t apply to him. And as he marks his second anniversary as prime minister this weekend, it seems nothing’s changed. It was a claim first made by one of his masters at Eton. And the view was reinforced as recently as last Sunday

Boris Johnson is facing growing pressure to allow fully vaccinated people who have been identified as close contacts of coronavirus cases to be exempt from isolation. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has joined business leaders in calling for more workers to be allowed to skip quarantine if they are alerted by the NHS COVID-19 app to

The government has released more details about which fully-vaccinated workers may be exempt from isolation if they are told to quarantine after coming into contact with a positive COVID case. On Thursday evening, the government published a list of 16 sectors which the new guidance of completing daily coronavirus tests rather than quarantining would apply

Emergency measures to exempt food supply chain workers from coronavirus self-isolation rules will not be extended to other businesses, Environment Secretary George Eustice has told Sky News. On excluding other sectors such as hospitality, the cabinet minister said he understood it was frustrating, but stressed the need to “dampen the pace and velocity” at which

A Labour MP has been asked to leave the House of Commons for the remainder of the day after refusing to withdraw claims that Boris Johnson has “lied” to the country “over and over again”. Former shadow minister Dawn Butler told MPs that “poor people in the country have paid with their lives because the

The government is “very concerned” about the numbers of people being pinged by the NHS app, the business secretary has told Sky News. Speaking to Kay Burley, Kwasi Kwarteng said ministers were “monitoring” the situation and would be setting out a list of exempt critical workers “very soon”. Live COVID updates from the UK and

NHS workers in England will get a pay rise of 3% backdated to April 2021, the government has announced. Those receiving the increase include nurses, paramedics, consultants, dentists and salaried GPs. They are being recognised for their pandemic contribution during an “unprecedented year”, says the Department of Health and Social Care. In a statement, Health

Five Tory MPs breached the code of conduct by trying to influence the trial of former MP Charlie Elphicke, the Commons Standards Committee has ruled. The MPs include Elphicke’s former wife Natalie Elphicke, Sir Roger Gale, Theresa Villiers, Adam Holloway and Bob Stewart. Three of them – Ms Elphicke, Sir Roger and Ms Villiers –

The government will not draw up a list of critical jobs that will be exempt from full self-isolation if workers are “pinged”. Instead, employers will have to apply to government departments to allow workers to effectively circumvent the rules. Boris Johnson announced on Monday that critical workers, who have been fully vaccinated for at least

A minister has not explicitly ruled out the prospect of the government requiring vaccine passports for people to go to pubs. Business minister Paul Scully told Kay Burley that ministers are “not saying crowded pubs at all” in addition to plans to require people to prove their COVID-19 vaccine status to enter nightclubs and other

Downing Street has said the prime minister was already at his country retreat when he was contacted by NHS Test and Trace and told to isolate – as Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer labelled Boris Johnson and Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s initial decision to “dodge” quarantine as “crass and insensitive”. According to the prime minister’s official

A senior minister has told Sky News he is “confident” the government is doing the right thing by lifting almost all coronavirus restrictions in England, as a top World Health Organization (WHO) envoy warned: “This virus hasn’t gone away.” Vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi said now is “as good a time as any” to lift most

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak have performed a dramatic U-turn and announced they will no longer dodge self-isolation after a fellow minister tested positive for COVID. The prime minister and the chancellor performed a full reversal little more than two-and-a-half hours after it was announced they would make use of a Downing Street pilot scheme

Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak will not be isolating despite being ‘pinged’ after Sajid Javid’s positive COVID test, Downing Street has said. After Mr Javid, the newly-appointed health secretary, contracted coronavirus and went into quarantine, it was thought a number of other ministers and officials might also have to self-isolate. But Downing Street said Mr

Health Secretary Sajid Javid has tested positive for coronavirus and has mild symptoms, he has said. In a tweet, he wrote: “This morning I tested positive for Covid. “I’m waiting for my PCR result, but thankfully I have had my jabs and symptoms are mild. “Please make sure you come forward for your vaccine if

More than 35 million people, including secondary school pupils, will be offered a free flu vaccine this winter under plans announced by the government. The biggest flu programme in the country’s history will be launched in September, the government said, and will build on the success of last year’s expanded scheme which saw a record