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The COVID Diaries – 184 8th October

Donald Trump claimed today that Democratic nominee Joe Biden would either die or be overthrown by “communist” forces in his own party if he is elected in November.

“Joe’s not lasting two months as president,” the sitting President told Fox Business during a bizarre morning telephone interview.

The comment came after he was asked to review Democratic vice presidential nominee Kamala Harris’ Wednesday night debate performance and he claimed she was “a communist.”

Speculation from observers is that Trump’s behaviour may be a side effect of the steroids he’s taking having tested positive for the coronavirus.

The COVID Diaries – 183 7th October

Where Scotland leads, will England follow?

After Nicola Sturgeon announced a crackdown on indoor drinking in Scotland, there is speculation that restrictions on pubs and restaurants will follow in the north of England.

Government ministers will meet on Thursday to try and agree which measures should be imposed. Public health officials are reported as being alarmed by a 60% rise in hospital admissions in the north-east in recent days.

The COVID Diaries – 182 6th October

Three of the UK’s largest universities have called a halt to face-to-face teaching as the coronavirus spread rapidly through students as they started the new term.

More than 5,000 cases of Covid-19 among students and staff have been confirmed including over 1,000 at Manchester University.

The COVID Diaries – 181 5th October

There has been cross-party anger with the health secretary, Matt Hancock, after it emerged that official figures missed 15,841 positive results due to a “catastrophic” data error.

It is estimated that 50,000 people who were in close contact with someone with coronavirus have been circulating in the community for days when they should have been in quarantine.

About half of the 16,000 missed cases are thought to have been in north-west England, where the added cases saw Manchester’s infection rate double to more than 500 cases per 100,000 people as it became the worst-hit part of the country.

The COVID Diaries – 180 4th October

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned that as the United Kingdom deals with the coronavirus it may be “bumpy through to Christmas”.

Speaking to the BBC’s Andrew Marr, he said the government was taking a “balanced” approach between saving lives and protecting the economy.

Today more than 10,000 new cases were announced in the UK for the first time since mass testing began.

The COVID Diaries – 179 3rd October

There are contradictory comments today about the health of President Donald Trump. The president’s doctor, Dr Sean Conley said Mr Trump was “doing very well.

However, White House Chief of Staff Mark Meadows told reporters that Mr Trump went through a “very concerning” period on Friday, and said the next 48 hours will “be critical” to his care.

There is also uncertainty about when Donald Trump tested positive. At a press conference Dr Conley suggested Mr Trump learned of his diagnosis 72 hours ago. According to White House officials, and a later statement by Dr Conley, he meant to say that Mr Trump was three days into his illness, and that he tested positive on Thursday night

The COVID Diaries – 178 2nd October

The Guardian has reported:

“America’s leadership has been plunged into extraordinary uncertainty after Donald Trump tested positive for the coronavirus, raising questions over how far the infection has penetrated the heart of government.

“The US president continued to carry out his duties under quarantine from the White House residence on Friday and was showing “mild symptoms” of Covid-19, an official said. But his election campaigning was on hold.

“The virus can take several days to manifest fully and Trump, aged 74 and clinically obese, is medically vulnerable. Should he be incapacitated, Mike Pence, the vice-president, who has tested negative, would take over. A presidential election takes place on 3 November.

“Trump, who has spent months defying science and downplaying the threat of a virus that has killed more than 205,000 Americans, was also facing criticism for pressing ahead with a campaign fundraising event after learning that a senior aide, Hope Hicks, had tested positive.

“One attendee said the president came into contact with about a hundred people at the fundraiser in Bedminster, New Jersey, on Thursday and “seemed lethargic”, the New York Times reported.”

The COVID Diaries – 177 1st October

The fallout from the first presidential debate in the US continues as Trump’s campaign accused the nonpartisan Commission on Presidential Debates of political bias. At the same time, in contradiction of all the main polls, they claimed the president won Tuesday’s debate.

Meanwhile Fox News host Chris Wallace, who moderated the first debate, said on his programme that Trump “bears the primary responsibility for what happened” due to his continual interruptions.

The president “was determined to butt in and throw Joe Biden off,” Mr Wallace said, adding that he had initially — and mistakenly — believed the debate’s rules would lead to a productive evening of presidential discourse.

The COVID Diaries – 176 30th September

Today, chief scientific officer Sir Patrick Vallance has warned that the coronavirus pandemic is not “under control”, adding that “things are definitely heading in the wrong direction”.

Asked at today’s Downing Street coronavirus press conference whether he had concerns that the government wasn’t moving quickly enough to combat the pandemic, Sir Patrick replied: “It’s very clear that’s rates are going up – we don’t have this under control at the moment.

The COVID Diaries – 175 29th September

Prime Minister Boris Johnson says he “misspoke” after wrongly suggesting the “rule of six” limiting public gatherings does not apply outdoors in north-east England, adding to confusion about the latest lockdown rules.

His mistake came after skills minister, Gillian Keegan, was unable to answer the question of whether households in north-east England would be able to meet in a pub or restaurant garden.

An hour and a half later, the prime minister tweeted, “apologies: I misspoke today,” and stressed that in north-east England, individuals from different households “cannot” meet in any indoor social setting, and should “avoid socialising with other households outside”.