World News – GB – Nationwide lockdown needed, adviser says, as West Midlands face level 3

Experts have warned that a second nationwide lockdown is needed as soon as possible, as UK coronavirus cases approach 100,000 every day

Government science adviser Dr Mike Tildesley has said that some sort of national lockdown – « a circuit breaker, or something » – would have more effect than subjecting the whole country to restrictions on level 2

A study from the University of Warwick estimated that there were around 96,000 new infections per day between October 16 and 25 Meanwhile, a Birmingham local council leader said he is  » inevitable ‘that town will move to level 3 restrictions as infections and the number of people taken to hospital continue to rise in the West Midlands

The local authority areas of the Highlands, Moray, West Isles, Orkney and Shetland Islands in Scotland will be at the second lowest level of restrictions, Nicola Sturgeon announced

The prime minister said the ban on meeting indoors will continue for now, but she hoped authorities would lift it during the November 10 review

No local authority area will be in level 0, the lowest proposed by the Scottish government

Aberdeenshire, Aberdeen, Fife, the Borders, Dumfries and Galloway, Argyll and Bute, Perth and Kinross and Angus will be at level 2 restrictions

She told MSPs that a « finely balanced » decision had been made to place the Borders and Argyll and Bute at Level 2 rather than Level 1, which she said was due to their proximity to areas where the level of coronavirus was higher

Nicola Sturgeon announced that new coronavirus restrictions for Scotland would begin on Monday, with the central belt, Dundee, Inverclyde and Ayrshire placed at level 3; Aberdeenshire, Fife, the Borders, Dumfries and Galloway at level 2; and the Highlands and a large part of the islands at level 1

Scotland has recorded 37 coronavirus deaths and 1,128 positive tests in the past 24 hours, Ms Sturgeon said

The prime minister said the death toll under the measure – of people who tested positive for the virus for the first time in the past 28 days – has risen to 2,791

She said the new tiered restriction system would go into effect at 6 a.m. on Monday

When is a bar not a bar? Social clubs such as working men’s establishments and bars affiliated with political parties still serve alcohol under an apparent loophole in coronavirus restrictions, it emerged Our correspondent in the north of England, Colin Drury , investigating how they are allowed to do this:

President Vladimir Putin said on Thursday that Russia’s experimental Covid-19 vaccines are effective and that his country hopes to start mass vaccinations by the end of the year M Putin was speaking via video link to an investor forum in Russia

The Scottish government has introduced a new exemption card for people who cannot wear face coverings in shops or other public places due to health issues or disability

Pret a Manger distanced itself from founder Julian Metcalfe after urging the government not to institute another lockdown to save « a few thousand lives »

M Metcalfe, which sold its remaining stake in the coffee chain last year but still owns a majority of the high street restaurant Itsu, sparked an angry backlash online after being quoted in the Daily Mail as saying:  » redo it (lockdown) to save a few thousand lives of very old or vulnerable people « 

Pret later tweeted: « We are aware of Julian Metcalfe’s comments this morning, but he hasn’t run the company for over ten years and we don’t share his opinion

« At Pret, we strongly believe that we must take action to stop the spread of the virus and tackle the new wave of infections »

Home Secretary Priti Patel has said the government cannot rule anything out regarding coronavirus restrictions – including a nationwide lockdown

When asked if she would rule out another national lockdown, she said: ‘Well I think at this point of course we can’t rule anything out because we are a government that is striving to make sure that we stop the spread of this virus, and also we protect public health

« So we have used, and we are using and will continue to use, every means at our disposal to do just that »

Airbus warned that the recovery of global air transport was slower than expected after revealing big losses

The company’s third quarter results show that Airbus lost € 2.7 billion (£ 2.5 billion) in the first nine months of 2020

President Vladimir Putin has said Russia has no plans to impose general restrictions or a nationwide lockdown to curb an increase in coronavirus cases in that country

Speaking at an investor forum, he said Russia will impose targeted measures in response to the pandemic – if necessary

Leading hotelier and Conservative Party donor Sir Rocco Forte has accused the government of ‘completely overreacting’ to the coronavirus restrictions

The 75-year-old claimed the government had created a ‘grim situation’ for the UK hotel industry with its pandemic measures

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Birmingham, West Midlands, Lockdown, Coronavirus, Midlands