Coronavirus: Nationwide restrictions in England cannot be ruled out, Hancock says

More than 24.7 million cases of coronavirus have been recorded worldwide with more than 837,800 deaths, according to the latest data from Johns Hopkins University.

The following is a summary of the latest developments on the virus around the world:

UK

Nationwide restrictions cannot be ruled out should England see a spike in coronavirus cases this winter, the UK’s health secretary has warned. Matt Hancock also hinted that restrictions may not be eased over Christmas to avoid an “uptick” in the number of Covid-19 cases. Speaking to The Times, Mr Hancock said countries in others parts of the world were already experiencing a second wave, adding it was “a very serious threat”. But he said the UK was managing to keep the number of new cases “flat” through the test and trace system and local lockdowns. Describing the worst-case scenario, he said the UK could be battling bad flu and a growth in coronavirus as people spend more time indoors.

Germany

Police are bracing for protests in Berlin over Germany's restrictions and rules to stem the spread of the coronavirus. On Friday a Berlin court overturned the city state government's ban on the gathering, dubbed the "Festival of Peace and Freedom", saying it could go ahead with additional rules. Authorities estimate that more than 20,000 people will attend the events planned throughout the day in the German capital. In a show of force, police have 3,000 officers on duty after some participants called for violence in social media posts. Efforts to block the protest were unsuccessful after courts ruled authorities had to allow the gathering. Germany's daily coronavirus infections remained near a four-month high on Saturday, with 1,555 new cases reported in the last 24 hours. The country's reproduction rate – the average number of new people infected by one person with the virus – rose to 0.94 from 0.83 on Friday, according to the latest report from the RKI public health institute.

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Australia

Australia’s Victoria state on Saturday reported its lowest rise in new coronavirus cases in almost two months, but authorities warned there would be no rush to lift social distancing restrictions.

The Victorian state capital of Melbourne is four weeks into a six-week hard lockdown that was spurred by a second wave of infections in Australia’s second largest city.

State officials on Saturday reported 94 new Covid-19 infections and 18 deaths. It was the first time new daily case numbers have fallen below 100 in eight weeks, and continues a steady trajectory downward this week.

“Every day we see the strategy working is a good day but we just need a bit more time to be able to be confident that we are, in fact, defeating this and that we can open up, gradually, steadily, safely,” Victoria Premier Daniel Andrews said at a televised news briefing.

The hard lockdown has restricted most people in the city to one hour of outdoor activity per day. Even if the current measures are eased at the end of the six weeks, some restrictions are expected to remain.

In bordering New South Wales state, concerns were rising about a resurgence in cases after a cluster of more than a dozen people was identified at one of Sydney’s oldest clubs.

Australia has recorded a total of around 25,500 cases and 601 deaths so far in the pandemic.

New Zealand

Neighbouring New Zealand, which has also seen a second wave of infections after three months of respite, reported 11 new community transmission cases on Saturday and two new infections in managed quarantine.

Prime minister Jacinda Ardern is expected to announce on Sunday whether a short-term lockdown imposed in Auckland, the hotspot of the outbreak, will be lifted. Earlier this week, Ardern made masks mandatory on public transport across the nation.

New Zealand has reported a total of around 1,400 cases, including 22 deaths.

France

France reported 7,379 new confirmed coronavirus cases on Friday, the most since lockdown, in what the health ministry described as an exponential surge just days before millions of children are due to return to school for the first time since March.

The daily tally was just shy of the record 7,578 high set on March 31st, at the peak of an initial wave of Covid-19 infections that paralysed Europe. The surge has raised the possibility that the government could be forced to shut the country down again.

“We’re doing everything to avoid another lockdown, and in particular a nationwide lockdown,” president Emmanuel Macron told journalists earlier on Friday. He added it would be dangerous to rule out any scenario.

In a weekly review of the pandemic, the health ministry said the country was seeing an “exponential progression of virus transmission”.

Like other hard-hit western European countries, France imposed a sudden and strict lockdown in March, during which most residents were confined to their homes. The restrictions were gradually lifted from May 11 after infections sharply dropped.

The authorities are now searching for ways to limit the spread of the disease without a new lockdown. On Friday, Parisians were ordered to wear masks at all times outdoors in the capital.

The reopening of schools on Tuesday next week has been widely anticipated as a major step back towards normality. More than 12 million children will return to school, most for the first time in more than five months.

So far, the rapid increase in case numbers has yet to lead to a similar surge in hospitalisations or deaths. The ministry reported 20 new Covid-19 deaths on Friday, raising the cumulative total to 30,596. The number of people in hospital with the disease was unchanged at 4,535 and the number in intensive care rose by six to 387.

Authorities say the virus is now spreading among younger people who are less likely to show severe symptoms.

Russia

In Russia, the number of new cases held steady at 4,941. The daily figure has been below 5,000 for the last two weeks. The country recorded 111 deaths.

Hungary

Hungary will close its borders to foreigners from September 1st and Hungarians returning from abroad will have to go into quarantine, prime minister’s cabinet chief said.

US

US president Donald Trump is willing to sign a $1.3 trillion coronavirus relief Bill, a top Trump aide said on Friday, marking a $300 billion increase from an initial $1 trillion offer from the White House and Senate Republicans.

Four people at the Republican National Convention in North Carolina this week tested positive for the novel coronavirus, officials said.

The University of Alabama reported 492 new cases on Wednesday and Thursday, in addition to 571 diagnosed since the beginning of classes on August 19th, according to the university’s website. Nearly all the cases were at the university’s main campus in Tuscaloosa, and all but two cases were students. More than 38,000 students attend the university, which appears to have one of the nation’s larger outbreaks. While the national increase in cases this summer has eased, schools around the nation are reporting outbreaks as students return to classes.

Brazil

Brazil reported 43,412 cases, fewer than the 44,235 from the previous day, for a total of 3,804,804, the health ministry said. Another 855 deaths were reported, a drop from the 984 reported the day before. Total fatalities in the nation with the worst outbreak after the US are now 119,504.

Mexico

Mexico’s health ministry on Friday reported 5,824 new confirmed cases of

coronavirus infections and 552 additional fatalities, bringing the total in the country to 585,738 cases and 63,146 deaths. The government has said the real number of infected people is likely significantly higher than the confirmed cases.

Hong Kong

Hong Kong opened registration for free coronavirus tests, a massive, two-week effort aiming to reach a high percentage of the city’s 7 million residents. Roughly 30,000 people registered within the first five hours, a government official told English-language news site RTHK.

India

India reported 76,472 new coronavirus cases on Saturday, slightly lower than the record breaking numbers of the past couple of days, but extending a run that has made the country’s outbreak currently the world’s worst.

South Korea

South Korea recorded its 16th consecutive day of triple digit rises in new cases on Saturday, extending a second wave of infections that is fanning concerns about a shortage of hospital beds in Seoul

Iran

Iran reported 1,905 new cases on Saturday, its lowest daily total in three months and the first time since late May that the number was under 2,000. Fatalities fell for a sixth day to 110, the lowest since late June, according to the latest health ministry data.

Indonesia

Indonesia reported 3,308 new virus cases on Saturday, a single-day record for infections, taking the total to 169,195 since the Southeast Asian nation reported the outbreak first in early March. The death toll rose by 92 to 7,261, making it the highest in East Asia, data from Indonesia’s health ministry showed.

Africa

Namibia will lift lockdown restrictions, allowing international travel, schools to reopen and onsite alcohol consumption from September, president Hage Geingob announced Friday, but he extended an overnight curfew as Covid-19 cases continue to rise.

Gambia extended by 21 days a state of emergency in mainland Africa's smallest nation as infections surged.

–Agencies