The total death toll as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 45, 554, an increase of 53 as of today. 

Face masks will be mandatory in shops across England from tomorrow. Although shoppers will be required to wear face masks, they will not be compulsory for staff.

The European Union’s head negotiate Michel Barnier has said that there has been no progress on the most essential aspects of the UK’s Brexit negotiations with the bloc. The main sources of disagreement, according to Barnier, are negotiations over a possible level playing field for state aid workers rights as well as British access to fishing waters. 

The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stand at 45,312, an increase of 11 as of today. 

Britain has a signed deals to purchase three prospective vaccines to help combat Coronavirus. The government has purchased 30 million doses of a possible Coronavirus vaccine from the pharmaceutical companies BioNtech and Pfizer; acquired 100 million doses of the Oxford University vaccine being produced by AstraZeneca; and 60 million doses of a vaccine produced by Valneva.

The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 45,233, an increase of 114 as of today. 

Boris Johnson has encouraged Britons to prepare for a steady return to work as official guidelines on workplaces and the use of public transport are set to change from August 1. From August 1 workers will be asked to return to their offices, at the discretion of their employers.

Bowling, skating rinks, and casinos will also be allowed to open from August 1. In addition, wedding receptions with up to 30 people will be permitted. There will also be trials of openings of live music venues and sports arenas.  

Official employment figures reveal that the number of people on employer payrolls decreased by 649,000 between March, when the lockdown started, and June. Unemployment has not increased dramatically, however, because many employers have put their staff on the government’s furlough scheme. Job vacancies are at their lowest since records began in 2001 at an estimated 333,000. 

The education secretary announced today that universities across in England at risk of bankruptcy could apply for emergency loans from the government. Thirteen universities across England are at risk of bankruptcy, according to the Institute of Fiscal Studies. Loans granted to at risk universities could come with conditions, such as ending “low value” courses.

The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 44,968, an increase of 138 as of today. 

A major study has found that Coronavirus outbreaks are 20 times more likely in large care homes then small ones. Of the 55,000 people that have died of Coronavirus according to the ONS’ numbers, 40% of these deaths occurred in care homes. At the peak of the virus 25,000 people where discharged from hospitals into care homes without being tested for Coronavirus. 

Reported incidents of domestic violence have increased by over a tenth compared to the figures this time last year. The 11.4% increase in calls to police about domestic violence amounts to an additional 480 calls a week. 

The total death toll as a result of coronavirus now stands at 44,650, an increase of 48 as of today. 

The UK is to turn down the chance to a multibillion-euro EU plan secure supplies for potential coronavirus vaccines. John Bell, the regius professor of medicine at Oxford university working with development of a Covid-19 vaccine has said that he thought that the UK’s decision was a sensible one. In an interview with the Financial Times Bell stated that the UK has a “very, very good and coherent vaccine plan.”

England faces a serious risk of running out of water within 20 years. In a report the public accounts committee has said that the Department for Food, Environment and Rural Affairs, the financial regulator Ofwat and the Environment Agency had failed to insure that privatised water agencies invested adequately in infrastructure. More than three billion litres, or one fifth of treated water, is lost leakage everyday. 

The chancellor, Rishi Sunak, gave a statement today on the government’s plans to create and protect jobs as well as setting out the government’s initiatives to protect the property market. 

In his statement in the House of Commons the chancellor stated that he would never accept “unemployment as a necessary outcome.” In order to support jobs, the government will implement a jobs retention bonus to reward and incentivise bringing back furloughed staff. The bonus of £1,000 per employee will be paid out to employers that keep furloughed workers in employment until January. In order for employers to be eligible for the scheme employees must be paid at least £520 a month between November, when the furlough scheme will end, and January. 

The government will directly pay employers to create new jobs for young people between the ages of 16 and 25. The scheme will require newly created jobs to provide at minimum of 25 hours a week of work and to pay at least the national minimum wage and will last for up to six months. 

The government will also cut stamp duty on all houses below £500,000. This means that nearly 9 out of 10 people will pay no stamp duty on purchases this year. 

To protect the hospitality sector the government will cut VAT from 20% to 5% for business including cinemas, B&Bs, and other leisure attractions. The government will also launch an “eat out to help out” scheme which will provide a 50% discount on dining out between Monday and Wednesday up to £10 per head. 

The death toll as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 44,391, an increase of 155 in the last 24 hours. 

Thousands of headteachers across the country have called for exams to be cut back next year, amid fears of a mental health crisis among pupils who have already lost months of their education because of Coronavirus. 

The total deaths as a result of Coronavirus now stands at 44,236, an increase of 16 as of today. 

One fifth of Coronavirus test issued were wasted, according to official figures. Despite the government’s claims that 10.5 million tests have been made available only 8 million of these were used properly and processed. 

The Royal Society, Britain’s’ national academy of sciences, issued reports that emphasise the importance of wearing face masks. Venki Ramakrishnan, president of the society, said that “The UK is way behind many countries in terms of wearing masks and issuing clear policies and guidelines about mask wearing for the public.” Only 25% of Britons wear facemasks in public places, compared to 83% in Italy and 66% in the US.