The Canary Islands, Mykonos, the Maldives and Denmark have been added to the government’s travel corridor list following a decrease in confirmed cases of coronavirus.

From 4am on Sunday 25 October, passengers arriving to the UK from these destinations will no longer need to self-isolate, so long as they haven’t been in or transited through any other non-exempt countries in the 14 days preceding their arrival.

People arriving into the UK from Liechtenstein from 4am Sunday 25 October will need to self-isolate for 2 weeks as the country is removed from the travel exemptions list.

Data from the Joint Biosecurity Centre and Public Health England has indicated a significant change in both the level and pace of confirmed cases of coronavirus in Liechtenstein, leading to ministers removing the country from the current list of travel corridors.

A range of factors are taken into account when deciding to remove a country from the exemption list, including the continued increase of coronavirus within a country, the numbers of new cases, information on a country’s testing capacity, testing regime and test positivity rate, and potential trajectory of the disease in the coming weeks.

Data from Liechtenstein shows that the weekly incidence (cases) per 100,000 has increased from 65.1 on 14 October to 244.9 on 21 October. This equates to a 276% increase.

At the same time, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) has also updated its travel advice to advise against all but essential travel to Liechtenstein. The Canary Islands, Mykonos, the Maldives and Denmark are now exempt from the FCDO’s global advisory against non-essential travel. These changes reflect the latest assessments by Public Health England (PHE) of the risk to travellers in each of these destinations.

The government has made consistently clear it will take decisive action if necessary to contain the virus, including removing countries from the travel corridors list rapidly if the public health risk of people returning from a particular country without self-isolating becomes too high.

People currently in Liechtenstein are encouraged to follow the local rules and check the FCDO travel advice pages for further information. The government is urging employers to be understanding of those returning from these destinations who now will need to self-isolate.

Coronavirus (COVID-19) has profoundly changed the nature of international travel. Travellers should always check the latest advice from the FCDO to keep up to date with the latest information on the risks associated with travel to another country, as well as the entry rules and measures introduced by local authorities that may affect British travellers.

All travellers, including those from exempt destinations, will still be required to show a completed passenger locator form on arrival into the UK unless they fall into a small group of exemptions.

Penalties for those breaching the self-isolation rules when returning from non-exempt countries have increased from £1,000 for first offences up to £10,000 for subsequent offences, mirroring penalties for those breaching self-isolation following a positive COVID-19 test or contact from Test and Trace.

After close discussions with local leaders, the following areas will move from local COVID alert level medium to local COVID alert level high from Saturday 24 October:

• Coventry
• Slough
• Stoke-on-Trent

This means that for these areas, the following measures will be in place:

• people must not meet with anybody outside their household or support bubble in any indoor setting, whether at home or in a public place
• people must not meet in a group of more than 6 outside, including in a garden or other space
• people should aim to reduce the number of journeys they make where possible; if they need to travel, they should walk or cycle where possible, or plan ahead and avoid busy times and routes on public transport

These measures will be reviewed every 14 days to consider whether they are still appropriate.

The government brought in legislation in July to give local authorities powers to impose restrictions, close premises or cancel events. Following discussions and feedback from local authorities in England, stronger regulations will now be put in place so local authorities can act without undue delay, rapidly shutting premises on public health grounds to stop the spread of the virus. A consultation on these proposals is ongoing with local authorities.

The rate of COVID-19 infections is rising rapidly across the UK. The weekly case rate in England stood at 172 people per 100,000 from 10 October to 16 October, up from 100 people per 100,000 for the week 25 September to 1 October. Cases are not evenly spread, with infection rates rising more rapidly in some areas than others.

In Coventry, weekly case rates are at 182 people per 100,000 and this increases to 946 per 100,000 in those aged 17 to 21 and is 76 per 100,000 in the over 60s.

In Slough, weekly case rates are at 141 people per 100,000 and this increases to 342 per 100,000 in those aged 17 to 21 and is 116 per 100,000 in the over 60s.

In Stoke-on-Trent, weekly case rates are at 173 people per 100,000 and this increases to 297 per 100,000 in those aged 17 to 21 and is 131 per 100,000 in the over 60s.

In addition to today’s announcement, discussions are ongoing with the following areas about moving to local COVID alert level very high:

• Nottingham City and parts of Nottinghamshire (Nottingham City Council, Broxtowe Borough Council, Gedling Borough Council, Rushcliffe Borough Council)
• West Yorkshire (Bradford, Leeds, Kirklees, Calderdale, Wakefield)
• North East (Newcastle upon Tyne, South Tyneside, Sunderland, Gateshead, North Tyneside, Northumberland, Country Durham)
• Tees Valley (Darlington, Middlesbrough, Hartlepool, Stockton on Tees, Redcar and Cleveland)

Speaking in the House of Commons, Health and Social Care Secretary Matt Hancock said:

Unfortunately, we are seeing rising rates of infection in Stoke-on-Trent, Coventry and in Slough. In all these areas, there are over 100 positive cases per 100,000 people.

Cases are doubling around every fortnight and we are seeing a concerning increase of cases among the over 60s.

So we have agreed, in partnership with local leaders, to move these areas into the high local alert level area, coming into force at one minute past midnight on Saturday.

I’d like to thank local leaders in these areas for the work that they’ve done, for their cooperation, and I can assure the people of Stoke-on-Trent, of Coventry and of Slough that we will support you all the way through.

All available data for the areas has been assessed by the government, including the Health and Social Care Secretary, NHS Test and Trace, the Joint Biosecurity Centre (JBC), Public Health England (PHE), the Chief Medical Officer and the Cabinet Office. Data assessed includes incidence, test positivity and the growth rate of the virus.

It is essential that outbreaks are contained to protect lives and our NHS, and prevent greater economic damage in the future. The country faces a new challenge as winter approaches, and even mild cases of COVID-19 can have devastating consequences for people in all age groups, along with the risk of long COVID.

The government’s strategy is to suppress the virus while supporting the economy, education and the NHS, until an effective vaccine is widely available.

Local action is at the centre of the government’s response, and engagement with local authorities is, and will continue to be, a key part of this process.

Latest infection rates per 100,000 people for week 10 October 2020 to 16 October 2020:

• Coventry: 182
• Stoke-on-Trent: 173
• Slough: 141

On 12 October, the government introduced a new, simplified framework for local interventions based around 3 new local COVID alert levels.

The postcode checker shows which alert level applies in each area. The NHS COVID-19 app will also direct people to this information.

We have provided £3.7 billion of funding to local authorities in England to respond to pressures in all their services.

The Prime Minister also announced on Monday 12 October additional COVID funding of around £1 billion which will provide local authorities with additional money to protect vital services. The government will set out further information in due course on how this new funding will be allocated.

Throughout the pandemic, the government has listened carefully to the views of the scientific community, in particular the information from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) and its sub-groups when taking decisions on the best way to tackle the pandemic.

The UK Government has today [Thursday 22 October], opened a new walk-through coronavirus testing centre in Inverclyde.

Located at Crawfurdsburn Community Centre in Greenock, the site is easily accessible for people without a car.

The new facility is being provided by the UK Government as part of a UK-wide drive to continue to improve the accessibility of coronavirus testing for local communities. It is operated by Mitie on behalf of the UK Government.

The test centre is part of the largest network of diagnostic testing facilities created in British history. In Scotland, this comprises of six drive-through sites, ten walk-through sites, 21 mobile units, plus the Glasgow Lighthouse Lab which is working round the clock to process samples.

In Scotland, the UK Government is providing all Covid testing and test processing outside of the NHS. Around two-thirds of all daily tests are provided by the UK Government, in support of Scotland’s health services.

Tests must be booked in advance at NHS Inform or by calling 0800 028 2816. People should only book a test if they have coronavirus symptoms (a high temperature, a new and continuous cough, or a loss or change to their sense of smell or taste).

Health Minister, Lord Bethell, said:

We continue to expand UK Government testing to make sure that everyone with symptoms can get a test, with our new walk-in sites making it even easier no matter where you live.

This new site forms part of our UK testing network, which has the capacity to test more than a million people a week and is growing all the time.

If you have symptoms of coronavirus, I urge you to book a test today, and follow the advice of contact tracers if you are contacted to protect others around you and stop the spread of the virus.

This is a UK-wide effort and we are proud to be working with a number of partners to turn this ambition into a reality and roll out additional capacity to where it is needed.

Baroness Dido Harding, Interim Executive Chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, said:

The UK Government’s new walk-through sites offer communities better access to coronavirus testing, so everyone with symptoms can get a test. This new site is part of our ongoing work to expand testing across the UK to deliver 500,000 tests a day by the end of October.

Please book a test if you have coronavirus symptoms: a new continuous cough, a high temperature and a loss or change in sense of smell or taste.

Everybody should continue to think hands, face, space, and follow the advice of contact tracers if you are contacted – this is the only way we can return to a more normal way of life.

UK Government Minister for Scotland, Iain Stewart, said:

The UK Government is helping all parts of the UK fight the coronavirus pandemic.

Testing is vital, helping to manage local outbreaks and protecting people’s livelihoods. The UK Government is providing the bulk of Covid testing in Scotland, and this new walk-through centre is just the latest in our extensive testing network.

We are pleased to be working with local and commercial partners. These sites are not possible without the hard work of many people. I would like to thank everyone involved for their incredible efforts for the good of the country at this difficult time.

Councillor Robert Moran, Inverclyde Council’s convener of Health and Social Care, said:

We made the case for increased testing in our community and we are pleased that a new testing centre has been set up in Greenock.

Inverclyde has been hit hard by Covid-19 and this facility, in addition to the test sites at Port Glasgow and Glasgow Airport, provides us with greater resilience and capacity to fight the virus.

The location at Crawfurdsburn Community Centre provides an accessible site for the local community to take a test in their local area.

Simon Venn, Mitie Chief Government & Strategy Officer, said:

Our priority during the pandemic is to support the nation’s efforts to fight COVID-19 and help keep the country running. Testing is a critical part of the UK’s strategy to combat coronavirus and we’re proud to support the UK Government with this vital task.

A big thank you to all the NHS staff, Mitie employees and other frontline heroes in Inverclyde, who are working tirelessly to keep us all safe.

PM statement on coronavirus 22 October

I am very glad to be joined today not just by Sir Patrick Vallance but by the Chancellor Rishi Sunak who is going to tell us more in a moment about our latest package to help this country in its battle with Covid.

And I want to thank Rishi for measures that will protect people’s livelihoods and protect jobs and which will help us to deliver our overwhelming objective of getting the virus under control while keeping pupils in education and keeping the UK economy moving forward.

I know that there are some people who will say that this economic objective is so important that we should stop all measures to control the virus and stop restrictions of any kind on our social lives or on the way we run our businesses.

We can’t do that because alas the maths is inescapable. We would face many thousands more deaths.

And no, to answer one commonly posed question, we would not be able to insulate the elderly and the vulnerable. Not in a society with so many multigenerational households. No country has been able to do that.

And an uncontrolled expansion in the number of Covid patients would mean that the NHS would have even less capacity to treat heart patients and cancer patients and to deal with all our other medical needs.

So that’s why we reject that extreme laissez-faire approach.

And then there are others who say on the contrary that we need now to lock the whole place down from John O’ Groats to Lands’ End.

Turn the lights out, shut up shop. Close schools and universities and go back to the same kind of lockdown we had in March and April and May.

And I have to say I don’t believe that is the right course now. Not when the psychological cost of lockdown is well known to us and the economic cost.

Not when it is being suggested that we might have to perform the same brutal lockdown again and again in the months ahead.

And not when there is such obvious variation – unlike last time – between different parts of the country.

So that’s why we are going for a balanced approach.

A middle course between the Scylla of another national lockdown and the Charybdis of an uncontrolled virus.

A regional and local approach – the same approach that is now being followed by some of the countries that are the most successful in their fights against the virus.

And so to all those who are enduring these restrictions, and who have been enduring them for so long in all parts of the country.

I want to repeat my thanks, for your bravery, for your patience and your public spiritedness.

And I repeat – there are clear signs that our collective actions are working.

Yes the R is above one, but thanks to the efforts of people of all ages in following the guidance and the rules the R is about half its natural rate.

And if we follow the guidance together and follow the rules then we can get it down.

And it is precisely because these measures are burdensome that from the beginning this government has provided unprecedented support to everyone in this country – support worth £200bn to look after jobs and livelihoods and business.

And as we adjust our campaign to fight the virus it is right that we should now produce a new package of support across the country in addition to the specific agreements we have reached with Lancashire, Merseyside and others.

And because it is far, far better to keep business going now rather than to let those jobs go forever in a new national lockdown.

We will win this fight against Covid.

Because we can see that treatments are getting better, and medicines are getting better and testing technologies are getting better.

And we have shown before that we can drive the R down.

And in the meantime we need to protect jobs, protect livelihoods, and put the UK in strongest position for an economic recovery.

I am now going to hand over to the Chancellor Rishi Sunak.

• Flu vaccine authorised for supply in the UK to ensure as many people as possible are vaccinated during the pandemic
• More than 30 million people will be vaccinated this year to protect the vulnerable and support the NHS
• GPs, NHS trusts and pharmacies will be able to order supplies

Millions of extra flu vaccines will soon be available to support the most comprehensive flu vaccination programme in the UK’s history.

More than 30 million people will be vaccinated this year to protect them from flu, with priority being given to the most vulnerable, elderly and children.

To support this, millions of doses of Flublok® have been authorised for supply by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) as part of our response to the ongoing public health crisis after it met the standards of safety, quality and effectiveness.

The vaccine has been used in the United States for the last 3 winters. A physically and biologically similar vaccine, Supemtek, was recommended for approval by the European Medicines Agency in September 2020. All vaccines, including Flublok®, undergo 3 stages of clinical trials and are assessed by the regulator for safety, effectiveness and quality before they are given to patients.

Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Professor Jonathan Van Tam said:

As we approach the winter and cases of COVID-19 continue to rise, it is crucial we double down on efforts to vaccinate as many people as possible from flu.

We have increased the number of people eligible for free flu jabs this year to reduce all avoidable risks and protect people from illness.

Flublok has been in regular use in the United States – and the evidence shows that it is an excellent product.

I want to reassure everyone that all vaccines have undergone robust clinical trials and rigorous checks by the regulator to ensure they are safe, effective and of a high quality.

Flu can have serious consequences and vulnerable people can die of it. Having the vaccine protects you, and helps reduce transmission to others.

This winter more than ever, with COVID-19 still circulating, we need to help reduce all avoidable risks. Vaccinating more people will help reduce flu transmission and stop people becoming ill.

A free flu vaccine is available to:

• people aged 65 and over
• pregnant women
• people with some pre-existing conditions
• all school year groups up to Year 7
• household contacts of those on the NHS shielded patient list

Once vaccination of the most ‘at-risk’ groups is well underway, the department will work with clinicians to decide when to open the programme to invite people aged 50 to 64, with further details to be announced soon.

The NHS will contact people directly, including information about where to go to get the vaccine. Guidance has now gone out to GPs, pharmacies and trusts to provide information on how to access additional flu supply.

GPs, NHS trusts and community pharmacies will be able to order stock from the government’s centrally procured supply to complement their own flu vaccination stocks, ensuring as many people as possible are able to receive the vaccination this winter.

Dr Christian Schneider, Interim Chief Scientific Officer at the MHRA said:

Protecting health and saving lives is at the heart of all our work.

The MHRA assessed Flublok against safety, quality and effectiveness standards and sought advice from the government’s independent expert scientific advisory body – the Commission on Human Medicines. We are satisfied that this vaccine protects against flu and meets high standards of safety and quality.

Your doctor can recommend the best time to be vaccinated and please read the patient information leaflet carefully before you get the flu vaccine.

The expanded flu vaccination programme is part of plans to ready the NHS – both for the risk of a second peak of coronavirus cases, and to relieve winter pressures on A&E and emergency care.

Increased vaccinations will help to reduce pressure on the NHS this winter by preventing flu-sickness, which can cause hospitalisation and even death.

Flublok® is licensed for use in the USA by the Food and Drug Administration and has been used there since 2016. It has been authorised for temporary supply by the MHRA.

In response to certain public health threats, supply of a medicine may be temporarily authorised for use when it is satisfied there is robust evidence to show the safety, quality and effectiveness of the medicine.

Flublok® is only appropriate for adults over the age of 18.

The Human Medicine Regulations 2012 have been amended to support the roll-out of vaccines. This includes expanding the trained workforce that can administer flu vaccines and a COVID-19 vaccine once a safe and effective one has been developed.