France seeing ‘exponential’ rise in cases as Macron hints at second lockdown
France is seeing an ‘exponential’ rise in cases – Shutterstock France has recorded its biggest
France has recorded its biggest daily rise in coronavirus infections since March, while President Emmanuel Macron has raised the possibility of another nationwide lockdown.
A further 7,379 cases were confirmed on Friday, bringing the country’s total to 267,077 and making it the largest daily spike since March 31, when 7,578 cases were tallied at the peak of the first wave.
France was seeing an “exponential” rise in cases, the health ministry said, and the surge follows daily increases of 6,111 on Thursday and 5,429 on Wednesday.
But despite the rise, hospital numbers and daily deaths have been relatively stable as younger people less vulnerable to the virus make up most of the new cases, the ministry said.
Deaths rose by 20 on Friday, bringing France’s overall death toll to 30,596.
Shortly before Friday’s figures were released, Mr Macron said a second national lockdown could not be ruled out if infections spiralled out of control.
“We’re doing everything to avoid another lockdown, and in particular a nationwide lockdown,” he said, but added that it couldn’t be ruled out.
“Containment is the crudest of measures to fight against a virus,” said Mr Macron, urging people to be “collectively very rigorous”.
Follow the latest updates below.
Table of Contents
08:48 AM
Government must listen to local leaders on lockdowns, says Manchester Mayor
More consultation with local authorities is needed regarding Government decisions on local coronavirus lockdown restrictions, Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has said.
He told BBC Breakfast: “I think we will better negotiate what lies ahead of us in the autumn and winter if Government listens to local leaders – they know their communities.
“It wasn’t just in Greater Manchester where they overruled us. In Bradford, basically communities were split there – some are still under restrictions, some not.
“You then have the situation where some people on one half of the street are under restrictions and others not.
“My main message to the Government is you must not impose these things from London when you are going to affect communities in this way, it must be by negotiation and agreement.
“And that needs to be a core principle that we agree on before we go any further into the rest of what will be a very difficult year.”
Read more: What are the local lockdown rules in Manchester, Aberdeen, Bradford, Preston and Northern Ireland?
08:45 AM
Police chief: Being confused about the rules is becoming an excuse
Mr Rhodes also said that varying guidelines were “inevitably” confusing but that uncertainty was becoming an “excuse” for some rule-breakers.
“There’s a world of difference between good people who are doing their best to enjoy themselves and they’re a bit confused, and there are people that are clearly just ignoring the normal rules that the rest of us are trying to abide by,” he said.
“Being confused is becoming a bit of an excuse for some people at the moment.”
08:42 AM
Police chief urges people not to risk new freedoms this bank holiday weekend
Andy Rhodes, Chief Constable of Lancashire Constabulary, said a lot of good work was being done by “sensible” organisers to get around the disappointment of event cancellations, but urged people not to risk certain “freedoms” that were starting to return.
“Given it’s the bank holiday weekend, what we’re saying to people is be sensible, respect the work that some of the people have put into trying to arrange events sensibly, if they’re online et cetera,” he told BBC Breakfast.
“Try and get the best out of those, but do it within the law and do it safely, without risking creating a spike in infections in your local community, because we have seen across the North West just how damaging that can be to the economy, to vulnerable people.
“It takes away some of those freedoms that we’re starting to get back, so our message is enjoy yourself but do it sensibly and don’t go anywhere near anyone who’s trying to organise events that are illegal.”
08:34 AM
France reports 7,379 new cases in post-lockdown record
France has recorded its biggest daily rise in coronavirus infections since March, while President Emmanuel Macron has raised the possibility of another nationwide lockdown.
A further 7,379 cases were confirmed on Friday, bringing the country’s total to 267,077 and making it the largest daily spike since March 31, when 7,578 cases were tallied at the peak of the first wave.
France was seeing an “exponential” rise in cases, the health ministry said, and the surge follows daily increases of 6,111 on Thursday and 5,429 on Wednesday.
But despite the rise, hospital numbers and daily deaths have been relatively stable as younger people less vulnerable to the virus make up most of the new cases, the ministry said.
Deaths rose by 20 on Friday, bringing France’s overall death toll to 30,596.
Shortly before Friday’s figures were released, Mr Macron said a second national lockdown could not be ruled out if infections spiralled out of control.
“We’re doing everything to avoid another lockdown, and in particular a nationwide lockdown,” he said, but added that it couldn’t be ruled out.
“Containment is the crudest of measures to fight against a virus,” said Mr Macron, urging people to be “collectively very rigorous”.
08:14 AM
Russia’s coronavirus death toll exceeds 17,000
A further 111 people have died with the coronavirus in Russia in the last 24 hours, raising the official death toll to 17,025.
Russia’s coronavirus taskforce reported 4,941 new cases, bringing its nationwide tally to 985,346, the fourth largest caseload in the world.
08:03 AM
Peru extends coronavirus state of emergency
Peru on Friday extended its national emergency until September 30 and prolonged a lockdown in some of the areas worst affected by the coronavirus, the Government said.
The South American country has one of the worst death rates in the world from Covid-19 with 86 fatalities per 100,000 people.
“The national emergency that was planned until the end of August… is prolonged for the whole month of September,” Prime Minister Walter Martos said.
This week Peru overtook Belgium to sit second only to the tiny European state of San Marino as the country with the highest death rate in the world.
Peru has recorded more than 620,000 cases and 28,000 deaths among its 33 million population.
Read more: The country with the world’s strictest lockdown is now the worst for excess deaths
08:01 AM
Hong Kong mass virus test plan hampered by China distrust
Hong Kong’s plan to offer free coronavirus tests to all residents has become swept up in the festering political debate dividing the city, where many remain deeply distrustful of both local leaders and China.
AFP reports that the involvement of doctors and companies from the mainland has compounded fears of Beijing’s surveillance state, while many health experts in the city have questioned the efficacy of a mass testing programme.
“Public trust in Hong Kong’s government has been hovering at all-time lows for many months,” Dixon Sing, a political expert at Hong Kong University of Science and Technology told AFP.
China’s involvement in the testing scheme, he added, “simply intensifies that distrust among the majority of the population”.
07:50 AM
Pupils need their ‘Nightingale moment’, says Children’s Commissioner
The same monumental effort which saw Nightingale field hospitals assembled in just weeks to deal with thousands of Covid-19 patients must now be directed towards assisting pupils with their return to schooling, the Children’s Commissioner has said.
Before millions of English students return to class next week, Children’s Commissioner for England Anne Longfield has called on the Government to substantially step up financial and mental health support in order to avoid “losing a generation for good”.
In an interview with The Guardian, Ms Longfield said children had made a huge sacrifice due to the pandemic and their recovery from missed time in class, as well as the psychological impact of the experience, could take up to a year.
She told the paper: “The Government needs to be bold, and on the sort of scale that saw hospitals built in weeks, and workers paid in furlough, to make sure no child is left behind. If not they risk losing a generation for good. The stakes are simply that high.
“Kids have not had their Nightingale moment during the crisis, but if it comes at this stage, where there’s a determination to do things differently for children and help the most disadvantaged fully in life, that would be a great Nightingale moment to have.”
Ms Longfield added the Government should prioritise helping disadvantaged children in an upcoming spending review, while stressing that any further school closures should only happen as a last resort.
07:38 AM
Union leader lambastes last minute Government guidance on schools
A union leader has expressed a “weary, resigned sense of inevitability” at the timing of the latest Government guidelines on the reopening of schools.
Asked how teachers would feel about the situation, Geoff Barton, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “I think, probably, the most polite response… is a weary, resigned sense of inevitability that here we are again, right at the last minute with something that we have been accused of expressing treachery in asking for – where’s the plan B in case of local lockdown – at last it has arrived.”
06:53 AM
Restaurants extending their Eat Out to Help Out discount
When the chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announced his plan to boost footfall in restaurants, pubs and cafes, not many people predicted quite the level of success the Eat Out To Help Out scheme has achieved.
Giving customers 50 per cent off food and non-alcoholic drinks, up to £10, on Mondays to Wednesdays, encouraged diners back into hospitality spots, drawn in by the discount. With 35 million meals eaten in just the first two weeks, some restaurateurs have dubbed Monday-Wednesday the new weekend.
Yet August is coming to an end, and with it the government-funded discount. With the weather worsening, diners may start to think twice before heading out for dinner, especially if it will cost £10 more. Restaurants around the country, including many in the capital listed here, however, have decided that the benefits of a £10 discount, even if they foot it themselves, far outweigh the pitfalls.
Read more to find out who will extend the discount
Read more: Eat out to Help Out loophole meant diners could save up to £180 on meals
06:09 AM
Beijing students begin return to school
About one-third of students returned to school in the Chinese capital on Saturday in a staggered start to the new school year because of the coronavirus.
The first batch of 590,000 students in Beijing included all three years of high school, the first and third years of middle school and the first grade of primary school. Another 400,000 students are to start school on Tuesday, and the final 520,000 on Sept. 7.
Both students and teachers are required to wear masks.
China reported nine new coronavirus cases in the latest 24-hour period, bringing its official total to 85,022. All the new cases were overseas arrivals. The country’s death toll remained at 4,634.
Read more: Schools may operate on rota system in locked down areas
Read more: Class of Covid face tough financial lessons as school doors reopen
06:00 AM
India has fast-growing caseload in the world
India has recorded 76,472 new cases in the past 24 hours, raising its tally to over 3.4 million. A country of 1.4 billion people, India now has the fastest-growing caseload in the world.
The Health Ministry on Saturday also reported 1,021 deaths for a total of 62,550. India is reporting around 1,000 deaths every day.
There has been a spurt of new cases over the last few weeks. One of the reasons is testing: India now conducts more than 900,000 tests every day, compared with just 200,000 two months ago.
Even as western Maharashtra and the three southern states of Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka remain the worst-hit regions with nearly 64 per cent of fatalities and 55 per cent of active cases, the virus is spreading fast in the country’s vast hinterlands.
05:56 AM
In pictures: Mexican wrestlers champion face masks
04:50 AM
Malaysia extends ban on foreign tourists until end of year
Malaysia has extended its pandemic movement restrictions including a ban on foreign tourists until the end of the year.
Prime Minister Muhyiddin Yassin said in a televised address late on Friday that global cases have been rising and the country has seen sporadic virus clusters even though the situation was under control.
Malaysia has recorded more than 9,000 cases with 125 deaths.
Mr Muhyiddin said the extension of restrictions will not disrupt daily activities as most businesses and schools have resumed. Only nightclubs and entertainment centers remain shut and international sporting events prohibited. Borders will stay closed and those entering the country will be quarantined.
04:22 AM
Mass demonstration in Berlin allowed to go ahead
A German regional court gave the go-ahead on Saturday for mass demonstrations planned in Berlin against coronavirus curbs, ruling against the capital’s ban on such protests.
Police have readied for violence as activists opposed to the virus measures have urged social media followers across Europe to arm themselves and gather in Berlin.
Activists, angered by Berlin’s decision to ban demonstrations after marchers at a recent rally failed to wear masks or keep their distance, flooded the city with thousands of applications for additional protest rallies this weekend.
“The gatherings planned by several initiatives for Aug. 29 against the corona policy of the federal and state governments can take place,” the court ruled.
03:17 AM
Cases in Australian state at 8-week low
Australia’s Victoria state on Saturday reported its lowest rise in 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.
State officials on Saturday reported 94 new 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.
02:51 AM
Cases rocket in South Korea
South Korea has reported 323 new cases of the coronavirus, marking its 16th consecutive day of triple-digit daily jumps, as health officials prepare to tighten social distancing restrictions in the greater capital area.
The numbers released by the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention on Saturday brought the national caseload to 19,400. Fatalities reached 321 after the country added five more deaths overnights.
The KCDC said 249 of the new cases came from the densely populated Seoul metropolitan area, where about half of the country’s 51 million people live, where health workers have struggled to track infections linked to various places, including churches, restaurants, schools and apartment buildings.
The country has added 4,630 cases over the 16 days, raising fears about possible shortages in hospital capacities.
12:56 AM
Peru extends state of emergency
Peru on Friday extended its national emergency until September 30 and prolonged a lockdown in some of the areas worst affected by the coronavirus, the government said.
The South American country has one of the worst death rates in the world with 86 fatalities per 100,000 people.
“The national emergency that was planned until the end of August… is prolonged for the whole month of September,” Prime Minister Walter Martos said.
This week Peru overtook Belgium to sit second only to the tiny European state of San Marino as the country with the highest death rate in the world.
Read more: The country with the world’s strictest lockdown is now the worst for excess deaths
12:14 AM
Hancock warns of extensive lockdowns if there is a second wave
Nationwide restrictions cannot be ruled out should England see a spike in coronavirus cases this winter, the 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.
Read more: Restrictions won’t be lifted by Christmas
11:34 PM
TikTok stars ‘had illegal parties’
TikTok celebrities Bryce Hall and Blake Gray are facing criminal charges after they hosted recent parties in the Hollywood Hills despite the city’s ban on large gatherings during the coronavirus pandemic, authorities said Friday.
The Los Angeles city attorney’s office filed misdemeanour charges Thursday against Hall and Gray.
The internet celebrities with millions of followers on TikTok share a home and allegedly held two parties less than a week apart.
