There could be as many as 90,000 new Covid-19 infections a day in the UK, the chief scientific adviser has warned, compared to the 21,242 officially confirmed cases announced on Thursday.
The pandemic modelling group (SPI-M) that advises the government estimated a daily incidence rate of between 53,000-90,000 according to data collected until October 20.
"Obviously with that number of infections, you expect to see an increase in hospitalisations as well. So the number of infections overall across the country continues to increase," Patrick Vallance told a press conference.
Britain has suffered Europe's worst death toll from coronavirus, with more than 44,000 deaths.
Patients admitted to hospital suffering from the virus continue to rise, with numbers hovering around 1,000 a day.
“It’s worth remembering that the number of infections leads to hospitalisation a week or two later and that in turn has the effect of increasing intensive care unit numbers and of course unfortunately a number of people will die as a result of that and that will increase a week or two after that," Mr Vallance said.
"So we expect to see a delay from the number of infections through to hospitalisation through to the very serious consequences and to death.
The rise in hospitalisations has led to more and more beds getting taken up before the winter.
“The more patients there are with Covid, the more the pressure on the healthcare system overall and the more the other conditions get affected because people don’t have the capacity to deal with it," Mr Vallance said.
"So it’s very important to keep the number of infections down if we are to reduce the number of hospitalisations.”
The R rate – the average of how many people a Covid-positive person would infect - is also on the rise.
It's been on the increase since August as lockdown measures were loosened and now stands between 1.2-1.5. However, this is half the number of 3, which is regarded as the natural figure if no precautions are taken.
Mr Vallance said it “definitely reflects the huge effort people have made to try to adhere to the various measures that are in place".
"The fact that we’re wearing masks, we’re keeping a distance, we’re washing our hands, we’re doing the things that we need to do to try to reduce it has brought the R down but this also means that the epidemic is still growing," he said.
The virus has not been evenly spread across the country, with the north-west particularly hard hit, as this chart shows.
A string of major urban centres in northern England have been put into the highest level of restrictions, known as Tier-3, which means there is a very high risk of Covid-19 spreading.
The greater prevalence of Covid in the north of England is reflected in a far higher level of hospitalisations.
Swathes of northern England, including the cities of Liverpool and Manchester, have been placed under more stringent restrictions, joining Scotland, Northern Ireland and Wales with tighter curbs to help stem spiking infections.
The situation in Greater Manchester led to a public spat between local figures and central government, as the latter ordered a Tier-3 lockdown despite the protestations of the former. Manchester's mayor Andy Burnham had demanded the UK government offer greater support to workers who would lose their jobs if tighter restrictions were put in place.
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More from Neighbourhood Watch
if you go
The flights
The closest international airport to the TMB trail is Geneva (just over an hour’s drive from the French ski town of Chamonix where most people start and end the walk). Direct flights from the UAE to Geneva are available with Etihad and Emirates from about Dh2,790 including taxes.
The trek
The Tour du Mont Blanc takes about 10 to 14 days to complete if walked in its entirety, but by using the services of a tour operator such as Raw Travel, a shorter “highlights” version allows you to complete the best of the route in a week, from Dh6,750 per person. The trails are blocked by snow from about late October to early May. Most people walk in July and August, but be warned that trails are often uncomfortably busy at this time and it can be very hot. The prime months are June and September.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
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THE DEALS
Hamilton $60m x 2 = $120m
Vettel $45m x 2 = $90m
Ricciardo $35m x 2 = $70m
Verstappen $55m x 3 = $165m
Leclerc $20m x 2 = $40m
TOTAL $485m
What can victims do?
Always use only regulated platforms
Stop all transactions and communication on suspicion
Save all evidence (screenshots, chat logs, transaction IDs)
Report to local authorities
Warn others to prevent further harm
Courtesy: Crystal Intelligence
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Volvo ES90 Specs
Engine: Electric single motor (96kW), twin motor (106kW) and twin motor performance (106kW)
Power: 333hp, 449hp, 680hp
Torque: 480Nm, 670Nm, 870Nm
On sale: Later in 2025 or early 2026, depending on region
Price: Exact regional pricing TBA
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
- Emerging technologies and VFX with AI and CGI.
- Understanding of marketing objectives and audience engagement.
- Tourism industry knowledge.
- Professional ethics.
COMPANY%20PROFILE
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TOURNAMENT INFO
Fixtures
Sunday January 5 - Oman v UAE
Monday January 6 - UAE v Namibia
Wednesday January 8 - Oman v Namibia
Thursday January 9 - Oman v UAE
Saturday January 11 - UAE v Namibia
Sunday January 12 – Oman v Namibia
UAE squad
Ahmed Raza (captain), Rohan Mustafa, Mohammed Usman, CP Rizwan, Waheed Ahmed, Zawar Farid, Darius D’Silva, Karthik Meiyappan, Jonathan Figy, Vriitya Aravind, Zahoor Khan, Junaid Siddique, Basil Hameed, Chirag Suri
Dubai works towards better air quality by 2021
Dubai is on a mission to record good air quality for 90 per cent of the year – up from 86 per cent annually today – by 2021.
The municipality plans to have seven mobile air-monitoring stations by 2020 to capture more accurate data in hourly and daily trends of pollution.
These will be on the Palm Jumeirah, Al Qusais, Muhaisnah, Rashidiyah, Al Wasl, Al Quoz and Dubai Investment Park.
“It will allow real-time responding for emergency cases,” said Khaldoon Al Daraji, first environment safety officer at the municipality.
“We’re in a good position except for the cases that are out of our hands, such as sandstorms.
“Sandstorms are our main concern because the UAE is just a receiver.
“The hotspots are Iran, Saudi Arabia and southern Iraq, but we’re working hard with the region to reduce the cycle of sandstorm generation.”
Mr Al Daraji said monitoring as it stood covered 47 per cent of Dubai.
There are 12 fixed stations in the emirate, but Dubai also receives information from monitors belonging to other entities.
“There are 25 stations in total,” Mr Al Daraji said.
“We added new technology and equipment used for the first time for the detection of heavy metals.
“A hundred parameters can be detected but we want to expand it to make sure that the data captured can allow a baseline study in some areas to ensure they are well positioned.”
The view from The National
Vidaamuyarchi
Director: Magizh Thirumeni
Stars: Ajith Kumar, Arjun Sarja, Trisha Krishnan, Regina Cassandra
Rating: 4/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
THE SPECS
Touareg Highline
Engine: 3.0-litre, V6
Transmission: 8-speed automatic
Power: 340hp
Torque: 450Nm
Price: Dh239,312
MATCH INFO
Who: UAE v USA
What: first T20 international
When: Friday, 2pm
Where: ICC Academy in Dubai
THE BIO: Martin Van Almsick
Hometown: Cologne, Germany
Family: Wife Hanan Ahmed and their three children, Marrah (23), Tibijan (19), Amon (13)
Favourite dessert: Umm Ali with dark camel milk chocolate flakes
Favourite hobby: Football
Breakfast routine: a tall glass of camel milk
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Vaccine Progress in the Middle East
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