Vaccines to be offered to all over-50s by May, Matt Hancock confirms

• Ministers race to book 28,000 quarantine hotel rooms by 5pm

• ​PM 'over-cautious' in keeping schools shut until March 8

• Tory supporters 'open to tactical voting to stop SNP majority in May', poll suggests

• Coronavirus latest news: Youngest to return to school in Wales from February 22

• Fraser Nelson: We need dissenting voices in the lockdown debate more than ever

Matt Hancock has confirmed the Government is hoping to vaccinate all over-50s by early May.

The Health Secretary said it was the plan for all over-50s to "get the offer of a vaccine by May", although stressed it was dependent on supply of the vaccine.

"My plan is that we should be able to offer a vaccine to everybody in categories one to nine - that's all the over-50s - by May.

"Lots of things have got to go right to hit that goal, especially supply, which is the rate-limiting factor, but I'm sure, working with the NHS and everybody else who is making this happen, that if we keep going at the pace we can, then we can make sure all the over-50s get the offer of a vaccine by May."

It follows a chaotic day, in which Downing Street said a Cabinet Office press notice confirming local elections would take place on May 6, because of "confidence" that groups one to nine would be vaccinated by that time, had been released "in error" and had been withdrawn.

However, a few minutes later the Number 10 spokesman said the notice was correct.

"We have confirmed today that the elections must go ahead," the spokesman said. "The Cabinet Office document is correct."

Speaking at their regular press briefing, the Welsh Government confirmed May was also their target. Education Minister Kirsty Williams said the Welsh Government was "on track" with those plans.

Mark Harper, who chairs the lockdown-sceptic Covid Recovery Group (CRG), said it would be "almost impossible" to justify keeping restrictions in place beyond this point.

It comes as the UK Government strikes a new deal with German drugs firm CureVac for 50m doses of vaccine designed to beat future variants.

Follow the latest updates below.

04:02 PM

And that's it for another day...

It has been a funny old day in the world of Westminster, where double-think seems to be back in fashion.

We had a minister confirm that vaccine passports were being looked at, only for Number 10 to deny it. Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt then said he knew the Government was working on it - and called it a sensible idea.

There has also been some distancing of claims made about the attempted resignation of an adviser over "politics steeped in division", and the fact they may relate to equalities minister Kemi Badenoch.

But by far the most chaotic part of the day was the response to the Cabinet Office apparently inadvertently revealing plans to vaccinate all over-50s by early May.

The good news is that, with more than 1,600 votes, just 24 per cent of you think the local elections will be the start of our return to freedom, while 51 per cent say "some" restrictions will be lifted. A further 25 per cent say things will be broadly back to normal by then.

Read on for that and the rest of the day's news - we will be back on Monday.

03:54 PM

Alan Donnelly: We need an annual review of pandemic preparedness

G20 countries committed over $12 trillion last year to mitigate the socio-economic consequences of Covid-19. All political leaders today must be acutely aware that failing to invest in robust pandemic preparedness has had a massive human and economic cost that countries will be grappling with for years to come.

Rebooting economies and rebuilding the small business and service sectors against a background of ballooning public debt, while struggling to get our schools and universities functioning again, must make political leaders understand that there must be a new framework for pandemic preparedness at a national, regional and global level.

We can never again be put in a position where the response to the spreading virus was to launch an emergency aid programme largely based on pledges from countries and from philanthropy.

This is how you respond to a tsunami, earthquake or other natural disasters, argues Alan Donnelly - it is not how we should be responding to the increasing threat of a novel pathogen such as Covid-19.

03:44 PM

Watch: Emmanuel Macron under fire after UK gets first dibs on 'French' vaccine

Politicians in France have criticised Emmanuel Macron after Britain secured the first batch of vaccines produced by a Franco-Austrian startup based near Nantes.

The UK's investment in Valneva - which has a manufacturing factory in Scotland which Boris Johnson last month - has secured a large supply of jabs.

It initially ordered 60 million doses and has since ordered another 40 million, bringing the total value of the the UK's dealings with Valneva to £1.2 billion.

Britain will begin receiving its doses in October, while France and the EU may have to wait until 2022.

03:34 PM

A make-do-and-mend approach to opening schools is what we need

Make-do and mend’ has become a mantra in this very different world and how different it is from when the slogan was first coined in the 1940s.

Perhaps instead of the he present pressure cooker environment in schools, which could best be described as ‘Make-do and break'. we could try and take a leaf out of the wartime approach, allowing schools to be open for longer hours, with half of the students attending for either the morning or afternoon session.

This would immediately halve class sizes and make social distancing a reality, rather than an unattainable pipe-dream. Students could take part in sports and artistic pursuits during their ‘free’ session in the existing spaces, or additional space within marquees or any off-site, redundant spaces vacated during lockdown.

As John Nield argues, if teachers and students are included in the decision-making process, then this can only lead to better outcomes. Education is not done to you: it is done with you.

03:16 PM

Further 537 Covid deaths registered in English hospitals

A further 537 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in English hospitals, official figures show.

That brings the total number of confirmed reported deaths by this measure to 74,786.

Patients were aged between 15 and 100 years old. All except 21 had known underlying health conditions.

The Midlands was the worst-affected region, with 122 deaths, followed by London with 92 and the East of England, with 77.

There were 69 deaths in the North West, 64 in the South East, 61 in the North East & Yorkshire and 52 in the South West.

03:14 PM

'Almost impossible' to justify any restrictions after over-50s vaccinated, says Mark Harper

It will be "almost impossible to justify having any restrictions" by the time local elections take place on May 6, the chair of the Covid Recovery Group has said.

Mark Harper, a former chief whip and leader of the group of MPs pushing for lockdown to be lifted, said it was "great news" that all over-50s would be vaccinated in time for the springtime elections.

"These top nine groups account for around 99 per cent of those that have died from Covid and about 80 per cent of hospital admissions. It will be almost impossible to justify having any restrictions in place at all by that point," he said.

He also called on the Government to explain why English schools will be shut until March 8 - after those in Wales and Scotland begin to reopen from February 22.

"We need to know why English schools need to be kept shut for longer given the great news about the vaccination rollout and the impact every day outside the classroom and the playground has on children’s prospects, education and social development," he added.

02:55 PM

Have your say: Will other restrictions be be lifted before May 6 elections?

The Cabinet Office appears to have let the cat out of the bag on plans to vaccinate the over-50s by early May, when the team confirmed May 6 local elections will go ahead.

So far the Government has refused to put a date on it, despite pressure from the Covid Recovery Group and other backbenchers to give clarity over when restrictions will be eased.

We already know that schools will bethe first to repen, with the tentative start date of March 8 - but will more parts of the economy be opened by the time we go to the polls?

Have your say below.

02:46 PM

Bailiffs trying to remove anti-HS2 protesters from Euston tunnels

Bailiffs are trying to remove anti-HS2 protesters from tunnels by Euston station, after a demonstrator attached himself to the structure.

A group of at least six activists have spent more than a week in a network of tunnels beneath Euston Square Gardens. A demonstrator known as "Lazer" attached himself to a tunnel using a device made of steel and concrete around his arm.

An HS2 Ltd spokesman said: "The safety of those trespassing and that of the HS2 staff and emergency service personnel in this operation is of paramount importance.

"We are doing all we can to end this illegal action safely, and progress has been made with access secured to the underground tunnel.

"As has been reported this morning, the illegal trespassers have attached themselves underground, which increases the danger to themselves, but also to our team and the emergency services.

"The High Court this week issued an order to require the illegal occupiers to leave their tunnel. Dr Maxey still hasn't complied with the court order, which also told him to provide information on the tunnels and its occupants."

02:37 PM

England's vaccinations jump nearly 400,000 on yesterday

A further 391,037 people in England have been vaccinated since yesterday, including first and second doses, official figures show.

A total of 9,899,043 Covid-19 vaccinations had taken place in England between December 8 and February 4, according to provisional NHS England data.

Of this number, 9,430,261 were the first dose of the vaccine, a rise of 388,426 on the previous day's figures, while 468,782 were the second dose, an increase of 2,611.

The UK-wide figures are being published later today.

02:27 PM

Patrick O'Flynn: Boris Johnson cannot afford to be overly cautious about lifting lockdown

In the first volume of his account of the Second World War, The Gathering Storm, Winston Churchill noted: “It is a joke in Britain to say that the War Office is always preparing for the last war. But this is probably true of other departments.”

It may be true of Boris Johnson too. For reports are emerging from Whitehall of the Prime Minister increasingly being the most cautious voice in the room when discussion turns to opening-up our economy and society as the Covid pandemic starts to recede.

It is wholly understandable that Mr Johnson can think of little else but the epic struggle against Covid on multiple fronts given all the death and trauma it has brought to our shores over the past year.

But, argues Patrick O'Flynn, increasingly, scientific evidence and trends in the data lead to the inexorable conclusion that by the start of spring the biggest threat to the British people will no longer be posed by Covid.

02:03 PM

Jeremy Hunt backs 'very sensible policy' of vaccine passports - just as No 10 denies it

Jeremy Hunt said having coronavirus immunity passports was a "very sensible policy" and that other countries had shown how such schemes can work - just minutes after Number 10 denied it was working on such a policy.

"I think it is a very sensible policy and I know that the Government is looking at how that might work," the former health secretary told BBC Radio 4's World At One.

"You need something that shows whether someone has had a vaccine and whether they have been tested recently.

"And I think other parts of the world have shown how these schemes can work quite effectively."

But at a Downing Street briefing, a spokesman said there were "no current plans" for such a proposal (1:20pm).

01:54 PM

South African variant 'top of the list' for vaccine development, says genomics boss

Developing a vaccine to address the South African variant would be "close to the top of my list", the director of the Covid Genomics Consortium has said.

Sharon Peacock, who is also a professor of public health and microbiology at the University of Cambridge, told BBC Radio 4's World At One: "If I could have a vaccine against particular variants, I would certainly place the variant first detected in South Africa close to the top of my list.

"The vaccine trials in South Africa demonstrate that there's some reduced efficacy against some vaccines, so that would be close to the top of my list.

"The current UK variant that's circulating at the moment, with the additional mutations as they arise, I think that that's also really critical.

"But again we have to be watchful because this story hasn't played out yet and the virus I think still has some tricks up its sleeve, in terms of what other mutations may arise and that may impact on our immune response."

01:41 PM

UK orders 50m doses of vaccine against new Covid strains in deal with Germans

The Government has bought 50m doses of a variant Covid vaccine, as part of a new strategy towards an annual programme like the existing flu jabs.

The partnership with German manufacturer CureVac will allow new varieties of vaccines based on messenger RNA technology to be developed quickly against new strains of Covid-19 if they are needed, in a method similar to the one used to update flu vaccines each year.

An initial 50m order has been placed for new vaccines to be manufactured in the UK, and delivered later this year “if they are required”, on top of the existing 407m doses secured to date. An expert advisory group to identify the variants that the UK could need vaccines against is also being set up.

Interim Chair of the Vaccines Taskforce Clive Dix said: “Today’s agreement will mean the UK is better prepared for the emergence of any significant new virus variant.

"Because these mRNA vaccines can be rapidly adapted we will be ready to respond swiftly to new strains and update vaccines in the same way the flu vaccine is updated each year – a vital part of ending the pandemic once and for all."

01:38 PM

UK R-rate narrows as infection rates shrinks

The estimate for the UK's R-rate has narrowed to between 0.7 and 1.0, Sage has said, with the Government scientists saying they believe the number of new infections is shrinking by between 2% to 5% every day.

Last week the UK's R-rate was 0.7 to 1.1.

The latest estimate for England is between 0.7 and 0.9.

However the upper limit of these ranges are at 1.0 for the North East and Yorkshire, and the North West.

London and the South East have the lowest R-rates, between 0.6 and 0.8, and between 0.6 and 0.9 respectively.

01:27 PM

No quibbling as Wales confirms May target for over-50s vaccinations

The UK Government might be caught off guard by a rogue department announcing plans to vaccinate all over-50s by May - but the Welsh government has no such squeamishness.

Education Minister Kirsty Williams said the Welsh Government was "on track" to vaccinate all adults over the age of 50 in Wales by May.

"We are vaccinating more people per head of 100,000 than any other part of the UK and that is a tremendous logistical professional and indeed a community response," she said. "There are lots of volunteers out there that are assisting our NHS, our primary care practitioners and GP surgeries,

"It's a tremendous effort, but Dr Jones I think we're on track to do just that?"

Deputy chief medical officer Dr Chris Jones replied: "That is the plan."

01:23 PM

Oxford vaccine 'protects against British variant' of Covid, research suggests

The Oxford/AstraZeneca coronavirus vaccine is just as effective at fighting the UK variant as it is the original virus, new research suggests.

Oxford University researchers who developed the vaccine say it has a similar efficacy against the variant first detected in Kent and the South East of the UK, compared to the original strain of Covid-19 that it was tested against.

Andrew Pollard, professor of paediatric infection and immunity, and chief investigator on the Oxford vaccine trial, said: "Data from our trials of the ChAdOx1 vaccine in the United Kingdom indicate that the vaccine not only protects against the original pandemic virus, but also protects against the novel variant, B117, which caused the surge in disease from the end of 2020 across the UK."

01:20 PM

Lobby latest: No 'current plans' for vaccine passports

Downing Street has said the Government has no "current plans" for vaccine passports.

This morning (see 8:24am) James Cleverly, the Foreign Office minister, appeared to confirm reports that the UK Government was working with foreign authorities, saying: "We will work with international partners to help facilitate their border arrangements and immigration requirements."

The plan would enable those with two jabs to travel to places like Greece this summer.

But a No 10 spokesman said: "There are still no current plans to roll out vaccine passports. Going on holiday is currently illegal.

"We have always been clear that we will keep the situation under review. We are not going to speculate on this matter any further."

01:09 PM

Lobby latest: No investigation into Kemi Badenoch

Number 10 has declined to comment on reports that Samuel Kasumu, an adviser on ethnic minorities, tried to resign over concerns the Conservative Party was pursuing a "politics steeped in division".

Mr Kasumu is said to have suggested Kemi Badenoch may have broken the ministerial code with her Twitter tirade against a journalist - which the BBC said the Cabinet Office was looking into.

However, No 10 said during a Westminster briefing that there is "no Cabinet Office investigation ongoing".

A Downing Street spokesman said: "It would not be appropriate to comment on individual staff members.

"This Government is committed to inclusion and bringing communities together, and is the most ethnically diverse in this country's history. Last year we established a commission on race and ethnic disparities to examine and tackle inequality and discrimination wherever it is found. It is due to report shortly."

01:04 PM

Lobby latest: Boris Johnson's thoughts with 'all those involved' in Kilmarnock deaths

Downing Street said Boris Johnson's thoughts are with all those involved in the incidents near Kilmarnock.

Two women and a man died in a series of incidents on Thursday night, Police Scotland have said.

A Number 10 spokesman said: "The Prime Minister's thoughts are with all those involved and he thanks the police and the healthcare staff for their response."

12:57 PM

Lobby latest: Confusion reigns over Government's vaccine target

Downing Street tied itself in knots today over the Cabinet Office announcement on local elections, which suggested that all over-50s would be vaccinated before May 6.

Initially a spokesman said the announcement had been sent "in error" and has been withdrawn from the gov.uk website.

"In relation to the Cabinet Office press notice this was a huge error and I believe Cabinet Office has now withdrawn it," he said. "As we previously set out our ambition to offer all priority cohorts a vaccination by spring and that remains our position.

However, a few minutes later the spokesman said the notice - which said the vaccination programme planned to have reached all nine priority cohorts by May - was correct.

"We have confirmed today that the elections must go ahead," the spokesman said. "The Cabinet Office document is correct."

12:48 PM

Scientists caution against setting lockdown lifting 'calendar'

Scientists have warned against lockdown being lifted too quickly as a senior Tory MP said the Government should be "looking to open up" society.

Professor Graham Medley, chairman of the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group on Modelling (Spi-M), said ministers should "make decisions dependent on the circumstances, rather than being driven by a calendar of wanting to do things".

But Sir Graham Brady, chairman of the backbench 1922 Committee, said the country was in a "far more optimistic place", citing falling infection rates and the vaccine rollout.

"We don't want the Government to be behind the curve if things continue moving as positively and as rapidly as they are," he told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

"Now that that threat is receding, we ought to be - and indeed we are, and the Government says we are - looking to open up," he added.

12:30 PM

Wales' youngest children to return to school from Feb 22

Wales will reopen its schools to the youngest children from February 22, Education minister Kirsty Williams has confirmed.

"Sadly, we are not yet in a position to be able to see a full return to school for every learner. However, thanks to people following our national guidance, there is sufficient headroom for us to bring back some of our learners in a phased, flexible and progressive way," she told a press conference.

"We have prioritised our youngest learners because of the favourable evidence on transmission in younger children, and also because we know they find it difficult to learn remotely.

"Small numbers of vocational learners, including apprentices, will also be able to return to colleges," she added.

"Again, this is because of difficulties with remote learning, as they will need to access training or workplace environments in order to undertake their practical qualifications."

12:27 PM

One in 65 people in England had Covid last week: ONS

Around one in 65 people in private households in England had Covid-19 between January 24 and 30, according to estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) - the equivalent of 846,900 people.

This is down from around one in 55 people for the period January 17 to 23.

The ONS said: "Our modelling suggests that the percentage of people testing positive in England decreased in the week ending 30 January 2021, but remains high."

London continues to have the highest proportion of people likely to test positive, with around one in 50 people in private households estimated to have had Covid-19 in that period. That is down from an estimated one in 35 for the period January 17 to 23.

For eastern England, north-west England and the West Midlands the estimate is one in 55 people.

The other estimates are one in 65 for the East Midlands, one in 80 for south-east England and north-east England, one in 90 for Yorkshire and the Humber, and one in 100 for south-west England.

12:26 PM

CureVac deal ensures UK is 'prepared for all eventualities', says Business Secretary

The UK's deal with German company CureVac to develop vaccines against new strains of coronavirus, will help ensure we are "prepared for all eventualities", the Business Secretary has said.

Kwasi Kwarteng tweeted: "We've entered into a partnership with @CureVacRNA to rapidly develop vaccines against new strains.

"We must be prepared for all eventualities so we've placed an order for 50m doses, if required.

"I can also confirm the agreement will allow large-scale manufacturing in the UK."

12:14 PM

All over-50s to be vaccinated by early May, Government reveals

All adults aged 50 and over will have had a coronavirus vaccine by early May, the Government has inadvertently revealed.

Ministers thus far have been avoiding putting any timeframe on the next stage of the vaccination programme, saying only that the target was "spring" - but Number 10 has repeatedly refused to define this further.

However, while confirming the local elections will take place on May 6, the Cabinet Office said the aim was to have reached all nine priority cohorts before that point.

It is not clear whether the plans also include a lag time to allow for protection to be built up, estimated to be two-to-three weeks, which would make the target date even earlier.

Constitution minister Chloe Smith said: “As the Government rolls out the vaccine to the most vulnerable, we will be able to leave lockdown and open our country up safely again."

11:57 AM

Priti Patel admits home-schooling is 'a challenge'

Priti Patel has admitted she has found home-schooling "a challenge" and was giving a telling off by her son's teachers.

The Home Secretary told The Sun she had been pulled up during an online parents evening, admitting she could do more to keep on top of son Freddie's work.

"I think I might need to spend a bit more time with my son to help his homework going forward," she told the paper.

"Homeschooling is a challenge for every family it really is. I'd really just like to thank the teachers and pay tribute to all schools for the remarkable work that they're doing and just to say to all pupils around the country really keep going."

11:45 AM

New 'carbon taxes' on food could put British farmers at a 'competitive disadvantage', Boris Johnson warned

New carbon “taxes” or charges on foods such as meat and dairy risk putting British farmers at a "competitive disadvantage" compared to other countries, the National Farmers Union (NFU) has said.

It came as MPs warned of the potential impact on bills for families already struggling due to the covid-19 pandemic, after Downing Street refused to rule out introducing charges on sectors that produce more pollution.

It follows reports that the Prime Minister has ordered Government departments to produce a “price” for carbon emissions across all areas of the economy as part of his drive to hit net zero by 2050.

Read the full story here.

11:37 AM

Fraser Nelson: We need dissenting voices in the lockdown debate more than ever

Not so long ago, we saw official adverts urging us to seek NHS care if we felt a suspicious lump. Now, adverts in bus stops show the face of a Covid patient with an oxygen mask asking us to “look him in the eyes” and say if our journey is necessary. This changes the mood – and will obviously have consequences. Positive and negative.

The Prime Minister speaks about the “frustrations” of lockdown as if it’s just a matter of being annoyed that you can’t go to the pub. But it’s more than that.

It’s worry about the damage this lockdown inflicts on education, health and society. Stopping the virus spreading will obviously save lives, but it’s a trade-off. Great care needs to be taken to find the right balance.

But for this, argues Fraser Nelson, we need a proper debate.

11:32 AM

Jeremy Hunt clarifies comments about driving cases down before lockdown lifts

Jeremy Hunt says his comments about waiting until the UK has far lower cases to lift lockdown have been "over-egged" in a series of tweets this morning.

The former health secretary was quoted by the Guardian saying ministers should wait until coronavirus cases can be driven down to a manageable level of 1,000 a day before easing restrictions.

The chair of the health select committee said "the biggest risk to our current strategy is the emergence of new variants that are immune or partially immune to the vaccine", and our best chances of preventing the spread of such strains is "enhanced contact tracing".

He added: "This is a big step up from the contact tracing we do & much closer to what happens in South Korea & Japan. But impossible with current high levels of transmission. Hence the critical importance of getting case levels down well below the current c 20k/day before ending lockdown...

"We may not need to continue lockdown until cases fall to such a level and I am not advocating as such. But we do need to keep sensible restrictions in place until enhanced contact tracing can be brought in for all new cases."

11:26 AM

Have your say: Will other restrictions be be lifted before May 6 elections?

The Cabinet Office appears to have let the cat out of the bag on plans to vaccinate the over-50s by early May, when the team confirmed May 6 local elections will go ahead.

So far the Government has refused to put a date on it, despite pressure from the Covid Recovery Group and other backbenchers to give clarity over when restrictions will be eased.

We already know that schools will bethe first to repen, with the tentative start date of March 8 - but will more parts of the economy be opened by the time we go to the polls?

Have your say below.

11:07 AM

Don't forget your pencil: What will May 6 elections look like?

We know now that the local elections will take place on May 6 - and things might look a bit different to usual.

The Electoral Commission said preparations have been undertaken since last March, when the set of elections due to take place last year were cancelled.

An Electoral Commission spokesman said: "Safety measures, such as face coverings, hand sanitiser and social distancing, will be in place to make polling stations safe places to vote and to work, and we are sharing information with voters so they understand the voting options available to them.

"We are supporting administrators in their complex and important work to prepare for and deliver the polls, and we will continue to update our guidance for parties, campaigners and electoral administrators as needed in order to reflect the latest public health advice and any legislative changes."

10:39 AM

No hotels have signed up to quarantine plans, admits minister

No hotels have currently signed up to the Government-funded mandatory quarantine scheme, a minister has said, as he defended the delay on border action.

Although documents seen by The Telegraph reveal that ministers have asked hotel bosses to be ready to accommodate 1,425 passengers a day by February 15, James Cleverly told BBC Breakfast none had signed up yet.

When asked how many hotels were on board, he said: "I don't have that detail at my fingertips. To be fair, the formal announcement only came out late last night so it is unsurprising that no one has formally signed up."

The Foreign Office minister defended the delay to the quarantine hotel policy coming in, saying the Government was "giving the hotel industry notice" to prepare - despite several firms saying they had received no response to their offers of help.

10:19 AM

China threatens retaliation over Ofcom's 'political' decision to ban broadcaster

China has accused the UK of “political oppression, double standards and hypocrisy” after regulator Ofcom banned Chinese state broadcaster CGTN from British airwaves.

British regulator Ofcom revoked CGTN's licence yesterday, after finding its state-backed ownership structure broke UK law, and that a proposed transfer to another media group would still keep it tied to the Chinese Communist Party.

But Beijing hit out at the ruling, saying it was "based on ideological prejudice and political reasons", claiming the news channel had played a role in "enhancing understanding and communication" between the two countries.

"China urges the UK to immediately cease political manipulation and correct its mistakes," said foreign ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin.

He added that the Government "reserves the right to take action in response,” without specifying any measures.

10:11 AM

Exclusive: No case' to delay school restart until March, say government scientists

Boris Johnson is being "over-cautious" in keeping all schools closed until March 8 because there "really isn't a case" for refusing to open them earlier, some of the Government's own scientific advisers have said.

The success of the vaccination programme means there is no longer any risk of an "explosive third wave" if primary schools start to reopen after half-term, they argue.

Separately, MPs have been told by scientists that it is already safe to open classrooms in some parts of the country after the seven-day infection rate fell to its lowest level since mid-December.

However, Downing Street has insisted it will only be safe to begin opening schools from March 8, when the over-70s will have built up immunity through vaccines.

Read the full story here.

09:52 AM

Local elections to go ahead as all over-50s to be vaccinated before May

Local elections will take place in England and Wales on May 6 this year, with the Government revealing plans to have vaccinated all over-50s in time.

The UK’s vaccination programme is planned to have reached all nine priority cohorts by May, meaning that the Government "can commit to go ahead with these polls with confidence".

Proxy voting rules will also be changed, enabling those who need to self-isolate to request an emergency proxy vote at short notice - right up to 5pm on polling day itself. All voters can request a postal ballot in advance, although it will not be made mandatory amid concerns it could "increase fraud risk and reduce choice for voters".

Constitution minister Chloe Smith, said: “Democracy should not be cancelled because of Covid. More than ever, local people need their say as we build back better, on issues ranging from local roads, to safer streets, to the level of council tax.

“As the Government rolls out the vaccine to the most vulnerable, we will be able to leave lockdown and open our country up safely again. We will work with political parties to ensure that these important elections are free and fair.”

09:43 AM

Exiting lockdown: How the goalposts have shifted since January 4

On Jan 4, Boris Johnson placed the country in lockdown, indicating that several tests must be met before the restrictions could be lifted.

The Prime Minister said that if the vaccination rollout continued successfully, if deaths fell, if people stuck to the rules and if the virus did not drastically mutate again, schools could reopen after the February half-term and regions could move back to tiered restrictions.

Yet although 10 million people have been removed from "the path of the virus", there has been a noticeable slippage in the mid-February target even though case numbers, deaths and hospital admissions continue to fall.

Predictions from government experts as to when restrictions might be lifted now range anywhere from the end of February to the summer. Increasingly, they include worrying forecasts that measures may need to be re-imposed next winter.

This lack of clarity is leading to fears that the goalposts are being shifted even as the ball thunders into the six-yard box. Read the full analysis here or watch the video below.

09:28 AM

No 10 adviser tried to resign over 'politics of division'

Number 10's adviser on ethnic minorities considered resigning over fears the Conservative Party was pursuing a "politics steeped in division", the BBC has reported today.

Samuel Kasumu reportedly retracted his resignation letter - in which he said tensions in Government were at times "unbearable" - on Thursday after talks with vaccines minister Nadhim Zahawi.

He said "the damage that is often caused by our actions is not much considered", adding: "As someone that has spent his whole adult life serving others, that tension has been at times unbearable."

He also described the actions of equalities minister Kemi Badenoch, who launched an online tirade against a journalist last week (see below), as "concerning", and suggested she may have broken the ministerial code.

In his resignation letter, Mr Kasumu wrote that "more concerning than the act, was the lack of response internally".

09:12 AM

Chopper's Politics: Arlene Foster on why post-Brexit regulation is 'offensive'

UK customs officials are banning potatoes and tractors from Northern Ireland if they have soil from Great Britain on them, Arlene Foster has said ahead of a key meeting with Boris Johnson today.

Ms Foster, the Northern Ireland First Minister and leader of the Democratic Unionist Party, blamed British customs officials for over-interpreting rules in the Northern Ireland Protocol which governs flows of goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

In an interview with The Telegraph's Chopper's Politics podcast, Ms Foster said: "There is a lot of very grave anger in Northern Ireland about the way in which this protocol is rolling out. And we need to get it sorted and we need to get it sorted immediately.

"There was no plant disease in Great Britain before Brexit. So how are there any difficulties now post Brexit in terms of Northern Ireland?"

Listen to the interview in full here.

08:58 AM

Brexit Britain is a vaccine 'speedboat', says Ursula von der Leyen

Ursula von der Leyen has compared Brexit Britain to a “speedboat” when it comes to securing coronavirus vaccines, while likening the EU to a slower ship.

The European Commission president accidentally made the case for Brexit after enduring weeks of criticism after delays in supplies of the AstraZeneca vaccine to the EU

She admitted that the bloc of 27 countries took longer to make decisions over contracts for Covid-19 jabs than a single country would.

“Alone, a country can be a speedboat, while the EU is more like a ship,” Mrs von der Leyen said.

Read the full article here.

08:46 AM

ICYMI: 'You have no authority here!' The parish council meeting that went viral

A parish meeting has gone viral after it descended into absolute chaos as power hungry councillors accused each other of “appalling behaviour” and acting like “laughing hyenas”.

Members of the Handforth Parish Council in Cheshire traded amusing insults and struggled to adapt to new technology as they undertook their December 10 meeting for the planning and environment committee over Zoom.

The recorded clip, which has since gone viral across social media, opens with a war of words between two of the councillors, in which one - the chairman - declared: “You have no authority here Jackie Weaver. You have no authority at all.”

You can watch the best of the bizarre meeting below:

08:44 AM

Government must look at cases - not just deaths - to avoid 'yo-yo' lockdown, says scientist

A Government scientist has warned against lifting restrictions too early, which could result in a "yo-yo situation" which requires another lockdown.

Dr Mike Tildesley, from the University of Warwick and a member of Sage subgroup the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group, told Times Radio the focus for next month should be to get children back in school, adding "a little bit more mixing outdoors" might be reasonable but would need "very clear messaging from the Government".

He added: "I really appreciate the need for people getting back some level of normalcy. My concern is a resurgence by doing that, which will lead to a much greater problem as we get into the spring."

Dr Tildesley said the Government needed to look at cases per day for unlocking, as well as other indicators - reinforcing the sense that the goalposts are shifting.

"I think we need to look at all of these indicators - if they get as low as possible we can really prevent the risk of the resurgence, then I think that's the point to unlock."

08:36 AM

'No dialogue': Hotels boss says 10-day notice not enough for quarantine plan

The chief executive of London Hotel Group has said it will take longer than the 10-day notice period to prepare for quarantining travellers, as he attacked the Government over a lack of communication on the policy.

Labour has said it is "beyond belief" that the measures won't come into force until February 15, although minister James Cleverly has insisted it is to give the industry notice.

Meher Nawab told BBC Breakfast: "There is a lot of training to go into this, a lot of health protocols as well, and actually the insurance has to be approved. If you want to do something properly, and the amount of due diligence and protocol that has to go into place, it takes a long time."

"To set all the processes up you need virologists to come and visit the property, you need to set up hygiene protocols, that can't all be done overnight," he said.

"The ventilation system has to be looked at very closely. I'm not sure what (the Government) has set out can be done in this time."

He added: "There has been no open dialogue between the hospitality sector and the Government."

08:30 AM

Minister: We don't need Labour to tell us to do what we are already doing

A minister has claimed that Labour is "calling for stuff we are already doing", as he defends the Government's financial support during the pandemic.

James Cleverly, the Foreign Office minister, said "I very much hope we get a speedy bounceback" once restrictions are lifted, although said he could not "give you exact guarantees" on when that would happen.

Asked if the Government would extend furlough, as Labour has called for, he said there was an "absolute determination to protect the people who have suffered economically", adding: "What Labour is calling for is stuff we are already doing.

"We will continue to help people who are struggling - that is the foundation stone of the Government response. We don't need Labour to tell us to do what we are already doing."

Support would continue in "the most appropriate way as we hopefully come out of economic restrictions."

08:24 AM

Government will 'help facilitate' vaccine passports with other countries, says minister

The UK Government will work with other countries by developing vaccine passports, a minister has said.

It was reported this morning that the Greek authorities are working with the Foreign Office on a to provide Brits who have been vaccinated with an official document so they can travel after they have received two of the Pfizer or AstraZeneca jabs.

James Cleverly, the Foreign Office minister, told Radio 4's Today programme: "The decisions that individual countries make about own incoming arrangements are up to them... It is often the case that the entry requirements for countries [include] vaccines and inoculations - that is not an uncommon practice."

Mr Cleverly added: "We will work with international partners to help facilitate their border arrangements and immigration requirements."

08:19 AM

Labour 'naive' to press for quicker action on quarantine hotels, says minister

A minister has accused Labour of being "naive", after the opposition accused the Government of doing too little, too late on border controls.

Nick Thomas-Symonds, shadow home secretary, said it was "beyond comprehension that these measures won’t even start until 15 February", as he pressed the case for a blanket approach.

But James Cleverly, the Foreign Office minister, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "This is part of a package of measures, no individual measure will help resolve this. The idea of Labour picking one particular silver bullet solution to what is a complicated situation is naive."

He also defended the delay to the process, saying Priti Patel had "said this was going to come into place" late last month "so the hospitality industry could start thinking about implementing measures".

He added: "We are making sure we are giving the hospitality industry an appropriate amount of time to get ready for this policy."

08:13 AM

Quarantine hotels should begin 'immediately', scientist says

A Sage scientist has said hotel quarantine policies should come in immediately - although noted it would be no use against "homegrown" variants.

Dr Mike Tildesley, from the University of Warwick and a member of Sage subgroup the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Group, told Times Radio: "As with any control policy, as soon as you realise you might need to do this you need to introduce it immediately, which is why any delay, as we saw perhaps with the South African variant and delays to bans there, leads to the possibility of the virus getting in and circulating more widely.

"It's important that we do isolate people coming in to reduce the risk of variants coming from other countries, but also we are getting homegrown new variants here and that's not going to help that."

Nervtag, another Sage subgroup, is expected to classify the new coronavirus variants emerging in Liverpool and Bristol as official mutations later this morning.

08:07 AM

Delay to quarantine plan to give hotels 'notice', claims minister

Foreign Office minister James Cleverly has defended the delay in implementing quarantine hotels, because the hotel industry needed to be given "notice" of the plans.

"We've been working with international partners who put a similar package in place - New Zealand, Australia, for example - see how that works," he told Sky News.

"This is adding to existing measures, and we want to make sure that this works, that we give the hotel industry notice."

He added: "Obviously not every hotel will be doing this and so it's unsurprising that some hotel chains haven't been contacted about this."

08:03 AM

Vaccine passports on the horizon, minister suggests

Vaccine passports could be introduced for travellers arriving into the UK, a minister has suggested, as it seems likely they will be imposed on Brits going overseas.

Authorities in Greece are said to be keen to welcome tourists from the UK back as early as May, with work underway to develop vaccine passports for those who have had two doses of either the Pfizer or AstraZeneca vaccine.

Foreign Office minister James Cleverly suggested this was not a UK Government initiative, telling Sky News: "The border measures of other countries and what they require of people coming to their countries will be up to them.

"Receiving countries will set their own border measures and it will be up to those countries to define what they require travellers to have."

But he hinted that they could be introduced for those looking to come to the UK, saying: "We'll have to see what countries, what the international community, put in place once vaccines around the world are as effectively distributed, as they are here in the UK."

07:58 AM

Blanket quarantine hotel approach 'excessive' and 'counterproductive', says minister

A blanket approach to quarantine hotels would be "excessive" and "counterproductive", a minister has said, amid criticism that the Government is repeating the mistakes of last year.

Responding to the announcement last night, Nick Thomas-Symonds, shadow home secretary, said it was "beyond comprehension that these measures won’t even start until 15 February", adding that even when implemented they will " go nowhere near far enough to be effective in preventing further variants.

"As ever with this Government, it is too little, too late.”

But this morning James Cleverly, the Foreign Office minister, told BBC Breakfast the UK's advanced genomics means "we know where new variants are developing around the world".

"That will help us adapt our list of high risk countries much more quickly and responsively than in the past, rather than put a blanket ban on every country in the world," he added.

07:44 AM

Ministers race to book 28,000 quarantine hotel rooms by 5pm

​Ministers are racing to reserve 28,000 hotel rooms across the UK by 5pm on Friday evening in a bid to launch the Government's "red list" quarantine scheme by the middle of this month.

Documents seen by The Telegraph reveal that ministers have asked hotel bosses to be ready to accommodate 1,425 passengers a day by February 15.

The scheme – planned to run until at least March 31 according to the memo – will see returning passengers quarantined in hotel rooms for 11 nights at a cost of up to £800 per person.

On Thursday night, sources confirmed that the Government will pay the estimated £55 million bill up front but then attempt to recoup the money from passengers.

The documents also show that Government-appointed security guards will be posted on all floors of the hotels, with guests expected to clean their own rooms.