UK coronavirus LIVE: Boris Johnson delays easing of restrictions amid tightened lockdown in northern England as death toll rises by 120

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Captain Sir Tom Moore receives honorary freedom of his home town

Captain Sir Tom Moore has been awarded the freedom of his home town for his outstanding fundraising efforts.

He described becoming an honorary freeman of Keighley, West Yorkshire, as a “privilege”, adding: “I remain truly humbled and grateful for the support I have received from far and wide but the warm reception I have received coming home is particularly special to me.

“It really is great to be back.”

The 100-year-old Second World War veteran, who has raised almost £33 million for the NHS, was greeted by an honour guard from members of the Yorkshire Regiment for the special ceremony at the Town Hall Square in Keighley town centre.

His family also watched as a plaque was unveiled in his honour.

Captain Sir Tom had set out to raise £1,000 by walking 100 laps of his garden in the village of Marston Moretaine in Bedfordshire before his 100th birthday on April 30.

His efforts struck a chord with national feeling, and praise and donations flooded in with Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying he “provided us all with a beacon of light through the fog of coronavirus” and recommended he be knighted.

Becoming an honorary freeman of Keighley is the highest honour the council can bestow on anyone, according to town mayor Peter Corkindale.

Curfew and other restrictions imposed on demos planned in Brixton:

A curfew and other restrictions have been imposed on demonstrations planned in south London to stop people blocking main roads or planning illegal music events, Scotland Yard has said.

Numerous groups are planning to gather in Brixton, south London, on Saturday for Afrikan Emancipation Day – including Extinction Rebellion – primarily to enjoy a family-friendly, socially distanced day of activities and learning, police said.

But Extinction Rebellion has said that groups will block the A23 Brixton Road from Max Roach Park to Windrush Square and occupy the area for the day.

It said that it was joining a coalition of groups, including the Stop The Maangamizi: We Charge Genocide/Ecocide Campaign, Afrikan Emancipation Day Reparations March Committee, and Rhodes Must Fall Oxford.

The event aims to promote the necessity of stopping the genocide and ecocide of African people and their environments, it added.

But the Metropolitan Police on Friday said that blocking the road will cause “serious disruption” to Brixton and the surrounding area because it is used by hundreds of bus routes and thousands of motorists.

It said that it is imposing a number of conditions on the demonstrations within areas such as Windrush Square, Max Roach Park and outside Brixton Police Station. They must not spill into nearby roads and they must finish by 8pm.

A police boss has blasted Boris Johnson’s announcement that officers will enforce the mandatory wearing of face masks as “absolutely bonkers”.

No new deaths were notified as of midnight on Thursday, leaving the national total at 1,763.

Of the 38 new cases, 22 are male and 16 female while 82% are under the age of 45.

Some 32 cases are located in Dublin or Kildare and 26 are associated with outbreaks or are close contacts of confirmed cases.

Over the past two days a total of 123 cases have been reported. Of these, 84 cases are linked to known outbreaks or are close contacts of other confirmed cases.

At least 19 cases have been identified as community transmission while 20 cases remain under investigation.

One in five people in London and the South East who have had coronavirus did not show any symptoms, a new study suggests.

Serious public disorder in the coming months could “overwhelm all attempts” to control coronavirus, the Government’s scientific advisers have been warned.  

Flu jab campaign needed for younger at-risk groups, scientists say:

A flu vaccination campaign is needed to target younger clinical risk groups to combat the risk of coronavirus co-infection in the winter, scientists have warned.

Documents released by the Government’s Sage (Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies) committee indicate that experts are concerned about the number of people of people in risk groups that do not get the jab.

In a meeting on July 14, Sage recommends ensuring that at risk groups are made aware of the potential impact of Sars-CoV-2 infection.

It notes that the take up of the flu jab in the risk group of those aged 65 and over is good at 71.6%, but not in the younger clinical risk groups, with a 43.1% take up in under 65 years and 42.8% in pregnant women.

In the document, the advisers say: “We recommend with high priority a campaign to target these groups to mitigate the risk of co-infection this winter.

“We also note that the use of the live attenuated influenza vaccine (LAIV) in children reduces the incidence of community transmission of influenza virus.

“If there are widespread school closures in a second wave then this will affect uptake of this vaccine.

“Therefore, we recommend with high priority alternative options for delivery of this program are considered and how uptake rates of LAIV can be sustained/maximised.”

In the same paper the Government advisers say that we should expect co-infections and therefore prepare accordingly.

Serious disorder could ‘overwhelm’ attempts to control coronavirus, Sage told

Serious public disorder in the coming months could “overwhelm all attempts” to control coronavirus and “catastrophically” undermine recovery plans, scientific advisers have warned.

The current “volatile and highly complex situation” means the UK will face “grave challenges” in maintaining public order, according to a paper considered by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) in July.

The academics warn that tensions resulting from the pandemic have become “inextricably bound” with structural inequalities and international events.

They cited the Black Lives Matter movement that gained traction in May and early June after the death of George Floyd in the United States.

There is an increasing sense of “racial injustice, inequality and discrimination” felt among black, Asian and minority ethnic communities, which have been disproportionately affected by the virus.

At the same time, the authors say extreme right-wing groups are mobilising at a scale not seen for a decade, and exploiting fatal stabbing incidents in Reading, London and Glasgow.

The paper, by Professors Cliff Stott and Mark Harrison, reads: “While widespread urban disorder is not inevitable, currently, the situation in the UK is precariously balanced and the smallest error in policing (whether perceived or real, inside or outside the UK) or policy could unleash a dynamic which will make the management of Covid-19 all but impossible.

“Put simply, a serious deterioration of public order could overwhelm all attempts to control contagion, overwhelm hospitals, the criminal justice system and hinder revival of the economy.”

The Government said 46,119 people had died in hospitals, care homes and the wider community after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Thursday, up by 120 from the day before.