The Scottish government has finally launched a volunteering scheme for members of the public to help during the coronavirus crisis, in a collaboration with the British Red Cross, the NHS and a volunteering agency.
The “Scotland cares” campaign will target retired or former NHS workers, people who want to bolster public services as “community reserve volunteers” or thirdly, those hoping to help community groups and charities in their areas.
A scheme launched in England by the health secretary Matt Hancock on Tuesday last week has seen more than 700,000 people volunteer to help the NHS support 1.5m vulnerable people, nearly triple the original 250,000 target.
Scottish ministers have not set a target for their scheme but volunteers will be asked to use the Ready Scotland website, where they will be redirected to the three options offered to register their interest.
Volunteers will be told they must still observe the stay-at-home rules in force during the lockdown, so are limited to one trip per day and must only take part if they are not required to self-isolate.
Shirley-Anne Somerville, the Scottish cabinet secretary for social security and older people, said:
“By providing this national portal we will be able to connect people to where their contribution is most needed in their local community, ensuring everyone can play their part in helping Scotland come through this pandemic.”
Afghanistan’s health ministry has reported 27 new Coronavirus cases in last 24 hours, pushing the total number of infections in the country to 145.
Some 24 of the new cases were confirmed in the western province of Herat, which is the worst affected area with 106 infections and borders Iran.
Citing “unofficial numbers,” the Afghan ambassador in Iran said yesterday that around 50 Afghans have died of Coronavirus in Iran so far.
Herat’s governor has extended a partial curfew and warned that “difficult days are ahead” and asked people to respect the rules and stay at home.
Meanwhile, the Taliban established their own committee to distribute information about the Coronavirus and have been reportedly distributing masks and soaps in the areas they control.
Afghanistan has reported three deaths of Coronavirus and five recoveries so far.
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An investigation has been launched after pictures of a British footballer surfaced online following an incident in which a Range Rover crashed into parked cars.
West Midlands police said they were called to the Dickens Heath area of Solihull on Sunday just before 10am where the two parked cars suffered minor damage. The force said the driver left his details with a member of the public before leaving on foot.
Images surfaced online on Sunday of a damaged white Range Rover as well as a picture that appeared to show the Aston Villa midfielder Jack Grealish in slippers and a bright blue hoodie.
Less than 24 hours before the incident, the midfielder launched a video appeal for people to stay at home during the government-enforced lockdown. In the video, he said: “To help save lives you must stay at home. Only leave your house to buy food, buy medicine or to exercise and always remember to stay at least two metres apart. This is urgent, protect the NHS, stay home, save lives.”
Jack Grealish
(@JackGrealish)Stay Home. Protect the NHS. Save Lives.#StayHomeSaveLives @NHSuk pic.twitter.com/AIN4AzwNcR
Some people in the UK are still not getting the message about the severity of the coronavirus pandemic and the government needs to be more inventive with its information campaign, a police chief has said.
David Jamieson, the police and crime commissioner for the West Midlands, said certain demographics in the country were struggling to access important information due to language barriers. Other groups, including teenagers, were also not being reached because of the way information was being distributed.
The West Midlands has emerged as a hotspot for transmissions and deaths from the virus. Earlier this week, the government said it was investigating anecdotal evidence suggesting people’s religious convictions and fears of social isolation could be leading to a sharp rise in the number of coronavirus transmissions in the area.
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The deaths of the first British doctors from Covid-19 have intensified pressure on ministers to accelerate the supply of protective equipment and address growing fears among frontline staff that they risk catching and spreading coronavirus.
It’s an issue that’s likely to loom large today and into the week. A senior official from a major London local authority has just been on BBC Radio 4 in the last few minutes telling how he and his staff had to appeal to the public to help them procure protective equipment needed to deal with the pandemic in its area of south London.
As the UK’s death toll from the virus rose to 1,228 over the weekend, two surgeons were confirmed to have died in what the NHS medical director described as “a stark reminder to the whole country that we all must take this crisis seriously”.
The doctor pictured on a number of today’s front pages posted here is Amged El-Hawrani, a 55-year-old ear, nose and throat consultant, who died on Saturday at Leicester Royal Infirmary. Adil El Tayar, 63, an organ transplant specialist, died on Wednesday at West Middlesex University Hospital in London, it emerged. Both had contracted Covid-19.
The Guardian leads with that issue on its front page today
Neil Henderson
(@hendopolis)GUARDIAN: Pressure to provide equipment grows after two UK doctors die #TomorrowsPapersToday pic.twitter.com/wuTTuyOriV
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Japan and South Korea tighten borders as US faces up to 200,000 Covid-19 deaths
Japan and South Korea are poised to tighten restrictions on overseas visitors in renewed efforts to prevent “imported” cases of the coronavirus, as American authorities warned that the US could face 200,000 deaths.
Japan will expand its entry ban to include people travelling from the US, China, South Korea and most of Europe, local media reported on Monday. The measure will apply to foreign nationals who have been to any of the listed regions within 14 days of arriving in Japan.
Japanese citizens – irrespective of where they have travelled to – and foreigners who have travelled outside the banned areas will be asked to self-quarantine for 14 days and watch for symptoms of Covid-19, Kyodo news agency quoted sources as saying.
The government may also ban entry from, and travel to, some countries in south-east Asia and Africa, the Asahi newspaper said, citing a few government sources. Japan has already imposed an entry ban on arrivals from affected areas of China and South Korea, as well as more than 20 countries.
The US is now at the centre of the coronavirus pandemic. In a press briefing on Sunday, Donald Trump said it would be “a very good job” if the country could keep deaths to 100,000 after Dr Anthony Fauci, the government’s top infectious diseases expert, said the nation could see 200,000 deaths.
Trump extended social distancing rules until 30 April and said he hoped normality would return by 1 June. On Sunday New York state passed a grim milestone, recording its 1,000th death.
The US president also undermined his plea for unity by uttering falsehoods, verbally abusing reporters and implying health care workers were stealing masks, without providing evidence.
