Here are five things you need to know about the coronavirus pandemic this Tuesday morning. We’ll have another update for you at 18:00 BST.
1. ‘Now I’m better’
A triumphant Donald Trump has returned to the White House. He flew back from Walter Reed Medical Centre by helicopter and took off his mask on the balcony for a photo op. The whole piece of political theatre was set to stirring music in a campaign video, but has drawn criticism for the risk a still-contagious Mr Trump may present to people around him. There also remain unanswered questions about his illness, our North America reporter Anthony Zurcher says – number one being, when did he last receive a negative test? Read why that matters so much.
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2. NHS under pressure
Leading surgeons say there could be a “tsunami” of cancelled operations this winter, the likes of knee and hip replacements. That’s on top of the backlog that’s already built up due to the pandemic. The Royal College of Surgeons called it “a national crisis”, but an NHS spokesman said figures cited by the body underestimated the amount of surgery taking place. Coronavirus is also adding to NHS workloads in other ways too. For some people, “long Covid” is having a debilitating effect. And alcohol abuse also has increased – three people share their stories.
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Peter Cade/Getty Images
3. Latest jobs picture
Figures obtained by the BBC show British employers planned 58,000 redundancies in August. That’s much lower than for the two previous months, thanks to more shoppers out spending and the “Eat out to help out” scheme boosting restaurants, It brings total potential job losses to 498,000 for the first five months of the pandemic. With lockdown restrictions back in place in many areas and the furlough scheme set to be replaced by less generous measures, those numbers will almost certainly go up again.
Employers planning 20 or more redundancies
HR1 forms submitted
4. Anger over train tickets
Unhappy train customers are finding themselves unable to get refunds for tickets they can no longer use. In some parts of the UK, people have recently been advised against all but essential travel due to coronavirus, but passengers with advance tickets to or from these areas have been told they’re not entitled to their money back. Refunds were given for advance tickets during the nationwide lockdown, but the Rail Delivery Group, which represents train operators, said the government had decided not to do the same now.
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Sue Taylor and Lola Mitchell
Sue Taylor and Lola Mitchell haven’t been able to travel because of coronavirus restrictions
5. No Bond, but what else?
The bad news from Cineworld and Odeon – and the postponement of James Bond’s latest outing – may have left film fans despondent. However, there are plenty of new movies – some of which could please the loyal cinema audience this autumn and winter. Our entertainment reporter Paul Glynn gives you a run-down.
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Studio Canal
Morfydd Clark stars in the psychological horror Saint Maud – out on Friday
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And don’t forget…
Find more information, advice and guides on our coronavirus page.
Plus, throughout the pandemic it’s always felt like there was one idea to cling to – that by working out which countries were doing well – and which were not – there was something to be learned. Is that the case? And if so, how can we tell which is which?
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