tv BBC News at One BBC News October 12, 2020 1:00pm-1:30pm BST
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boris johnson will announce tough new local coronavirus restrictions in england this afternoon, as experts warn of a "marked pick—up" in cases since last month. hospitality and leisure are likely to face tough new rules in areas with the highest spikes. medical advisers warned of the dangers of failing to act. if we do not take measures to control the spread of the virus, the death toll will be too great to bear. we'll be reporting from across the country as england prepares for a three—tiered system of tighter restrictions. also this lunchtime: as three nightingale hospitals are put on standby, it's revealed there are now more people in hospital with covid—19 than when a national lockdown was imposed in march. an anxious wait for businesses to hear whether they will be in the most restricted zones, and how they'll cope if they are.
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most gcse and a—level exams in england next year will be delayed by three weeks, the education secretary has confirmed. and controversial plans to shake uo the premier league pitch fans and some clubs against each other. and coming up on bbc news, huge celebrations after a ten year wait for the la lakers. lebronjames helps them win their 17th nba title after victory over miami heat. good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news. the prime minister is preparing to announce a new tiered system of coronavirus restrictions for different parts of england, which will see tougher rules for some regions and cities.
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boris johnson will update mps this afternoon, and then hold a downing street news conference this evening. it comes as senior medical officials gave a stark warning about the continuing spread of the virus. the medical directorfor nhs england announced there were now more patients in hospital with covid—19 than when the lockdown was imposed in march. our political correspondent, nick eardley, reports. enjoying a drink in liverpool at the weekend, but for the next few weeks at least this won't be possible. 1.5 million people in the liverpool city region are facing significant new curbs. pubs, gems and some other venues closed to try and stop the spread of coronavirus. the point of doing this now is to ensure that we get the disease under control. we've seen it rapidly rising, certainly in those areas. we need to take action because if we don't take this reasonable measured and
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proportionate action now, we will have to take more difficult action further down the line. this afternoon, the government will detail a new three tier system for local restrictions. tier one, medium risk, will see measures similar to those already in place of much of england. the rule of six and early closing times for hospitality. tier two, high risk, is likely to be more restrictions on household mixing. the top tier, very high risk, will see a raft of new restrictions, with some hospitality venues. close their doors again. and here is why. a stark warning this morning from the government's advisors. we now have more patients in hospital with covid—19 than we did before the government announced restrictions of march 23 in the spring. as the secretary of state for health hazard, if we don't take measures to control the spread of the virus, the death toll will be too great to bear. the first place to be categorised very high risk will be
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the liverpool city region. local leaders accept the need for action but want much more support for businesses forced to close and their employees. the only thing that was open to us is to try and influence the package of support. we have been negotiating since friday evening, late friday evening and genuinely burning the midnight oil. talks have gone on into the early hours because we are not going to just roll over. we wa nted we are not going to just roll over. we wanted to understand what that package was. today will give people in england more of an idea about what the next few weeks and months will look like. the different levels of restrictions that will be introduced depending on how bad local outbreaks are. but even this afternoon, there are still conversations taking place about the economic support that needs to be offered and the conditions that need to be met before restrictions are lifted. in in places like knowsley, merseyside, a pint will be off the cards for the next few weeks. the
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question is, where else might follow, as the government grapples with the virus once again? nick ea rd ley, with the virus once again? nick eardley, bbc news. our deputy political editor, vicki young, is in westminster. we had some grim medicalfigures this morning preparing us resume presumably for restrictions this afternoon? interestingly the government feels it has to lay out that data, the grass people saw, showing the geographical spread of coronavirus. it really does feel like those freedoms of the summer didn't last very long. the prime minister will address mps in the house of commons for more than a couple of hours, actually, at 3:30. the idea behind these three tiers was to simplify the message. lots of people were complaining that neighbouring areas had different restrictions, so the whole idea was three different tiers so when you are in that tier, you would know what to face. but what has happened since then is a lot more communication and consultation with
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local leaders, so there could still be some differences, some variations between areas in the same tier. also wrangling over the financial support that many people feel should be there for those places that are false to shut down. of course, with this consultation also comes some responsibility for local leaders who are being into this decision—making that they were before. the thing we don't know yet and presumably the prime minister will tell us later is the trigger, that criteria for how you move between the tears. it's unlikely just to be you move between the tears. it's unlikelyjust to be about case numbers but certainly look at those maps shown to us today, it looks like the city of liverpool will not be the only place affecting these local restrictions in the coming weeks. 0k, local restrictions in the coming weeks. ok, thanks much, vicki. three nightingale hospitals in england have been put on standby to provide extra capacity to the nhs if needed. cases are rising across most of the country, but the north west is the worst affected. our health correspondent, anna collinson, reports. they were set up to protect the nhs
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from being overwhelmed during the height of the coronavirus crisis, but now staff at some of the nightingale hospitals are once again readying themselves for a potential surge. we have asked the nightingale hospitals in manchester, sunderland and harrowgate to prepare for this next phase. they are being asked to mobilise over the next few weeks, to to be ready to accept patients if necessary. latest government figures say there are around 4000 covid patients in hospital in the uk. treating 60% of cases, hospitals in the north of england are under particular pressure. 231 patients on ventilators are in the north west and north east and yorkshire, more than half the total figure for england. coronavirus cases are rising across the uk but it varies greatly and there are hotspots. derry city and strabane has the highest levels, with 171 cases per 100,000 people.
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nottingham, knowsley, liverpool and newcastle upon tyne are also in the top five. in comparison, north devon hasjust 35 cases per 100,000. but during this morning's briefing, england's deputy chief medical officer warned covid—19 is notjust a problem for the north. the dark brown areas on the right—hand side show where cases are said to be rising and it's spreading south. the increase since early september is said to be mainly down to young adults. and you can see, again, that there is the spread from those younger age groups into the 60 plus age group in the north west and the north east and this is again of significant concern because, of course, the elderly suffer much worse course with covid—19. health officials are concerned that as we approach winter, the pandemic could once again spiral out of control. but the problem with the government's expected three tier system is no one is sure
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whether it will work. sceptics of the 10pm curfew and the potential closure of pubs and bars believe it will drive people away from covid—secure venues and towards illegally mixing in homes where transmission of the virus is more likely. there are also serious concerns about the impact the toughest measures will have on communities. we should try and shield the vulnerable because we know now, what we do know, is that the virus specifically has, causes deaths in a segment of the population. we should put all our resources towards shielding them or giving them the choice to shield themselves, while permitting the general population to conduct their lives as normal. but the government advisers say it's wishful thinking that the vulnerable could be fenced off and this is now a
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nationwide phenomenon. anna collinson, bbc news. the liverpool city region is expected to be the first area to face the tightest restrictions. the number of coronavirus cases is much higher than the national average. 0ur correspondent dan johnson is there. case numbers have kept rising here in the last couple of weeks, despite extra measures already being in place. the number of people going into hospital is also a big concern. people recognise more action is needed and they are realistic that this is going to mean life here is getting harder again in the next few days. we are talking about pubs, bars, gyms, betting shops and casinos closing. there is a question over restaurants, a big disruption to social life again and serious concerns about the knock—on effect for the economy here, for people's jobs. talking to people in the city this morning, notjust people who live here but visiting across the country, you get a sense of how this
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city relies on tourism, its culture and nightlife and there are big concerns about how that could be affected. from what i've seen, in a lot of places are struggling and closing down with it due to the new restrictions, so i'm not sure what else could be done, but i think it may not be the right path to go down. well, i think the whole country should be locked down, just areas. i think should be the whole country. even if the case numbers are not the same? yeah. i love liverpool and i really want to save the city and i want to save the people as well. are you worried about the economic impact? absolutely. bars, restaurants, you know, and social amenities. it's about your own safety, isn't it? you have to do what you've got to do so wearing a mask, just to be sensible about it, don't go out getting drunk and hanging around with people that you don't know. it's about being sensible. so, people seem to know there are extra measures on the way, perhaps as early as wednesday. the region
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and city mayor says there will be these disruptions but the reason it has not been agreed and put in place yet is because he is holding out for more support for workers to be provided from government. he thinks that the two thirds effectively further furlough pay for people and industries that will be affected may not be enough to support those workers. spending the weekend here and talking to people who work in bars and industries around it, taxi drivers who could be affected but perhaps won't qualify for that support, it is those sorts of people local leaders here say need to be supported and that is what they are still talking about, trying to put in place. they also want a guarantee of the way out of these restrictions. what other ways to make sure they can be relaxed in future, so that their city and others like it are not stuck in local lockdowns per month upon month? thank you, dan. it's notjust the north of england that is seeing a worrying rise in cases.
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let's speak now to sian lloyd who's in nottingham for us. what is the situation there?” what is the situation there? i am here at one of the main testing sites in this area does have the highest rate per 100,000 die anywhere else in england, rita. the question people are asking is will it go into the highest tier? the question on everyone's... but at the moment we certainly don't have the a nswer to moment we certainly don't have the answer to that. the rate in nottingham shot up over a very short period of time. we were told on friday that three quarters of all new cases are in the 18—22 year group. there is a high proportion of stu d e nts group. there is a high proportion of students in nottingham, some 60,000 of them in total. they are not the whole story but they are described asa whole story but they are described as a substantial part of this outbreak but local public officials have been stressing that the transmission rate is going on the wrong direction right across the board. in the city, but also in the cou nty area board. in the city, but also in the county area and they would welcome
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uniform restrictions being brought in across the city area and also in those shires. at the moment, there are no particular restrictions here in nottingham, other than the rule of six and the 10pm curfew, although local officials have been advising people since last week for people not to mix household. it appears almost certain that restriction will be introduced here but not clear how much further it will go. thank you. 0ur correspondent, jon kay, is in bristol. what is the picture where you are? well, here in the south—west of england, case numbers have remained relatively low would pretty much since the beginning of all of this and there have been some individual spikes, some very sad stories but generally in the south—west of england, people have felt quite fortu nate, england, people have felt quite fortunate, they have got away with the worst of this. so i think over the worst of this. so i think over the last few weeks, there has been increasing concern that we might be looking now at a national lockdown
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might see businesses and lives here shut down in the same way they were at the beginning of the year. i think there is some relief the government is talking instead about a tiered system which will allow businesses like cafe is, restau ra nts, businesses like cafe is, restaurants, taxi drivers to considerfunctioning, that restaurants, taxi drivers to consider functioning, that the economy here can keep ticking over in the meantime. but there is a warning from community leaders and local politicians that we must remain vigilant, that we have to be careful, we are not immune from it in parts of the country where covid numbers have been low and a stark reminder of that in bristol. in exeter in the last few days, there has been a significant increase, with students returning to university. so a sign there that although levels might remain low in some parts of the country, it can still change very quickly indeed. many thanks, jon kay. ahead of the expected new restrictions today, the chancellor rishi sunak announced a new package of financial help — including more grants for businesses forced to close, and wage support for workers.
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but many firms are still very anxious about their future as they face the new rules. our business correspondent sarah corker reports. limiting social contact in parts of the north and the midlands will mean more economic pain. from pubs and casinos to gyms and leisure venues, these are some of the businesses that could be impacted by the top—level restrictions, told to close by law. this newcastle bistro is already seeing capacity down by a0%. we've got bills coming in all the time. you know, we've got stock that we'll lose if we have to shut. we've probably got 300 quid worth of stock that we'd essentially be putting in the bin or trying to give away or something so it all adds up and each time we get told to shut and reopen, it's a cost. the government is grappling with the conflicting demands of protecting health and keeping the economy going. this pub owner in leeds says a second lockdown could finish them off. any more restrictions would just be a killer to many in this industry, really.
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already the restrictions are ruining trade by at least kind of 50%. and we're in the suburbs and kind of not as bad as city centres so i think any more restrictions would be... we just would be losing thousands per week. some argue restaurants and pubs which have to be covid—secure to operate may be safer places to socialise than homes or university halls. and the hospitality industry has said it will take legal action to stop the forced closure of pubs and clubs. today, if boris says shut down greater manchester, then we're taking it to judicial review because, do you know what, they've never engaged with the operators and we keep saying to them, show us the scientific evidence. the government has said it will give businesses forced to close by lockdown up to £3000 a month and will pay two thirds of workers' wages up to a maximum of £2100 a month. and one estimate is that more
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than 440,000 employees could be using the new scheme by november. large parts of the north have been under tighter restrictions for months and all of this has a huge knock—on effect on the wider supply chain. no rent assistance so what we're calling on the government for is to extend business rates relief to the wholesale sector because we're the ones that are supplying food and drinks to all of these vital sectors of the economy. what's really hurting businesses is the uncertainty ahead, not knowing what the rules will be next week or next month, and how long these new curbs could last. sarah corker, bbc news. and you can watch coverage of the prime minister's statement to the commons at 3.30 this afternoon, and his news conference this evening, on bbc one and the bbc news channel. in the past hour, the government has announced that exams for students in england will go ahead next summer — although most will be
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delayed by three weeks. let's speak to our education correspondent elaine dunkley who's in salford. alone, tell us more. the government is keen to avoid the word algorithm. cast your mind back to the summer. exams were council, protests from students, teachers and parents about how a—level results were awarded. nearly 40% of teacher assessment grades were marked down after the exa m grades were marked down after the exam regulator process the worse. there was of course eventually a u—turn with the centre assessed grades being awarded for a—level and gcse spot the tough test for the government is avoiding that situation again. the education secretary has announced delaying the start of exams next summer by three weeks to give pupils and teachers more time to prepare. english and maths gcses will take place before half term to help manage potential disruption. the government is clear exams will go ahead however more plans will be announced in the autumn which may put more emphasis on mock exams. teaching unions warn
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this planning is just on mock exams. teaching unions warn this planning isjust the on mock exams. teaching unions warn this planning is just the tip of the iceberg. for those students sitting exams next year, this has been an incredibly difficult time. due to the pandemic, teachers estimated stu d e nts the pandemic, teachers estimated students have already missed out on three months of classroom teaching. as we speak, there are gcse and a—level students at home isolating because they're your group or bubble has had a suspected case of coronavirus. elaine dunkley, thank you. it's 20 past one. our top story this lunchtime. borisjohnson prepares to announce tough new local coronavirus restrictions in england — as experts warn of a ‘marked pick—up' in cases since last month and coming up — living with motor neurone disease. rugby league legend rob burrow tells us about his fighting spirit — and his determination to raise awareness. coming up on bbc news, controversial plans to reform the english football pyramid have been backed by the efl chairman, that's despite fierce opposition from the premier league, government and fans‘ groups.
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it's being called ‘project big picture' — a radical plan to reform football in england, put forward by liverpool and manchester united. it would see the premier league cut to 18 teams and give the english football league a quarter of any tv deals. but it's already been dismissed by the league itself and by the government. laura scott reports. the premier league has become the most lucrative sports league in the world but, apparently in secret, liverpool and manchester united have been developing plans for the most radical shake—up since it was formed in 1992, with the backing of the english football league. it's a long term plan that's actually worth battling for. this is not an attempt to get a better short—term solution. we passionatelt belief this is actually the right future for the game and therefore deserves serious consideration. the plan has been named project big picture but what does it look like?
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the number of premier league teams will be cut from 20 to 18. both the efl cup and community shield would be abolished. voting rights would be concentrated to the nine most well established top—flight clubs. the funding model would change so 25% of future tv deals would go to the rest of the football league. and to help with clubs whose survival is under threat, there would be immediate £250 million bailout. how does the fsa view the decisions made at the moment in a time of crisis? it looks as though they are taking advantage of the crisis to operate package that has got some good elements in it. but, has the very bad feature that it radically alters the power within the english game and that is what we fear the most. power should be taken away from clubs, not concentrated in the hands of fewer of them. the premier league said a number of the
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proposals could have a damaging impact on the whole game and others believe this is a power grab disguised as an act of generosity. there is plenty of opposition to overcome. rather than doing backroom deals to try and reform football at this critical moment, i would rather they were working together to ensure they were working together to ensure the future of your all and i have to say if they cannot get together to sort this out, we would have to return to what we promised in our ma nifesto return to what we promised in our manifesto which is as a fan led review of football governance because i think many fans will be concerned about what they are reading today. in the short term, lower league clubs may be saved from financial peril but what would it mean for the structure and distribution of power within english football? laura scott, bbc news. the chief executive of british airways alex cruz is to step down from the job, as the airline navigates what's it's calling the "the worst crisis" facing the industry. tom burridge is here. why's he off? ba was locked in an acrimonious
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dispute with some of its staff over the summer and alex cruz was front and centre of a proposal to effectively fire and rehire some of its long serving cabin crew on much worse terms. the real power broker in all of this, willie walsh, stepped down as the boss of the pa rent stepped down as the boss of the parent company last month and quickly after ba changed its policy and the deal was done with staff so i think the departure of alex cruz as boss of british airways today can be seen as the proverbial fresh start in that dispute, effectively. alex cruz before the pandemic, his mission was to cut costs and compete with lower cost airlines, if you judge him purely on problems before the pandemic he succeeded but his successor ta kes the pandemic he succeeded but his successor takes over in a fundamentally different time when airline bosses are wondering how to minimise losses and when they can make money again. many thanks. twitter has attached a disclaimer to another of president trump's tweets — saying it violated its rules on spreading misleading information about the coronavirus. it comes a senior medical official accused the president's re—election campaign of using comments made
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by him out of context. gary 0'donoghue is in washington. gary... two blows for president trump — what's happened in each case? in the case of the social media post, this is becoming a bit of a habit for the president, the third or fourth habit for the president, the third orfourth time he has done habit for the president, the third or fourth time he has done such a thing. he has been criticised in the past, for example, suggesting people should vote twice, he's been criticised in the past for suggesting covid is only as serious as the flu. there been other areas where facebook has taken down posts as well. as for doctor anthony faucl as well. as for doctor anthony fauci, the leading epidemiologist in this country, very public figure, he has distanced himself from the donald trump message in which is included, saying he did not approve it and he was, it was taken out of context, what he said so the president does not like being contradicted like that so we will
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see what his response is to it but he is back in the campaign trail today, down in florida, the key swing state. back in front of the huge audiences, hoping to turn it around because he is trailing badly in the opinion polls. gary, many thanks. here, more than 1300 arts venues and organisations in england are to receive money from the government's culture recovery fund, to help them survive the pandemic. the cavern club in liverpool and bristol's old vic theatre are among the beneficiaries already announced. will gompertz is at a venue in west london. i'm ina i'm in a tiny venue. this is in earls court, theatre, one of the recipients of the £257 million the government announced today in grants for arts organisations. it's rather ghostly place, just under £16,000, tiny little venue and as you see, it's actually the show they had on in march, which was then stopped because of lockdown and the theatre
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has been in dust sheets ever since. and it can't get up and running again anytime soon because not only can the audience not be socially distanced, nor can the actors because it's so small! this is an issue for a lot of arts organisations around the country, this money isn't so they can open again and work with the public again, that's not going to happen anytime soon, it's just so they can survive until the spring and then maybe, hopefully, look again. this isa maybe, hopefully, look again. this is a measure of packages from the government, designed for future, is a measure of packages from the government, designed forfuture, to get to a future so places like this can actually exist in the short term. many thanks, will gompertz. rugby league star rob burrow was diagnosed with motor neurone disease in december last year. a bbc documentary this week follows the former leeds rhinos player and his family as they raise awareness of the degenerative condition, for which there's currently no cure. sally nugent reports.
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i've been following rob since the start of the year. in that time i have discovered that he's all about two things. his family, and his rugby family. rob's parents inspired his love of rugby league. go on, rob. a journey which took him from this field in featherstone, to wembley and old trafford. this year, jeff and irene have helped rob tackle his toughest challenge. rob said recently that rugby has prepared him for the situation that he is in now. would you agree with that? yeah, yeah. it did. but, as a family, you've just got to keep strong. and that's notjust our family. it's the motor neurone disease family. you've got to be strong.
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all that i am i give to you. all that i am, i give to you. rob, he has treated me like a princess. there was never going to be anybody else than rob, because he was always very caring and has always looked after me. you know, if there was going to be anybody that i was going to spend the rest of my time with, it was going to be rob. applause. after 20 years together, in december, doctors told lindsay and rob that time could be short. you ask the question of how long. and you are told, you know, a year to two years. and you know, at that point, i wasjust thinking of the kids. what are we going to tell them? you know, one of the first thing that rob said to me was, and, you know, that's all he was bothered about. that'sjust rob. he wasn't, he didn't care about himself. as rob's condition has deteriorated, he has had to lean on lindsay more than ever.
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rob's going to get to a stage where he's not going to be able to walk, he's not going to be able to talk. you know, just to have his independence taken away from him. cheering. the word that you use when you talk about rob, particularly when he was younger, is how proud you are of him. how do you feel about what he's doing now? we still feel so proud. and he's so brave. he isjust rob. being proud of everything that all us family's done, but what rob's achieved, i've never felt as proud as i do now.
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