• THERE have been 306 new confirmed coronavirus cases in the North East and North Yorkshire. Figures on the Government’s website show a further six people have died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Friday. None were in the region. This brings the UK total to 41,614.
  • SEPARATE figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies show there have now been 57,400 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate. The Government said that as of 9am on Friday, there had been a further 3,539 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK. Overall, 361,677 cases have been confirmed.
  • THE reproduction number, or R value, of coronavirus transmission across the UK has risen above 1. Data released on Friday by the Government Office for Science and the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) shows the estimate for R across the UK is between 1.0 and 1.2.
  • THE Office for National Statistics said in recent weeks there has been an increase in the number of people testing positive for Covid-19 aged 17 to 24 years and 25 to 34 years. But they said the number of people testing positive for Covid-19 aged 50 years and over appears to be stable or declining.
  • KATHERINE Kent, co-head of analysis for the Covid-19 Infection Survey, said: “Our results this week suggest that there has been an increase in Covid-19 infections in England during recent weeks with higher infection rates among 17-34-year-olds. These findings highlight how important it is that we continue to monitor Covid-19 infections in the country.”
  • YVONNE Doyle, medical director at Public Health England, said: “Although younger people continue to make up the greatest share of new cases, we’re now starting to see worrying signs of infections occurring in the elderly, who are at far higher risk of getting seriously ill. This is a reminder of the ongoing risk as the virus spreads throughout the UK. People should continue to follow social distancing rules, wash their hands regularly and wear a face covering in enclosed spaces. You should not mix with others when unwell.”
  • A PRIMARY school has become the first in the North-East to close after five staff members tested positive for Covid-19. Hemlington Hall Academy in Middlesbrough will completely close to all pupils from Monday, September 14 for two weeks. It is the first school in the North-East to fully-close due to coronavirus, and among the first in the UK, The Northern Echo understands. In a statement, school bosses said it had taken the decision to close after a 'significant' number of key staff tested positive. Four more cases among staff were this week confirmed following a staff member testing positive on Sunday.
  • A FURTHER 33 people have tested positive for Covid-19 after attending a charity football match on the border of Sunderland and County Durham. The latest figures bring the total number of cases linked to the event at Burnside Working Men’s Club to 61. Anyone who attended the event on Sunday, August 30 has been asked to self-isolate until midnight on 13 September – 14 days from the date of the event.
  • FOUR people, including staff and customers, have tested positive for coronavirus after a small outbreak in Consett. Those infected all had links Consett Workmen’s Club in the town centre, which closed voluntarily on Sunday. Durham County Council is currently working with the site’s management and Public Health England to contact everyone who was in the establishment on last Friday and Saturday to ask them to self-isolate for 14 days from the date of their visit.
  • NEWCASTLE, Gateshead and Sunderland have been added to the Government coronavirus watchlist as infection rates continue to rise. It means areas of Tyneside and Wearside could be subject to local lockdown restrictions if people continue to test positive for the disease. The addition to the watch list came after Newcastle City Council has raised the city’s Covid Control plan to amber following a spike in cases. The latest test data shows an increase of 145 cases in the last seven days, which equates to 48 cases per 100,000 people. More than 90 per cent of those who have tested positive in the last two weeks are aged less than 60, and almost 60 per cent were from the 18 – 30 age group. Latest figures show Gateshead had 113 confirmed cases in the last seven days and an infection rate of 55.8. Meanwhile, Sunderland had 244 new positive cases in the seven days to Tuesday September 8. This equates to around 75 cases per 100,000 people, three times higher than the national rate.
  • LEADER of Sunderland City Council, Councillor Graeme Miller and chairman of the Sunderland Outbreak Control Board said: "At the moment this is about support for Sunderland, not restrictions. Yet, we are very close to a local lockdown if there is not a rapid and drastic reduction in the number of cases. The virus is spreading across Sunderland and we need to work together to stop it. It is very simple: The current situation is extremely serious and if more people do not take more responsibility and act more sensibly then we will go back into a lockdown. This is our last chance."
  • JOHN Apter, national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, urged people to look after each other and avoid a “party weekend” before the “rule of six” restrictions come into force. He said: “There is a real risk some members of the public will take advantage of the current situation and treat this weekend as a party weekend ahead of the tighter restrictions being introduced on Monday. Alcohol and warm weather are not a good combination at the best of times. Using the current situation as an opportunity and excuse to party would be incredibly irresponsible and put pressure not only on policing, but potentially on the ambulance service and NHS. We are in the grip of a deadly pandemic and we have seen cases increasing over recent weeks. Policing is under pressure like never before, but my colleagues will give enforcement notices if they feel it’s appropriate, and we make no apology for doing so.”
  • ASKED about whether furlough should be extended for certain industries, business minister Nadhim Zahawi told BBC Breakfast: “There’s no point us actually effectively having people in suspended animation with a false sense they can continue on furlough ad infinitum. The best way to help people is to make sure we control the virus and get people back to work. We’re seeing more and more people coming back to work, I think there’s only about 12% of people now on furlough from 25% at the height of the pandemic. There’s a real recovery in the economy, 6.6% growth last month, we need to make sure that continues and the way you do that is work with the sectors to make sure we do everything we can to bring those businesses back to profitability.”
  • A HOSPITAL has banned visitors following a sharp rise in the number of coronavirus cases. Leaders at Gateshead Health NHS Foundation Trust have suspended visiting to all adult inpatient wards at the Queen Elizabeth Hospital due to rising cases of Covid-19. On Friday it was confirmed a further 33 people had tested positive in the Gateshead area over a 24-hour period.
  • CORONAVIRUS cases in the region as of Friday, September 11:
  • County Durham: 3,784 was 3,748;
  • Darlington: 656 was 652;
  • Gateshead: 1547 was 1,514;
  • Hartlepool: 723 was 715;
  • Middlesbrough: 1,199 was 1,191;
  • Newcastle: 1,926 was 1,903;
  • North Tyneside: 1098 was 1,083;
  • North Yorkshire: 1976 was 2,947;
  • Northumberland: 1774 was 1,762;
  • Redcar and Cleveland: 810 was 807;
  • South Tyneside: 1,184 was 1,157;
  • Stockton: 1,115 was 1,101;
  • Sunderland: 2,156 was 2,121;
  • York: 1,017 was 1,008.