National News

The Royal College of Nursing backed the appeal, calling for a review of the existing PPE guidance and ventilation in hospitals.

Travellers heading for Spain, the Netherlands and Sweden have been held up at borders following the UK’s departure from the single market.

The payments are available to around 600,000 retail, hospitality and leisure sites on top of an extra £594m to councils and devolved administrations.

The news came as the supermarket revealed that sales in the past three weeks jumped 9.3% compared with a year earlier.

The group said full-price sales over the nine weeks to December 26 fell 1.1%.

A judge ruled Assange could not be extradited from the UK.

Mr Johnson announced the biggest changes to schooling since the first lockdown.

Monday evening’s address from Boris Johnson makes headlines on Tuesday.

The Government has been urged to place police officers on a priority list to receive coronavirus vaccine.

Boris Johnson pinned hopes on the rollout of vaccines to ease the restrictions in mid-February.

The latest restrictions came into effect from midnight on Tuesday in all Level 4 areas of the Scottish Government’s five-tier system.

It is the third time the whole country has faced harsh restrictions in almost a year.

The Prime Minister said that hospitals are 40% busier than they were during the peak.

The Prime Minister warned that the measures, being introduced immediately, are expected to last until mid-February.

Top of the priority list are people who live and work in care homes, followed by people over the age of 80 and frontline health and social care staff.

First Minister Arlene Foster said the decision was reached after Ministers had ‘reflected on the seriousness of the situation here’.

His comments came as secondary and primary school pupils were told they will learn remotely until February half-term.

Hospitals are under more pressure than ever, the Prime Minister said.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said the current financial support package ‘isn’t good enough’.

The Prime Minister said the nation must “pull together” and follow the new rules to defeat coronavirus.