UK Newspaper Archive (July 2020-Present)

It could all be over by October – COVID, that is, writes the Daily Express, quoting a leading epidemiologist and government adviser.

Boris Johnson is worried Britain may “squander its vaccine bonus”, so he’s planning to ease England’s COVID travel restrictions soon, says The Times.

The Daily Mail reports on uplifting comments “from a senior minister” that Britain has almost beaten the COVID pandemic.

The Metro leads on Matthew Keenan, a new father who did not believe in COVID vaccines and died of the disease wishing he had been jabbed.

The global recovery from the COVID pandemic is at risk unless developing countries are given access to vaccines, warns the Financial Times.

The peak of the third COVID wave may have passed, according to The Times, after COVID cases fell for a sixth day in a row.

The Guardian leads with diver Tom Daley’s declaration about his sexuality after he won Olympic gold and a warning from ministers about taking care even as COVID cases fall.

According to The Times, Britain is seeing a sustained fall in reported COVID-19 cases outside of lockdown for the first time since the pandemic began. 

The scheme to allow people “pinged” by the COVID app in the food industry to not self-isolate is an “absolute disaster”, according to food supply bosses in The Observer.

Business leaders are calling on Boris Johnson to end quarantine for those “pinged” by the NHS COVID app, the Daily Mail reports.

The i is reporting on changes to isolation rules which mean critical workers will be able to keep going to work if they are “pinged” by the NHS COVID app.

The Daily Mail calls for action from the prime minister, reporting that as many as 1.7 million workers are thought to be isolating due to possible exposure to COVID-19.

There are calls for supermarket workers, lorry drivers and other frontline employees to be exempt from the isolation requirements after being “pinged” by the COVID-19 app – that’s on the front of The Daily Telegraph.

Boris Johnson has been advised he will need to re-introduce COVID restrictions by August if cases and hospitalisations continue to rise, the i says.

The Times has a stark warning that daily COVID cases could rise to 200,000 in a matter of weeks as restrictions are relaxed.

Public reaction forced the prime minister and chancellor to self-isolate instead of taking part in a pilot testing scheme after Sajid Javid caught COVID – that’s the take in the Daily Express.

Boris Johnson is pleading with people to be cautious, the Daily Mirror says, despite warnings from experts that relaxing restrictions on “freedom day” could see another surge in COVID cases.

The Daily Star mocks the prime minister’s U-turn over COVID isolation on its front page.

“Freedom Day” has become a farce because of the latest increase in COVID cases – that’s the assessment of The Daily Telegraph.

The Financial Times leads on the decision by the prime minister and chancellor to isolate and suggests “freedom day” may be tarnished by a surge in COVID cases.

Almost 55,000 Army personnel have not yet had a single COVID vaccine, says the Daily Star Sunday.

The Observer says senior public health leaders have accused Boris Johnson of “letting Covid rip” by scrapping most coronavirus rules in England from Monday

The Daily Mirror leads with fears of another lockdown in five weeks, as COVID-19 cases surge.

Rolls-Royce and Nissan are among the companies facing problems because hundreds of thousands of people are being “pinged” by the NHS COVID app, the Daily Mirror says.

The Daily Telegraph says neighbours are being forced to isolate because the NHS COVID app can “ping” people through walls, leading to what the paper calls a “pingdemic”.

Metro says a fifth of the 26m people who have downloaded the NHS COVID-19 app have deleted it after more than 500,000 were told to isolate in a single week.

The Financial Times reports the COVID Delta variant is wreaking havoc on businesses, with more than 700 workers at the UK’s biggest car factory self-isolating and some firms missing 20% of their staff.