UK

Scottish Conservative leader Douglas Ross has demanded Boris Johnson “just answer the question” about whether he attended a “bring your own booze” event in Downing Street during the first COVID lockdown. Speaking to Sky News, a “furious” Mr Ross called on the prime minister to “settle this right now” as to whether he was present

Boris Johnson “is going nowhere” and “retains the confidence of the people of this country”, a minister has claimed, as pressure mounts over Downing Street holding a “bring your own booze” party during the first COVID lockdown. The prime minister and his wife Carrie are understood to have been among 40 people in attendance at

The prime minister and his wife Carrie attended a “bring your own booze” event in the Downing Street garden during the UK’s first national COVID lockdown. More than 100 employees in Number 10 were invited to the drinks on 20 May 2020. In what has been described as evidence of “more rule breaking at the heart

A judge has rejected Prince Andrew’s attempt to have the sexual assault lawsuit against him thrown out. US judge Lewis Kaplan refused to dismiss the case after hearing arguments from lawyers representing the royal and his accuser Virginia Giuffre. It means the royal will face a civil sex case trial later this year. The Duke

People with high levels of T cells from common colds are less likely to catch COVID, according to a new peer-reviewed study. Researchers said the findings could help provide the blueprint for the production of new vaccines which give longer-lasting immunity and would protect against current and future coronavirus variants such as Omicron and Delta.

The UK has recorded 141,472 new COVID-19 cases and a further 97 deaths in the latest 24-hour period. The latest government figures compare to 146,390 infections and 313 fatalities recorded on Saturday, which took the UK’s total COVID-related death toll to more than 150,000. This time last week, 151,663 cases were reported along with 73

The scale of loss to COVID-19 is so vast, barely a community in the country can have been spared. In north London, John and Ida Sullivan have been suffering the pain of that loss for nearly two years. Their daughter Susan was one of the first to die from the virus, which has now claimed

The UK has recorded more than 150,000 COVID-related deaths since the start of the pandemic after the latest daily figures showed 313 further fatalities. It brings the total number of deaths reported within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test to 150,057. A further 146,390 COVID cases have also been reported, according to the latest

Health Secretary Sajid Javid has been directly challenged by an unvaccinated hospital consultant over the government’s policy of compulsory COVID jabs for NHS staff. During a visit to King’s College Hospital in south London, Mr Javid asked staff members on the intensive care unit about their thoughts on new rules requiring vaccination for NHS workers.

Some 200 Armed Forces personnel are being deployed to support the NHS in London as hospitals grapple with staff shortages. Military medics will assist NHS doctors and nurses with patient care, while general duty personnel will help fill gaps caused by other absences. The Royal College of Nursing has said the deployment means the government

Two major incidents have been declared in England because of pressures caused by the spread of COVID-19 – after the Ministry of Defence said Armed Forces personnel would be deployed in London to help in hospitals. Some 200 Armed Forces personnel are being sent to support the NHS in London as hospitals grapple with staff

Boris Johnson has hit out at anti-vaxxers, declaring they are “completely wrong” and spreading “mumbo jumbo” as the environment secretary said the country would soon get past the peak of Omicron infections. Speaking during a visit to a vaccination centre in Northampton, the prime minister said he wanted to keep a “voluntary approach” to COVID-19

More than 20 NHS trusts have now declared a critical incident as the number of people in hospital with COVID hits the highest level since last February, amid rising pressure on health services from the surge in Omicron cases. It comes as Chris Hopson, the head of NHS Providers, which represents trusts, warned coronavirus hospitalisations

Weapons including firearms and hundreds of knives have been seized at crown courts during the pandemic, Sky News can reveal. More than 1,000 knives and other blades have been confiscated at the buildings – which deal with the most serious criminal cases – since April 2020, according to official data. A total of 73 “other

“Around a million people” are currently isolating as a result of coronavirus, a minister has said, as Sky News understands an announcement on the relaxation of testing rules will be announced today. “We don’t actually collect that data on a daily basis, but it’s obvious if you look at how many people tested positive yesterday,

MPs are returning to Westminster after their Christmas break and plunging straight into a potentially fiery Prime Minister’s Questions and a Commons showdown over COVID-19. Besides the latest crisis over Omicron, Boris Johnson and Sir Keir Starmer are poised to clash over soaring energy bills, investigations into Downing Street parties, and the PM’s flat makeover.

Last year saw a record number of migrants entering the UK aboard small boats via the English Channel, latest data suggests. More than 28,300 people made the treacherous journey in 2021 – triple the number for the year before, according to figures from the Home Office and analysed by the PA news agency. The figures

Multiple hospitals have declared critical incidents amid warnings the NHS is “in a state of crisis” in the face of staff shortages caused by coronavirus and rising pressures. In a letter to Health Secretary Sajid Javid, the Royal College of Nursing (RCN) said the NHS can “ill afford” the current level of absences as it

Ministers are “concerned” that the number of over-50s being admitted to hospital with COVID is rising, the education secretary has said. Despite the increasing numbers, Nadhim Zahawi became the second minister in two days to tell Sky News that coronavirus data does not currently suggest further restrictions are needed in England this week ahead of

England and Wales have reported 137,583 new COVID cases and 73 coronavirus-related deaths in the latest 24-hour period, according to official data. Figures from Scotland and Northern Ireland are going to be updated after the bank holiday weekend. It comes after England reported a record high of 162,572 new COVID cases on New Year’s Day.