10th June 2020 - Wilson James
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10th June 2020 19
COVID-19 REPORT
SUMMARY
• The number of confirmed COVID-19 cases globally is now over 7.3 million, with just over 413,000 deaths,
according to Worldometer.
• According to the World Bank, COVID-19 has triggered the most widespread global meltdown since 1870 with 90%
of the 183 economies examined by the organisation expected to suffer from falling levels of GDP in 2020. The
World Bank have also warned that this drop in GDP risks fuelling a dramatic rise in poverty levels around the
world.
• The plan for all primary school pupils in England to return to class before the end of this term is to be scrapped by
the government. Education Minister Gavin Williamson now aims for all children to return to class by September.
• The World Health Organisation quickly retracted a claim that asymptomatic transmission of the virus is “very
rare,” saying it was a “misunderstanding.” Dr Maria Van Kerkhove, who made the original comment in a WHO
briefing on Monday 8th June, clarified that the assertion was an observation based on a mere few studies, and said
her comment was not intended to be taken as an official statement that could apply globally. A number of
scientists and health experts have criticised the WHO for causing confusion around the issue.
• BP have announced that, due to the collapse of oil demand as a result of COVID-19, they will be cutting 10,000
jobs which amounts to 15% of the companies staff. It is thought that roughly 2,000 jobs will be cut in the UK alone.
• Conservations have raised the alarm over a surge in ocean pollution after finding an increase in materials used to
protect against COVID-19, such as masks and gloves, in seabeds.
GLOBAL MAP OF CASES OF COVID-19
Source: Centre for Disease Control and Prevention 09.06.2020
COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020 2
COVID-19 REPORT
UK UPDATE
TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES
289,140
UK DAILY CASES
1,387
For an interactive map of COVID-19 deaths in England & Wales click here.
LIVE STATISTICS TOTAL DEATHS
40,883
UK WIDE – Public Health England
SCOTLAND - Scottish Government
NORTHERN IRELAND: NISRA
• New quarantine regulations have now been imposed with the new regulations requiring those arriving in the
UK to quarantine for 14-days. Police will provide ‘limited’ enforcement of the restrictions with passengers
suspected of breaching regulations being referred to triage centres run by the border force.
• The government has scrapped plans to reopen primary schools for all pupils in England by the end of this
term. Education Minister Gavin Williamson is now saying he aims for children to return to class in September
and that exams will “take place next year.” The change in plans comes after criticisms by teachers, unions,
parents, and health officials who said it is too soon to reopen, and that it would be impossible to maintain the
level of social distancing necessary, especially with young children involved. Schools were allowed to reopen
for certain year groups starting from 1st June, however, figures showed a lukewarm response with only 52% of
primary schools reopening and about a quarter of eligible pupils in attendance.
• Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer clashed with Prime Minister Boris Johnson at the Prime Minister’s Questions
this week over school reopening’s. Sir Keir criticised the government for lacking a “robust national plan,” to
which the Prime Minister replied that Sir Keir “needs to make up his mind” on whether schools are still unsafe
or should reopen more quickly.
• The Prime Minister promised to expand testing for front-line workers in order to combat the
disproportionately high percentage of infections among the UK’s BAME communities.
• The PMQ’s also saw the announcement of an additional £63 million in welfare assistance to help vulnerable
families. The funds will be given to local councils who will then be in charge of its distribution.
• Recent research conducted by the Office for National Statistics has found that 50.8% of people aged between
16 and 24 have experienced ‘lockdown loneliness’, compared to 24.1% of those aged between 55 and 69. The
COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020 3COVID-19 REPORT
ONS found that people over-70 were no more likely than average to suffer from this.
• Weekly COVID-related death figures continue to fall across the UK. In the last week of May, 18% of death
certificates mentioned coronavirus compared to 38% at its peak in April.
• Scottish First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has announced that Scotland’s lockdown restrictions could be eased
more quickly after the country recorded no new COVID-19 deaths in the last two days.
• StepChange, a charity specialising in debt advice, has warned that British households are expected to incur
debts worth a combined £6 billion due to people falling behind on credit card payments, council tax and
utility bills as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
• The Prime Minister has announced the reopening of outdoor recreational venues in England from Monday
15th June, including zoos, safari parks, and drive-in cinemas. Non-essential shops will also be allowed to open
from Monday. Business Secretary Alok Sharma said that the UK is meeting the government’s targets for lifting
lockdown restrictions, but also that pubs, bars, and restaurants will not be eligible to reopen until 4th July “at
the earliest.”
• A new report by the NHS Confederation projects that the number of people waiting for NHS treatment could
double to 10 million by the end of the year, due to this coronavirus pandemic. The report said health services
are operating at a reduced capacity of around 60% because of the virus, and that the NHS faces a number of
challenges in facing a backlog of cases while also dealing with social distancing and staffing issues.
• The Treasury has announced that around 8.9 million workers in the UK are now covered by the government’s
furlough scheme, meaning that more than a quarter of the workforce are currently being supported by it.
Figures show that the total cost so far has reached £19.6 billion. Meanwhile, the Self-Employed Income
Support Scheme (SEISS) has seen 2.6 million claims made to the value of £7.5 billion.
COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020 4UK UPDATE Source: Public Health England 09.06.2020
REGIONAL UPDATES
TOTAL CONFIRMED CASES
7,344,345
TOTAL DEATHS
414,147
PATIENTS RECOVERED
3,621,452
(Johns Hopkins University, 2020)
COUNTRIES/REGIONS
213
CLICK HERE FOR LIVE REPORTED
CASES
(Worldometer, 10.06.2020)
CLICK HERE FOR GRAPH
*Above figures via Worldometer. Figures will vary between sources.
DETAILS
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COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020ASIA
Hong Kong
Cathay Pacific has said it will receive a £4 billion (HK$39 billion) state-backed bailout as the airline struggles to
survive the economic hit of this pandemic. The deal means the Hong Kong government will have a 6% stake in the
business and can have two observers sit on the board. Cathay Pacific has not yet announced major permanent job
losses but has furloughed a number of staff and cut salaries for executives. Last month, the airline reported a loss
of HK$4.5 billion (including regional offshoot Cathay Dragon) between January and April.
India
Mumbai, India’s financial capital, has recorded 51,000 cases of infection since the beginning of this pandemic,
taking the total past that of Wuhan where the virus emerged. Spikes have also been seen in Delhi, and authorities
predict to see over half a million cases by the end of July.
Malaysia
Almost 270 Rohingya refugees have been detained in Malaysia after spending nearly two months adrift at sea,
unable to dock due to coronavirus lockdown restrictions. The refugees are members of the Muslim Rohingya
ethnic minority group and were fleeing violence and persecution in Myanmar. Many Rohingya fled to
neighbouring Bangladesh, while Malaysia, as a Muslim country, has come to be seen as a safe haven for the
group. However, refugee vessels were banned from docking over COVID-19 concerns, according to the
government. Human rights groups who have been in intermittent contact with the vessel believe as many as 500
passengers were on board at the beginning of their journey. It is thought some of these may have been able to
evade the coastguard and reach land sooner, however, it is likely that some did not survive.
Vietnam
Vietnam is considering allowing overseas air travel to “safe” destinations, which have seen no new cases of
COVID-19 for at least 30 days. The country has been under lockdown for over two months as foreigners have
been banned from entering since 22nd March. Vietnam has been praised for its success in dealing with the virus,
having confirmed just 332 cases of infection and zero deaths – very low figures considering the country’s
population of 97 million and a shared border with China.
AFRICA
Burundi
President Pierre Nkurunziza has died of cardiac arrest aged 55, the government says. He had been President for
15 years and was due to step down from the office in August. Mr Nkurunziza was admitted to hospital on
Saturday 6th June after reportedly feeling unwell. His condition was improving until he reportedly suffered a fatal
heart attack on Monday 8th June, however, many believe he may actually have died of COVID-19. A week of
mourning will be observed across the nation.
Nigeria
An investigative team sent to examine a spike of nearly 1000 unexplained deaths in the northern state of Kano
has concluded the deaths are most likely linked to COVID-19. Similar spikes have been seen across other states in
northern Nigeria. So far, the country has confirmed 12,801 cases of COVID-19 and 361 deaths, however, experts
fear the total is far higher due to a high population and low testing rates.
South Africa
The mayor of Johannesburg, Geoffrey Makhubo, has gone into self-isolation after one of his staff members tested
7
COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020positive for COVID-19. A statement from his office says Mr Makhubo has been tested along with all other staff
members and is taking the precautionary measure to self-isolate until the result is known. The country currently
has the highest number of confirmed cases in Africa.
Tanzania
President John Magufuli has declared that the country is now “coronavirus-free,” attributing the alleged success
to prayers and fasting. The government has stopped publishing data on coronavirus infections and deaths in the
country. Speaking in a church in the capital, Dodoma, President Magufuli said “the corona disease has been
eliminated thanks to God.” Last month, the Tanzanian government dismissed a warning from the US embassy that
hospitals in Dar es Salaam were “overwhelmed” and that the risk of becoming infected was “extremely high”.
AMERICAS
Brazil
Brazil has resumed publishing data on COVID-19 after the government stopped releasing figures for cases and
deaths on Saturday 6th June, sparking outrage. The Health Ministry had said it would only report cases and deaths
from the last 24 hours, but critics accused Jair Bolsonaro’s government of data manipulation and censorship. The
data was restored by a court order issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexadre de Moraes. Brazil has the world’s
second-highest number of cases and has recorded over 700,000 infections, but the actual number is thought to
be even higher due to insufficient testing.
United States of America
The USA has entered its first recession since 2009, ending a 128-month period of continuous growth – the longest
in its history.
President Donald Trump has stated he plans to begin holding campaign rallies in person again in the next two
weeks despite experts giving warnings about the public health dangers of crowding at events due to the ongoing
pandemic. America’s top infectious disease expert Dr Anthony Fauci has called the pandemic his “worst
nightmare” and believes it is far from over.
EUROPE
For a full list of changes to travel restriction in Europe please click here. The list is frequently updated.
Denmark
Denmark has entered the third phase of lockdown easing, which allows Danes to meet in groups of up to 50.
Gyms and swimming pools are also beginning to reopen but with social distancing rules still in place. Over the
course of the pandemic, Denmark has recorded just over 12,000 cases of infection and 593 deaths.
France
Rémy Heitz, a Paris prosecutor, has opened an inquiry into the French government’s response to the COVID-19
pandemic. This comes in response to a number of complaints received by the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office
during the course of the lockdown. The inquiry would investigate possible charges including endangering the life
of others, homicide, and involuntary injury and failure to assist a person in danger.
Poland
Poland is closing 12 coal mines temporarily in order to stop the spread of the virus, after recording the highest
number of new cases in the EU on Sunday 7th June. The 575 new infections were traced to an outbreak at the
Zofiowka mine.
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COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020Republic of Ireland
Thousands more businesses have reopened as the Republic of Ireland enters “Phase 2” of its four-phase plan to
ease the lockdown. People are now allowed to travel up to 12 miles from their homes, or anywhere within their
local county, and groups of up to 6 people can meet indoors or outdoors as long as they keep 2 metres apart. Up
to 15 people are able to meet for sports activities outdoors.
AUSTRALIA / OCEANIA
Australia
A tax incentive for small businesses, implemented by the Morrison government will be extended to December 31st
from its original cut-off date on the 30th June. The government has pledged $300 million in order to encourage
firms to invest.
New Zealand
New Zealand has lifted all lockdown restrictions after announcing zero active cases in the country, and no new
infections for over two weeks. Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern said that although this is hopeful news, “elimination
is not a point in time, it is a sustained effort.” Although all shops, businesses, public transport, and recreational
events are now able to take place without any restrictions, social distancing will still be encouraged. Over the
course of the pandemic, New Zealand confirmed 1154 cases of infection and 22 related deaths.
Meanwhile, New Zealand’s research institute in Antarctica will be scaling back its planned projects for this year in
an effort to keep Antarctica the only virus-free continent in the world, Antarctica New Zealand has announced.
The government agency said to the BBC that it will be dropping 23 of 36 projects, leaving only “long-term science
monitoring, essential operational activity, and planned maintenance” for the upcoming research season, which
lasts from October to March. A similar initiative was announced for the Australian test station in April.
MIDDLE EAST
Lebanon
Transport Minister Michel Najjar, speaking to Al Jazeera, revealed plans to reopen Lebanon’s only international
airport by early July at the latest. The government is set to formalise the announcement in an official meeting
later this week. The airport will initially be operating at a limited capacity of approximately 2000 – 3000 daily
passengers, or around 10 – 20% compared to last year’s average figures. Prime Minister Hassan Diab emphasised
the importance of tourism to reviving Lebanon’s economy in the wake of this pandemic.
9
COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020IN OTHER NEWS
Black Lives Matter Protests
Protests in support of Black Lives Matter and against-Police brutality, instigated by the murder of the American
George Floyd on 25th May, have continued with rallies being seen across Europe and in the majority of the UK’s
main cities.
George Floyd’s funeral took place at the Fountain of Praise church in his hometown of Houston, Texas on Tuesday
9th June. Hundreds of people gathered inside and outside the church to remember Mr Floyd and to call for an end
to racism and Police brutality in America and across the world.
Protesters’ fight for change is beginning to see some results, as Houston Mayor Sylvester Turner signed an
executive order banning the use of chokeholds by police. Similar steps are being taken by other Police
departments such as in New York state and Phoenix, Arizona. In Minneapolis, where Mr Floyd was killed,
lawmakers have vowed to disband the city’s Police department and replace it with a new system of community-
led public safety. President Trump made his opposition quite clear in a tweet, saying “law & order, not defund
and abolish the Police. The Radical Left Democrats have gone Crazy!” Regardless of the President’s opinion,
“Defund the police” has become a rallying cry among protesters and we may see similar measures in other
municipalities in the coming weeks.
The message of the protests has reverberated internationally. London Mayor Sadiq Khan has announced a review
of all London’s street names and statues, saying that any with links to slavers “should be taken down.” This comes
after a number of statues have been toppled or defaced, including that of noted slaveowner Robert Milligan,
which was removed from outside the Museum of London Docklands on Tuesday 9th June. The Canal and River
Trust said the statue was removed “to recognise the wishes of the community.” Mr Khan said a number of new
memorials will replace any that are removed, including for example a National Slavery Museum or memorial.
However, Mr Khan spoke out against the spray-painting of a prominent statue of Sir Winston Churchill in
Parliament Square, saying that some famous figures should be remembered “warts and all.”
Also, on Tuesday 9th June, thousands of people gathered at Oriel College of Oxford University to demand the
removal of a statue of imperialist Cecil Rhodes. Meanwhile in Belgium, a statue was taken down of King Leopold
II, known for his brutal colonisation of the Congo region in the 19th century.
UK
At midnight on Wednesday 10th June, Britain passed a milestone in renewable energy having gone two full
months without burning coal. The figures apply only to Britain as Northern Ireland is not on the National Grid.
With that said, it is still a significant achievement, far surpassing the previous record of 18 days, 6 hours, and 10
minutes set in June last year. According to figures from the online environmental journal, Carbon Brief, renewable
energy generated more power than all fossil fuels put together in 2020 so far.
Ghana
One person is confirmed to have died following flash floods in Ghana’s capital, Accra. Local media reported water
levels as high as 4.5m after torrential rains on Monday 8th June night, which left most parts of the city flooded.
Accra is prone to flooding due to poor drainage infrastructure.
North Korea
North Korea has cut off all lines of communication with neighbouring South Korea. Experts say this could be a sign
that North Korea is becoming more confrontational against the South. Several means of communicating have
been taken down, including a direct line between North Korean leader Kim Jong Un and South Korean President
10
COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020Moon Jae-in that was considered important as it could help prevent any accidental military conflict caused by
misunderstanding or miscalculation between the two nations. South Korea’s Unification Ministry said in a
statement, “Inter-Korean communication lines must be maintained according to the agreement because it is the
fundamental means of communication” and that the government body will “continue to work towards peace and
prosperity of the Korean Peninsula while adhering to the inter-Korean agreement.”
North Korea claims the reason for the shutdown is because of a number of North Korean defectors in South
Korea, who sent forbidden materials such as SD cards and leaflets back into the country via balloons. The North
Korean regime relies heavily on censorship and propaganda, and it is illegal for citizens to consume information
and media from the outside world. Experts have said it is possible that the regime is using the incident as an
excuse to manufacture a crisis against South Korea in order to gain leverage in negotiations, while not being
urgent enough to warrant US involvement. However, as Andrei Lankov, Director of Korea Risk Group, has said,
South Koreans have long been accustomed to the “cycle of escalation” with North Korea. This in addition to the
more pressing concerns of the pandemic and economy means that Pyongyang’s attempts to put pressure on
Seoul have been “remarkably unsuccessful.” With that said, he also warned a lack of response from the South
could provoke the North to take further action.
Russia
Emergency teams are working to try to contain an oil spill which has polluted a large lake near the Siberian city of
Norilsk. Approximately 21,000 tonnes of oil have contaminated Pyasina Lake, the Ambarnaya River, and the
surrounding soil. The spill occurred on 29th May when a fuel tank at a power plant collapsed and has become the
worst accident of its kind in Russia’s Arctic region, according to officials and environmental groups. Delays in
reporting the accident led President Vladimir Putin to arrest the power plant’s Director, Vyacheslav Starostin, and
order an investigation into dangerous constructions on permafrost. So far, clean-up teams have removed around
23,000 cubic metres of contaminated soil according to local news.
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COVID -19/RAS/10th June 2020COVID19@wilsonjames.co.uk / riskadvisory@wilsonjames.co.uk @WJltd @WJ_Ltd www.linkedin.com/company/wilson-james
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