Covid in Leeds: Live updates as Boris Johnson holds press conference on June 21 lockdown easing

The press conference begins with Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying we are better protected by the vaccines and better able to live with the virus as every day goes by, but there are still millions of young people who are still not vaccinated and a proportion of the elderly and vulnerable may still succumb even if they have had two jabs.

They are concerned by the growing number of Delta variant cases and even if the link between infection and hospitalisation has been weakened, it hasn’t been cut entirely. The numbers in intensive care are rising.

He says the four tests for proceeding on June 21 have not been met.

Boris Johnson is holding a televised Downing Street press conference at 6pm, where he is expected to announce a delay to the final lifting of coronavirus lockdown restrictions in England.

The Prime Minister is expected to announce that the road map easing earmarked for June 21 will be delayed for four weeks to July 19.

He will be accompanied at the briefing by England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty and the Government’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance.

The announcement means that limits on numbers for sports events, pubs and cinemas are likely to remain in place, nightclubs will stay closed and people will be encouraged to keep up social distancing and working from home.

We’ll bring you live updates from the press conference and the reaction in Leeds here

Here are some of the latest stories on our website as we head into the evening:

No new Covid deaths have been recorded at Leeds hospitals according to the latest daily update.

Figures released by NHS England show two deaths were recorded in the country’s hospitals in the 24 hours to 4pm on Sunday, June 13.

The deaths were recorded on June 12.

According to the latest Government figures, 192 new Covid-19 cases were reported in Leeds on Monday, June 14.

There were 1,012 cases confirmed in the seven days to June 9, meaning Leeds has an infection rate of 127.6 per 100,000 people.

This is an increase of 100.8 per cent on the previous seven-day period.

An arrest has been made by detectives investigating a second stabbing in Leeds.

A 31-year-old man was taken to hospital last night after an incident in Azalea Avenue, Killingbeck, at around 10.30pm.

Police said this afternoon that a 26-year-old man was being held in custody and had been arrested on suspicion of wounding with intent.

They have also issued an appeal for information as enquiries continue.

Police have cordoned off an alleyway in Whinmoor as forensic examination and specialist searches take place.

It follows the stabbing of a 52-year-old man, who was left with serious wounds to his neck.

The man, who remains in hospital, was also arrested on suspicion of attempted wounding in relation to the incident.

Detective Inspector Richard Holmes, of Leeds District CID, said: “The area will have been busy at the time, both with people on foot and driving past, and we are particularly keen to speak to anyone with any phone or dashcam footage that could assist the investigation.”

Read the full story: Man taken to hospital with serious wounds after being stabbed in neck in Leeds alleyway

Here are some of the latest stories on our website this lunchtime:

Boris Johnson will announce the decision on the June 21 easing of restrictions at a press conference at 6pm on Monday evening, Downing Street has confirmed.

The Prime Minister will be joined by England’s chief medical officer, Professor Chris Whitty, and the Government’s chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance.

Former chief scientific adviser Professor Sir Mark Walport told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme: “The more people we get vaccinated, the better chance we have of not having serious hospitalisations and deaths.

“The vaccine isn’t perfectly effective and a lot of younger people, in whom the infection is very much milder but nevertheless occasionally it does put people in hospital… there are a lot of people still to vaccinate – 50% of the adult population hasn’t had their second dose.

“So it buys time if we prolong the current state of social distancing.”

The Prime Minister is expected to announce the ending of social-distancing rules – which had been slated for June 21 – will be delayed for four weeks to July 19, with the BBC reporting early on Monday the decision had been signed off by senior ministers.

The move follows warnings from scientists that the rapid spread of the Delta variant first identified in India risks a “substantial” third wave if it is allowed to spread unchecked.

Mr Johnson is expected to appeal to the public to show patience, with one last push to ensure that when controls do finally end it is “irreversible”.

However, it comes as a huge setback to many businesses – particularly in the battered hospitality sector – which had pinned their hopes on a full summer reopening to recoup some of the losses of the past year.

There was deep frustration among lockdown sceptics on the Conservative benches who said there was no reason not to end the restrictions as those most at risk of death or serious illness are now fully vaccinated.

Former minister Mark Harper, the chairman of the Covid Recovery Group (CRG) of Tory MPs, said any postponement would be a “political choice”.

He warned that if the unlocking did not go ahead as planned, restrictions could carry on through the autumn and into the winter as other respiratory infections picked up.

“The effectiveness of our vaccines at preventing hospitalisation means unlocking on June 21 could proceed safely. Any decision to delay will be a political choice,” he said.

“Variants and mutations will appear for the rest of time. We have to learn to live with it.

“If our very effective vaccines cannot deliver us freedom from restrictions, then nothing ever will.”

Steve Baker, the CRG deputy chairman, questioned how long the country could “fumble along” with restrictions that had such “devastating consequences” for both business and people’s mental health.

Conservative backbencher Marcus Fysh said delay was a “disastrous and unacceptable policy”.

Mr Johnson is expected to make the formal announcement at a press conference on Monday evening after he returns to Downing Street from attending the Nato summit in Brussels.