Coronavirus news you may have missed overnight: US deaths surge past Italy’s, UK parliament recalled, ‘don’t book summer holidays’, EU warns

The latest on the impact of the virus around the world

The global coronavirus pandemic has now infected more than 1.7 million people worldwide and an estimated 100,000 deaths have been recorded.

In the UK nearly 80,000 people have been confirmed to have caught the disease and 9,875 people have died – the fifth highest national number globally.

As the virus continues to cause chaos around the world, here’s your daily briefing of recent news items you may have missed.

US surpasses Italy for most recorded deaths due to virus

The US has surpassed Italy as the country with the greatest number of confirmed deaths from Covid-19, with more than 20,000 fatalities.

The Johns Hopkins University count put US deaths at 20,254, with Italy at 18,849.

The university says the US has more known infections than any other country, with 503,594, followed by Spain on 161,852 and Italy with 147,577.

More than 2,000 Americans died on Friday, the single biggest death toll that any country has yet seen. Read the full story here.

UK Parliament to return after Easter

Parliament will return after the Easter recess, the government confirmed on Sunday, a day after cross-party calls for the immediate recall of the house.

Whitehall sources said all options were being considered for parliament’s return.

A spokeswoman for Jacob Rees-Mogg, leader of the House, added: “Parliament will return on 21 April to fulfil its essential constitutional functions of conducting scrutiny, authorising spending and making laws.

“In these unprecedented times, technological solutions have already been implemented for select committee and options are being prepared for the Speaker, the government and other parties to consider next week.”

“Parliament has a responsibility to put questions to ministers at this time of national crisis,” Sir Keir Starmer wrote in a letter to Mr Rees-Mogg.​ Read the full report here.

Priti Patel ‘sorry’ if people feel government has failed on PPE

On Saturday evening cabinet minister Priti Patel said she was “sorry if people feel there have been failings” in the government’s supply of PPE (personal protective equipment) to hospitals.

The home secretary’s comments, at her first appearance at the daily 10 Downing Street coronavirus crisis press conference, stopped well short of an admission of shortcomings in the government’s response, and Labour immediately said it did not amount to the apology that was needed. Read the full story here.

UK pledges £200m to WHO to help halt Covid-19 in vulnerable countries

Britain said on Sunday it was pledging £200 million to the World Health Organisation (WHO) and charities to help slow the spread of the coronavirus in vulnerable countries and so help prevent a second wave of infections.

Infections have been reported in 210 countries since the first cases were identified in China in December last year and British aid minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said assisting the poorest nations now would help prevent the virus returning to the United Kingdom.

“While our brilliant doctors and nurses fight coronavirus at home, we’re deploying British expertise and funding around the world to prevent a second deadly wave reaching the UK,” Trevelyan said in a statement.

“Coronavirus does not respect country borders so our ability to protect the British public will only be effective if we strengthen the healthcare systems of vulnerable developing countries too.”

Russia reports largest increase in cases

On Sunday Russia reported 2,186 new coronavirus cases, the largest daily increase since the start of the outbreak, bringing the national tally of confirmed cases to 15,770.

The number of coronavirus-related deaths rose by 24 to 130, the Russian coronavirus crisis response centre said.

Mexico allows drive-through confessions for Easter weekend

Priests in Mexico are offering drive-through confessions over Easter as churches remain closed during the coronavirus crisis.

Catholic priests in the seaside resort of Acapulco, in the south of the country, have been hearing confession from the side of the road in the days leading up to Easter Sunday.

There have so far been 4,219 confirmed cases of Covid-19 in Mexico, including 273 deaths. Read The Independent’s report here.

UK crime falls by more than 20% during lockdown

Crime has dropped by more than 20 per cent during the UK coronavirus outbreak, police have revealed.

But the head of the National Police Chiefs’ Council (NPCC) said officers had also issued more than 1,000 fines for breaking lockdown restrictions.

“Initial figures from all forces show a 21 per cent fall in overall crime across the last four weeks compared to the same period last year,” Martin Hewitt told Downing Street’s daily press conference on Saturday. Read the full story here.

Don’t book summer holidays, says EU

The head of the European Union’s executive branch has recommended people hold off on booking summer holidays for now, pointing to uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic.

Most planes are currently grounded and many countries have put in place wide-ranging travel restrictions. Some nations are considering first steps out of weeks-long shutdowns of public life but much of Europe is at a near-standstill.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen told Germany’s Bild am Sonntag newspaper she “would advise waiting with such plans”.

She added in an interview that “no one can make reliable forecasts for July and August at the moment”. (PA)

Japan warns of medical ‘collapse’ as services stretched

Japanese healthcare facilities are getting stretched thin amid a surge in coronavirus patients.

Workers’ groups the Japanese Association for Acute Medicine and the Japanese Society for Emergency Medicine issued a joint statement warning about a “collapse of emergency medicine,” which may lead to the collapse of medicine overall.

The statement said many hospitals were turning away people brought by ambulance, including those suffering strokes, heart attacks and external injuries. Some who were turned away later turned out to have the coronavirus.

Masks and surgical gowns were running short, the statement said.

Japan has nearly 7,000 coronavirus cases and about 100 deaths, but the numbers are growing. The government has declared a state of emergency, asking people to stay at home. (PA)

Labour calls for inquiry into ‘disproportionate’ number of ethnic minority deaths

Labour has called for a government inquiry into why black, asian and minority ethnic (BAME) people are more vulnerable to coronavirus.

Shadow equalities secretary Marsha de Cordova said the disproportionate number of deaths of doctors from these communities in the UK was “deeply disturbing”.

“It reflects the shocking underlying inequalities facing BAME communities as a whole, who are disproportionately represented in the numbers of people getting the virus,” she said. Read The Independent’s report here.

Israel tightens quarantine measures

The Israeli government has approved a tight quarantine of several areas of Jerusalem, including the historic Old City, in a bid to slow the spread of coronavirus in the city’s most susceptible areas.

A ministerial committee approved the shutting down of movement in and out of several predominantly ultra-Orthodox areas of the city in order to contain the disease that has already resulted in over 100 deaths in Israel and almost 6,000 around the Middle East, the vast majority in Iran.

The measure faced resistance from ultra-Orthodox ministers in Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s government who rejected singling out their constituency.

Israel’s health ministry has documented over 10,000 cases of coronavirus and over 100 deaths.

Roughly a fifth of all cases in Israel are in Jerusalem, the ministry said. A large percentage of the Covid-19 cases are in the country’s largely insular ultra-Orthodox community, which for weeks did not adhere to government orders to maintain social distancing. (PA)

Rare fin whales swim close to Marseille as lockdown curbs human activity

The world’s second-largest mammal took advantage of the absence of human bustle and noise around major city to make a “very rare” appearance.

Two fin whales were spotted near Marseille, southern France, which, like almost all of Europe, is in lockdown during the coronavirus crisis.

A sea patrol filmed the pair powering through the waters off the Calanques national park, a protected reserve of outstanding natural beauty. Read the full story here.

Tom Hanks makes first TV appearance after testing positive for coronavirus

Actor Tom Hanks surprised US television viewers by appearing as the host of a special edition of the programme Saturday Night Live.

It was his first appearance on the television since he and his wife Rita tested positive for coronavirus last month. “It’s a strange time to try to be funny”, said Hanks. Read the full write-up here.