Prioritising peace and cooperation in the Middle East in the midst of COVID-19

Mr President, as others have said this morning, COVID-19 is a global crisis with testing implications for us all. The virus does not respect borders, nor political, cultural or religious differences. Cooperation must therefore be our first instinct and we should work to combat this unprecedented challenge together.

We therefore welcome the formation of a national unity government by Israel. This is an important step, demonstrating the need to put political differences aside in the fight against COVID-19.

We continue to welcome the ongoing cooperation between the Palestinian Authority and Government of Israel in their respective responses. This is an example of the responsible approach we need at this difficult time, and particularly in the spirit of the Secretary-General’s appeal for a global ceasefire.

The UN has played an important part in ensuring ongoing coordination between the Palestinian Authority, Israel and the UN agencies, and we hope this will continue.

It is clear that UNWRA has an important role to play in helping to respond to the crisis brought about by COVID-19. The virus and its impact on Palestinians and basic services will put additional pressure on UNWRA. The UK remains firmly committed to supporting UNRWA and Palestinian refugees across the Middle East, providing over $80 million for 2019/2020. And we are reviewing our contributions in the light of the COVID-19 challenge.

And the UK is also providing vital support to help respond to COVID-19 in the Occupied Palestinian Territories. Our $1 million funding contribution will enable the World Health Organisation and UNICEF to purchase and coordinate the medical supplies, treat critical care patients, train frontline public health servants and scale up laboratory testing capability.

We must also be mindful of the impact of the virus on the Palestinian economy and economic development. The Palestinian Authority’s revenues, which come mostly from levies on trade, are expected to decline by between 60 and 70% as a result of the crisis. The Occupied Palestinian Territories are excluded from most international mechanisms, including the World Bank’s $14 billion COVID-19 fund. The Palestinian Authority does not issue a currency and cannot adopt the measures many countries are taking to increase liquidity.

We welcome the Palestinian Authority’s emergency budget and Israeli agreement to guarantee minimum levels of monthly revenue. And we look to Israel to ensure that the Palestinian economy is permitted to function and to support the Palestinian Authority’s economic stability.

During this fragile period we call on both parties to avoid any provocative action, which might undermine the cooperation that is so critical. This includes incitement, settlement activity, demolitions and settler violence.

The UK is particularly concerned that demolitions have continued, including of temporary health centres, which weaken the capacity of Palestinians to respond to COVID-19. Under International Humanitarian Law, an occupying power has the duty of ensuring and maintaining public health and hygiene in the occupied territory to the fullest extent of the means available to it. That is why continued cooperation is so vital.

It is also with regret that we have heard about the deaths of two Palestinians who were shot by Israeli forces during clashes near Nablus in March. It is important that Israel Defense Forces investigate in an independent and transparent manner, and if any wrongdoing is found, that those responsible are held to account.

Finally, we are deeply concerned by reports that the new Israeli government coalition has reached an agreement which paves the way for annexation of parts of the West Bank. The UK position is clear: any unilateral moves towards annexation of parts of the West Bank by Israel would be damaging to efforts to restart peace negotiations and would be contrary to international law.

Mr President, the United Kingdom’s longstanding position on the Middle East Peace Process has not changed. We support a negotiated settlement leading to a safe and secure Israel living alongside a viable and sovereign Palestinian state, based on 1967 borders with agreed land swaps, Jerusalem as the shared capital of both states and a just, fair, agreed and realistic settlement for refugees.

Thank you, Mr President.

Coronavirus testing extended to all essential workers in England who have symptoms

The biggest widening of access to coronavirus testing made possible due to substantially increased testing capacity
Essential workers with coronavirus symptoms can get tested, helping them return to work if test is negative
Broad range of testing methods being rolled-out to increase accessibility, including home testing kits, mobile testing sites and satellite testing kits
New campaign to provide clear information for essential workers on how to get a test

All essential workers in England, and members of their households who are showing symptoms of coronavirus will now be able to get tested, the government has announced.

This will mean individuals and people they live with will have the reassurance of knowing whether their symptoms are caused by coronavirus and can decide whether they are well enough to return to work.

A new campaign will help essential workers in England – including NHS and care staff, teachers, hospital cleaners, public servants, the emergency services, supermarket staff, delivery drivers, and other critical infrastructure staff – to access testing.

Booking the test has been made simpler via a new online system. From today, employers can register and refer self-isolating staff, and from tomorrow employees will be able to book a test directly for themselves or members of their household who are experiencing symptoms – a high temperature or new continuous cough.

This will speed up the process of getting an appointment and take the burden off employers, helping reach everyone who has symptoms at the earliest opportunity.

Secretary of State for Health and Social Care Matt Hancock said:

“We have already prioritised testing for patients and health and social care workers and other key workers today I can go further.

“We are making it easier, faster and simpler for any essential worker in England who needs a test to get a test. From today, employers of essential workers will be able to go on GOV.UK to get a test for any of their staff who need a test. And from tomorrow, any essential workers who need a test will be able to book an appointment on GOV.UK themselves directly.

“This all applies for people in essential workers’ households who need a test too. It’s all part of getting Britain back on her feet.”

Essential workers using the new portal can enter their details and will then receive a text or email the same day inviting them to either book an appointment at one of more than 30 drive-through testing sites across the country, or receive a home testing kit.

Test results from the drive-through sites will be sent out by text within 48 hours, and within 72 hours of collection of the home delivery tests.

The aim is that most people should not have to drive for more than 45 minutes to get to a regional testing site. However, additional testing methods are being rolled-out to support testing accessibility:

A network of new mobile testing units is being rapidly established. These will travel the country to reach care homes, police stations, prisons and other sites where there is demand for testing. The units have been designed to clinical requirements by army engineers and can be easily set up in under 20 minutes.
The new mobile units will work alongside the drive-through test sites, together sending thousands of patient samples to the network of Lighthouse Labs, to rapidly increase the number of tests completed each day.
A delivery service for home testing kits has been designed with key industry partners, including Royal Mail and Amazon. The home delivery service will come on line from tomorrow. The availability of home testing kits will initially be limited, but more will become available soon. This will ensure those not able to travel to a test centre can still take the test, find out their results and return to work if possible.
Working with Public Health England, the Care Quality Commission and the Association of Directors of Adult Social Services, the government is sending packages of ‘satellite’ test kits directly to care homes across England, to enable testing of symptomatic residents.

Since the beginning of April, the government has significantly increased the UK’s coronavirus testing capacity and is on track to provide 100,000 tests a day by the end of the month.

The 3 new Lighthouse Labs in Milton Keynes, Glasgow and Alderley Park in Cheshire are increasing the country’s capacity to test for coronavirus, with each site scaling up to test tens of thousands of patient samples each day. Each individual site took just 3 weeks to complete and begin testing, staffed by an army of highly qualified staff and volunteers from industry and academia across the country.

Under the government’s five-pillar strategy, swab testing has been offered to different groups in a phased approach, prioritising NHS workers, but the ultimate aim is that anyone who needs a test will be able to have one.

Testing helps the government and scientists understand the current spread of the virus and plan how to manage the pandemic moving forwards.

Anyone who thinks they are eligible and has symptoms and would like to be tested should speak to their employer or use the self-referral website to request a test.

The response to coronavirus is a national effort. The government is working collaboratively across the four nations to ensure the take up of testing among essential workers. Each of the devolved administrations will have their own eligibility criteria and testing priorities, however the government is working closely to align approaches.

Weekly COVID-19 surveillance report published

Latest update

The latest Public Health England COVID-19 epidemiology surveillance summary published on Friday 28 August 2020.

The report includes data from a variety of different sources: community, primary care, secondary care, virology, mortality surveillance and sero-prevalence surveillance data. Combined these sources show a wider community picture including a breakdown by age, gender, ethnicity and geography which will help plan the national response to the pandemic and assist regional stakeholders in local planning.

The surveillance report has been updated to include an overview of upper tier local authorities (UTLA) with the highest incidence rates and the Contain Framework Local Authority Watchlist. The watchlist combines a range of indicators to highlight local authorities of greatest concern.