HERE'S everything you need to know today: 

  • Government data up to June 3 shows that of the 66,749,638 jabs given in the UK so far, 39,949,694 were first doses – a rise of 191,266 on the previous day. Some 26,799,944 were second doses, an increase of 377,641.
  • The UK has approved the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine for use in children aged 12 to 15. The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) authorised the use of the jab in the younger age group on Friday following a review of its safety, quality and effectiveness. The Pfizer Covid-19 jab was the first to be authorised for use in the UK at the end of last year
  • Holidaymakers scrambling for flights home from Portugal before new quarantine requirements come into force are being charged hundreds of pounds. People arriving in the UK from Portugal after 4am on Tuesday will need to self-isolate at home for 10 days after the Government moved it from the green list to the amber list. A seat on a Ryanair flight from the capital Lisbon to Manchester on Monday costs £339, whereas travel on the same route is available for just £75 on Wednesday. British Airways is charging £348 for flights from Faro to London Heathrow on Sunday and Monday, but the price drops to £137 on Tuesday.
  • A majority of major hospital trusts in England are continuing to average no Covid-19 admissions, though a handful of trusts in virus hotspots are showing a small rise in numbers, new analysis shows. It comes as health experts warn that the Covid-19 variant that originated in India, also known as the Delta variant, may lead to an increased risk of hospital admission. Some 278 people with the Indian variant attended A&Es in England in the past week, resulting in 94 people being admitted to hospital overnight, according to Public Health England (PHE). This compares with 201 A&E attendances in the previous week, with 43 admissions. However the majority of admissions continue to be people who have not been vaccinated, PHE said.
  • Prime Minister Boris Johnson faces a “very difficult” call on whether to drop restrictions on June 21 given the “more negative direction” of the data, according to a leading expert. Professor Neil Ferguson, whose modelling was instrumental to the UK locking down in March 2020, said a “cautious” approach is needed as the Government balances the potential risks against a desire for normality. He also said that news on the variant first identified in India is not positive as it could be anywhere between 30 per cent and 100 per cent more transmissible than the previously dominant Kent variant, also known as Alpha.
  • Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove had to abandon a meeting with Boris Johnson and leaders of the devolved nations on Thursday after he was notified he may have come into contact with someone who had coronavirus on a trip to Portugal. The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster had gone to Porto with his son to watch the Champions League final between Chelsea and Manchester City. Mr Gove has been alerted through the NHS app that he may have been in contact with someone who had the virus. The Daily Mail reported that it is believed the contact happened on the flight home from Porto.