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Heathrow boss calls for airport tests to save summer
The chief executive of Heathrow Airport has urged the Government to allow passengers to be tested for Covid-19 on arrival in a trial to rescue the summer tourism season. John Holland-Kaye told The Telegraph that Heathrow could have a test “up and running” in two weeks, meaning holidaymakers who have just set off for Spain could be checked – at a cost of £150 – when they arrived home. France and Germany are among at least 20 countries already using such tests to cut quarantine for arrivals from countries with high levels of coronavirus. The Telegraph understands that Grant Shapps, the Transport Secretary, is in favour of a trial and has championed the idea at the Cabinet’s Covid sub-committee. Charles Hymas sets out how Heathrow’s coronavirus test would work.
It comes as British Airways is offering return flights to Europe for just £1 under its loyalty scheme as airlines seek to rescue summer holidays. The airline, Britain’s biggest, has offered the deals to its executive club members of which there are an estimated 10 million worldwide. Here are some of the destinations included. For those still determined to take a holiday to Spain, Jack Peak has described what he had to do to go on his trip – including taking out warzone insurance. And for those abandoning the idea of travelling abroad, a word of warning: Britain is running out of motorhomes to rent to holidaymakers as “staycation” numbers grow.
Why the UK is facing ‘K-shaped’ economic recovery
First there was talk of V-shaped or U-shaped recoveries from the Covid-19 pandemic, then there were suggestions the economic bounceback might look more like a “Nike tick”. Now, economists have warned the UK could be experiencing a K-shaped recovery – meaning the employed continue to see their fortunes rise as the recently unemployed are plunged into financial hardship. As the Treasury and Bank of England attempt to stimulate a rapid bounceback over a more painful and prolonged L-shaped recovery, elsewhere, fears are mounting over the widening gulf between the “haves” and “have nots”. Read on for more.
Princess Anne: Are we ‘dangerous or well informed’?
It has become the hallmark of the modern royal: the campaigning zeal to boost their favourite causes and convince the public of how best to save the world. Princess Anne, with her trademark humility, has today offered a more modest approach, wondering whether the “little knowledge” she picks up on the job makes her “dangerous or well informed”. The Princess, who has guest edited Country Life magazine in honour of her 70th birthday, has shared her thoughts on how to save rural livelihoods, the result of 42 years running her own farm and as patron of countless countryside charities. Read how she thinks she has benefited from listening to “masters of their subjects”, while Bethan Holt reveals how a new documentary shows why the Princess Royal is back in demand.
At a glance: More coronavirus headlines
Also in the news: Today’s other headlines
Alzheimer’s blood test | It is a disease which has caused heartache and turmoil for millions of families. Yet scientists have offered a glimmer of hope with their discovery that a blood test for Alzheimer’s disease – capable of spotting the condition years before memory loss and confusion occur – is on the horizon. Read on for details.
Around the world: Covid-19 outbreak in Xinjiang
China is fighting its most aggressive return of coronavirus in months, including infections in Xinjiang, the far western region where as many as three million people are believed to have been detained in vast internment camps. On Tuesday, the national health commission announced 57 new cases in Xinjiang, bringing the total in the region to 235 cases since mid-July. Read how the area was already under tight surveillance. View our gallery of more pictures of the day.
Comment and analysis
Editor’s choice: Features and arts
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Do you belong in the cycle lane? | Cycling has a women problem. Here’s how to fix it
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This summer’s best-dressed women | Learn how to master their looks
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First the handshake, now the queue | How Covid is eroding our great British traditions
Business and money briefing
Return of dividends | Bank dividend payments could be restarted within months in a boost to millions of small investors battered by the coronavirus meltdown. Lenders were forced to halt shareholder pay-outs following heavy pressure from the Bank of England after the pandemic struck – but Threadneedle Street has said it will consider plans to dole out cash from January onwards as an economic recovery begins.
Sport briefing
England v West Indies | As the dust settles on England’s first post-Covid Test series, the verdicts are in. Sir Geoffrey Boycott analyses how England delivered a top-class performance, while Scyld Berry outlines why the West Indies are owed a debt for their tour.
Tonight’s dinner
Chicken rye schnitzel with mustard sauce | One of the best midweek meals. If you don’t want to make the mustard sauce, just serve mustard on the side. Read on for the recipe.
And finally… for this morning’s downtime
End of an era | The teatime edition of Newsround, a BBC fixture for nearly 50 years, is to be scrapped as children abandon scheduled television in favour of the internet. Ofcom rubber-stamped the decision, requested by the corporation last year, after its research showed that young viewers prefer online content and no longer switch on a television channel when they get home from school. It ends an era that began with John Craven in 1972. Read how many presenters cut their teeth on the programme.
