The Papers: Protective kit criticism and vaccine trial begins

Newspaper headlines: Protective kit criticism and vaccine trial begins

By BBC News Staff
Guardian front page
Image caption The government missed opportunities to secure at least 16 million face masks for NHS staff in the past four weeks, according to the Guardian. It comes amid growing frustration from companies who say the UK is losing vital supplies to other countries, says the paper. Offers from suppliers to deliver UK-standard masks were said to have been met with "silence" by the government.
Daily Mirror front page
Image caption Tens of thousands of protective visors are sitting in a British warehouse - waiting to be shipped abroad - after the government refused to buy them, reports the Daily Mirror. The paper says the equipment has been made by a Nottingham firm that is “desperate to help” frontline medics.
Daily Star front page
Image caption The Daily Star says protective equipment is being sent to Germany while NHS “heroes” are begging Health Secretary Matt Hancock for supplies. “Nein, nein, nein” is the paper’s front-page headline.
FT front page
Image caption Ministers were attempting to get a grip on the government’s coronavirus strategy on Tuesday night, according to the Financial Times, amid confusion over efforts to obtain personal protective equipment and the revelation that less than one fifth of the number of virus tests promised by the end of the month were being carried out.
The Sun front page
Image caption The ongoing shortages of PPE has led to an "army" of amateur "stitchers" working "flat-out" to make washable protective clothing, says the Sun. The paper reports that almost 25,000 sets of homemade scrubs intended for use by front-line staff have been made already.
Metro front page
Image caption The Metro, like many of the papers, focuses on news that human trials of a coronavirus vaccine will begin in the UK tomorrow. Prof Sarah Gilbert, who is leading the research, said the inoculation could be ready as soon as September and she is "80%" confident it will work.
Daily Express front pages
Image caption The Daily Express quotes the health secretary as saying the UK will “throw everything” at the research in the hope the country can "lead the world" by finding the first vaccine for the virus.
Times front page
Image caption Mr Hancock also announced £20m in funding to speed the research through larger-scale human trials over the summer, as well as £22.5m for a parallel vaccine project at Imperial College London, reports the Times. The research will begin by testing the safety of the inoculation in volunteers.
The i front page
Image caption The i says UK researchers are making “rapid progress” in their attempts to find a vaccine for Covid-19.
Daily Telegraph front page
Image caption In other developments, virus tests given to thousands of NHS staff so they could return to work have been found to be flawed, according to the Daily Telegraph. The paper says it has seen a leaked memo from Public Health England which warns of “degraded” performance, meaning the results are less reliable than first thought. The paper says it raises the prospect that thousands of nurses and doctors who were told they were free of the virus may have been sent back to work while they were still contagious.
Daily Mail front page
Image caption And the Daily Mail reports that the pandemic is resulting in thousands of cancers being missed every week, because patients are not visiting their GP. Cancer Research UK said the numbers being referred by doctors for urgent hospital appointments or checks had dropped by 75% since the start of the outbreak.

The Daily Express says the start of human trials of two vaccines that might protect against coronavirus raises the hope that the UK will lead the world out of the pandemic.

It's among several papers to lead on the development and the promise by Health Secretary Matt Hancock that the government will "throw everything" at supporting the researchers.

The announcement is also the main front page story in the Times and the i, though the Times sounds a cautious note, reminding us of the words of the government's chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Valance, who has warned that every potential vaccine is a "long shot".

The Daily Telegraph claims tests for coronavirus given to NHS staff have been found to be flawed, meaning thousands of doctors and nurses who thought they were free of the virus may have been sent back to work while contagious.

It says it's seen a leaked memo from Public Health England saying the results are less reliable than was first thought.

Public Health England says no diagnostic test is 100% sensitive, and that the tests were inconsistent in less than 2% of samples. It's now switching to commercially produced test kits and insists that was always the plan.

Image copyright Sean Elias
Image caption The start of human trials of two vaccines that might protect against coronavirus leads many of the papers

There's continuing criticism of efforts to obtain and distribute the vast quantities of protective equipment required by health and care workers.

The Daily Mirror says thousands of plastic visors may be sent abroad by a firm in Nottingham because the NHS hasn't placed a large scale order.

John Tolley, whose wife is an intensive care nurse, switched production at his company, Printers Prime Group, to making visors and has delivered 350,000 free or at cost price.

But he says he's having to deal with individual trusts. The government says it has had more than 8,000 offers of support from suppliers of PPE and that it's speeding up efforts to respond to companies.

Meanwhile two Tottenham footballers are in trouble for appearing to breach rules on social distancing.

The Spurs right-back, Serge Aurier, posted videos on Instagram showing him training with Moussa Sissoko, and the two of them sitting together afterwards.

Spurs says it will be "speaking to both players involved".

The Daily Express says the pair have apologised and are to make a donation to the NHS.

"You clowns" is the back page headline in the Daily Mail.

The Guardian says the club also has questions to answer about why some of its senior employees are continuing to ignore rules on physical distancing.

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The Sun pays tribute to "a nationwide army of amateur stitchers" who are working flat out to make homemade scrubs for medics to wear as they treat patients with the virus.

One hundred "scrub hubs" have been set up across Britain since an east London doctor asked her local WhatsApp group for volunteers.

Between them the teams have now made almost 25,000 sets of scrubs, the paper says.