Tributes paid as pandemic hero Captain Tom dies

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Here are some of the day's key developments from around the world:

• France has become the latest European country - after Germany and Austria - to restrict the use of AstraZeneca's Covid-19 vaccine to people aged under 65. The three EU member states have all cited insufficient data on its efficacy for older people
• Meanwhile, Russia's Sputnik V vaccine was found to give around 92% protection against the virus and has been deemed safe, according to late-stage trial results published in The Lancet
• In Spain, issues with the delivery of the Pfizer and Moderna vaccines has meant that regions - including Catalonia and Madrid - have had to alter or suspend some rollout plans
• Tanzania's government said it had no plans to rollout Covid vaccines. The news came days after President John Magufuli warned officials against acquiring vaccines saying they could harm people, without giving evidence
• Nigeria, though, is set to receive 57 million doses of Covid vaccines as the country fights a second wave of infections
• And finally, Canada said it regretted any "misunderstanding" after China lodged a formal complaint over a diplomat's custom Wuhan T-shirt. The item of clothing featured the name Wuhan emblazoned on the logo of rap-group the Wu-Tang Clan, which some on Chinese social media claimed looked like a bat

We've been bringing you tributes to Capt Tom, who died earlier today - and Michael Ball has been telling the BBC's The One Show how he felt "really lucky" to know him. The duo recorded a song together.

"When I got to spend that time with him at his home, that's when the real Tom came alive because he was so on the ball and so quick," he says.

"He was staggered by what had happened but he's from that generation that they took it in their stride. He was thrilled by the way everything had gone and was so proud of it.

"He would say to me, 'I couldn't have imagined I'd be on the Royal Variety Show and have a number one hit and getting knighted by the Queen' - his most proud moment of his life.

"There wasn't a moment where he felt, 'This isn't right, I want to pull back from this'.

"He grasped every opportunity, he loved it and he knew he was doing the right thing."

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

US country singer Dolly Parton has revealed she turned down the Presidential Medal of Freedom from the Trump administration twice - partly because of the coronavirus pandemic.

"I got offered the freedom award from the Trump administration. I couldn't accept it because my husband was ill. Then they asked me again about it and I wouldn't travel because of Covid," Parton told NBC's Today programme.

Aside from her musical works, Parton has a history of philanthropy that stretches back several decades.

She donated $1m (£732,665) last year to research into Covid vaccines at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville. It was one of the trial sites for the Moderna vaccine, which has since been approved for use in a number of countries including the UK and the US.

The Presidential Medal of Freedom is the highest civilian award in the US and has numerous categories.

Read more on this story here.

Earlier we brought you live updates as Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced extra testing to track down new variants of coronavirus in England.

There's already a door-to-door testing blitz under way in eight areas due to concern about the South African variant.

Now, this type of surge testing is expected to be announced in parts of Bristol and Liverpool where Hancock told MPs there are other "mutations of concern", and people should also only go out when "absolutely essential".

He told the Commons: "In all these areas it is imperative that people must stay at home and only leave home where it is absolutely essential."

He also urged people to take a test if offered one by their local authority.

You can read all the details on surge testing and the new variants here.

UK GovernmentCopyright: UK Government

When Health Secretary Matt Hancock stood up in the Commons this afternoon, he said he had taken a test in Westminster for coronavirus - which was negative.

That roll out, of rapid Covid-19 testing for all MPs and staff working on the parliamentary estate has been hailed as a "great step forward", by the Speaker of the House of Commons.

Sir Lindsay Hoyle says it is "part of a suite of measures introduced by House authorities to give reassurance to all those who have to be on-site".

While members are asked to work virtually to keep staff on-site to a minimum "we have to accept that some people need to be here", he says.

"So, I am really pleased we are now in a position to give every MP and staff member the chance of a test, to help stop this awful virus in its tracks," he says.

Nigeria is set to receive 57 million doses of Covid-19 vaccines over the next few months, the authorities say.

They have asked for a four-fold increase on their previous request for 10 million doses from the African Union.

"We have applied for 41 million doses of a combination of Pfizer, AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson COVID-19 vaccines," Faisal Shuaib, who heads the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, told the Reuters news agency.

An additional 16 million doses of the AstraZeneca vaccine are expected in February from the World Health Organization-backed Covax programme.

As Nigeria fights a second wave of Covid-19, officials are looking to multiple sources to secure more vaccines to inoculate its enormous population.

During a press conference in the capital, Abuja on Monday, the health minister also said the country’s drug agency was looking into vaccines from Russia and India.

So far Nigeria, with a population of around 186 million, has officially recorded over 130,000 cases of Covid-19, including 1,600 deaths.

You may be interested in watching - Inside a coronavirus ward in Lagos:

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

The West Yorkshire town where NHS fundraiser Captain Sir Tom Moore was born has lost one of its finest, locals have said.

Decades before he raised millions by walking laps of his Bedfordshire garden, the young Thomas Moore was running along Keighley's cobbled streets.

Since his death was announced, tributes to the Army veteran have flooded in from the former mill town where he spent his formative years.

BBCCopyright: BBC

In Spain, where deaths with Covid-19 are now approaching 60,000, problems with deliveries and distribution of the Pfizer and Moderna jabs have directly hampered the vaccination campaign.

The regions of Catalonia and Madrid both announced alterations to their plans at the end of January.

Catalonia's secretary general for health, Marc Ramentol, said the region had been "very affected" by the drop in supply.

In Madrid, second, follow-up vaccines have been prioritised over first jabs, which have been temporarily suspended.

"The impact of the vaccine won't be visible until a good percentage of the population has been vaccinated," says Javier Marco, medical director of the Isabel Zendal hospital in Madrid.

"That was not going to happen until the end of the summer. With this delay we won't be able to see that until the end of the year, being optimistic."

Read more here.

Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has been paying tribute to Captain Sir Tom, saying: "I think what people saw in him was someone who put others above himself, and I think that's the spirit that we need...

"Above all else he was an inspiration - and we've lost a real British hero today - and that's tragic and a great sadness, and all thoughts are obviously with his family."

BBCCopyright: BBC

While Capt Tom was inspiring the nation in 2020, Joe Wicks was keeping us fit.

Lockdown fitness champion Wicks, who was made an MBE for his online PE classes for children during the pandemic, has called Capt Tom "an inspiration".

Wicks tweeted: "An inspiration who helped millions of people feel hopeful and optimistic during a difficult time. Rest in Peace Sir Captain Tom Moore."

University of OxfordCopyright: University of Oxford

The Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine could lead to a "substantial" fall in the spread of the virus, say scientists.

The impact of Covid vaccines on transmission has been a crucial unknown that will dramatically shape the future of the pandemic.

The study, which has not been formally published, also showed the vaccine remained effective while people waited for a second dose.

It was 76% effective during the three months after the first shot.

The impact on transmission is critical.

If a vaccine only stops you getting severely ill, but you can still catch and pass on the virus, then everyone will need to be immunised to be protected.

But if it also stops you spreading the virus then it would have a far greater impact on the pandemic as each person who is vaccinated indirectly protects other people too.

You can read the full story here.

As we reported earlier, Captain Sir Tom Moore has died, aged 100, after testing positive for coronavirus.

Born 30 April 1920, Captain Sir Tom was an Army veteran who came to prominence when he walked 100 laps for NHS Charities Together in his garden in Marston Moretaine, Bedfordshire, aged 99.

Here, we look back through his life, in pictures.

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

Getty ImagesCopyright: Getty Images

At least 59 homes have now been destroyed by the bushfire raging outside the Western Australian city of Perth, which has forced local residents to evacuate during a coronavirus lockdown.

More than 200 firefighters have been battling the blaze, which has been fanned by strong winds, and officials say that at least six firefighters have been injured.

People were told to flee to safety as soon as possible, even if it meant breaking lockdown rules.

But some residents living in areas deemed too dangerous to evacuate were told to "shelter in a room away from the fire-front and make sure you can easily escape".

The fire, near the town of Wooroloo, was first reported at midday on Monday, and has since grown into a fast-moving, erratic blaze.

Read more on this story here.

EPACopyright: EPA

Japan is extending its coronavirus state of emergency by one month to 7 March in areas including greater Tokyo, where restrictions had been due to be eased later this week.

The government announcement comes just months ahead of the opening of the delayed Olympic Games in the city, which are due to begin on 23 July.

"Hospitalisation will remain high for some time to come, that is why we have to continue with these measures," Prime Minister Yoshihide Suga said.

"Each and every one of us needs to change the way we act if we are to contain the virus's spread."

He added that the state of emergency - which gives regional governments more power to enforce rules such as restricting the movement of citizens - could be lifted sooner "in prefectures where the virus situation improves".

President of the Tokyo Olympics, Yoshiro Mori, earlier said that the event would go ahead in the summer "however the coronavirus evolves".

So far, Japan has escaped the worst of the coronavirus pandemic, with far fewer deaths than the tragic numbers suffered in other parts of the world.

BBCCopyright: BBC

TV presenter Naga Munchetty has been telling BBC Radio 5 Live about her memories of interviewing Captain Tom for BBC Breakfast.

She “got a real sense of his cheekiness” when she first met him in April, she says.

"I’d been told he loved watching BBC Breakfast and he was very fond of me as a presenter and he said to me: ‘I’m really pleased I get the chance to speak to you because usually I don’t get the chance to speak back.’ We all laughed because it’s pretty known I’m quite forthright and everything,” says Naga.

"He loved strong, challenging women and he’d brought up his daughters in the same way. You could see that in the way that Hannah looked after him and how he was so proud of his daughters.”

Naga added that he was "an absolutely charming, wonderful man".

"He was humble, he wasn’t doing any of this for attention, he genuinely wanted to say thank you to the NHS. I think he was always a bit bemused by the attention.

“He genuinely was a lovely guy,” she added. “A kind man and he was cheeky!"

Here's Captain Tom chatting to Naga after he finished his 100th lap of his garden before his 100th birthday.

BBCCopyright: BBC

A policeman who is part of a special team dedicated to tackling breaches of Covid legislation across the West Midlands says he can’t understand why rule-breakers are continuing to play “Russian roulette” with their lives.

This year, the force has dealt with hundreds of incidents, including people wandering hospital corridors without a mask while filming in an attempt to suggest hospitals are not as busy as the government suggests.

They’ve also been called to numerous parties, raves, lock-ins and an anti-lockdown demonstration in Birmingham City centre.

Inspector Mick Woodrow tells BBC File on 4 those breaching regulations "still aren’t getting the message".

He says most police officers accept there are risks to doing the job, but adds: “It's normally a risk you can see. You don't take somebody wielding a knife home with you. I don't know if I'm taking Covid home with me."

The day after a particularly busy shift, he tells the BBC he simply couldn’t understand why people continued to play “Russian roulette with their own and other’s lives".

He adds: “I finished last night just wondering whether people were selfish or stupid or both. When you've got a death toll of a thousand a day or more at the moment it really does beggar belief.”

File on 4 is on BBC Radio 4 tonight at 20:00 GMT.

Captain Sir Tom Moore's efforts raised more than £32m for NHS charities.

NHS Charities Together, the association of NHS charities, is one of the beneficiaries.

Its chief executive, Ellie Orton, tells BBC Radio 5 Live the amount he raised in a matter of weeks was "literally unheard of and absolutely pays tribute to who he is".

She says the money will be an "absolute lasting legacy in the NHS" and was already being used throughout the country.

"There isn't an NHS trust or health board in the country that hasn't had charitable funds from the money he's raised," she says.

Among the things the money will have paid for include technology to allow patients to talk to loved ones remotely "at their most needed time" and extra bereavement support for families, she says.

It is also contributing to extra emotional and practical support for NHS staff, Orton adds, such as counselling and helplines.

ReutersCopyright: Reuters

Ruth May, chief nursing officer for England, says Captain Sir Tom Moore gave the nation a "boost when we most needed it".

"On behalf of everyone in the NHS, I want to pay tribute to Captain Sir Tom Moore who has been the model of all that has been good about our country's response to Covid-19," she says.

"People rightly marvel at the tens of millions of pounds Captain Sir Tom raised for the NHS, but for me his biggest achievement and most important contribution to helping my fellow nurses, doctors and all those in the NHS responding to coronavirus, has been how he brought the country together and gave us all a boost when we most needed it.

"I also want to echo the thanks of Hannah and Lucy (his daughters) to my colleagues who have cared for Captain Sir Tom in his final days, and I am proud that the NHS was able to offer Captain Sir Tom and his family compassion, skill and dedication when they most needed it."

Her tribute, and many others, can be seen here.