Nicola Sturgeon Covid announcement RECAP: What did Nicola Sturgeon say today | First Minister delays June 28 easing due to rising cases | Five things First Minister uses to decide if Scotland moves to Level 0 | What is Level 0
Scroll down to see the latest news on the pandemic on Tuesday, June 15.
Covid Scotland RECAP: The latest updates on the pandemic on Tuesday, June 15
Key Events
- Nicola Sturgeon is updating MSPs on Covid-19 in Scotland
- Delta variant is associated with higher hospital risk, Sturgeon says
- Boris Johnson announces delay in lifting lockdown measures in England
A total of 98 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending June 4 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
Sir Simon Stevens said he has asked the NHS to “gear up” for future Covid-19 treatments which are expected to come online over the next few months.
Scientists develop ‘game-changing’ antibody tests to detect new Covid variants
Scientists have developed “game-changing” antibody tests that can detect whether people have been exposed to new variants of Covid-19.
Researchers said the new tests can detect antibody responses to infection by SARS-CoV-2 virus with more than 98% accuracy and 100% specificity, in contrast to currently available tests which are around 60-93% accurate and cannot differentiate between unique variants.
The new tests can be used to estimate the prevalence of circulating variant strains in the community, including the Alpha and Delta variants which were first identified in Kent and in India respectively.
Scientists said the tests have the potential to “dramatically change the trajectory of recovery” from the pandemic.
The tests can assess the long-term immunity of an individual and whether immunity is vaccine-induced or is a result of previous exposure to the infection.
They can also provide information that can be used to estimate how long immunity provided by the vaccine lasts as well as the effectiveness of the vaccine on emerging variants.
The tests have been developed by the University of Aberdeen in collaboration with biotechnology group Vertebrate Antibodies Ltd and NHS Grampian.
More school leavers going to university, but fewer finding work, figures show
The number of teenagers finding work after school reached its lowest level for a decade in the wake of the Covid-19 pandemic, new figures showed.
Scottish Government statistics revealed that more than twice as many youngsters in the least deprived areas went to university after school, as compared to those from the poorest parts of the country.
Overall a total of 92.2% of those who left school in 2019-20 were in what was classed as a “positive follow-up destination” – such as college, university, training or job – by April 2021.
This was down slightly from the 92.9% of school leavers who achieved this the previous year.
University was the most common choice for those leaving school in 2019-20, with 42.9% ending up in higher education – higher than the 38.4% the previous year – and is the largest share since consistent records began in 2009-10.
The figures showed that in the most deprived parts of Scotland just over a quarter (27%) of school leavers last year went on to university, compared to almost two thirds (62.6%) in the most affluent communities.
In the poorest parts of Scotland college was the most common destination, with 31.5% of leavers heading for further education, while 20.5% went into work, but one in 10 (10.8%) were out of work.
This compares to just 3.6% of leavers from the least deprived areas being out of work by April 2021.
A total of 47,351 teenagers finished school in 2019-20, the smallest number since consistent records began in 2009-10.
Covid Scotland: A&E patient numbers highest since before coronavirus pandemic started
Accident and emergency attendances in Scotland are at their highest since long before the Covid-19 pandemic, the latest NHS Scotland figures reveal.
EasyJet moves capacity for Spanish flights from the UK to Germany in response to travel rules
EasyJet has moved some of its fleet from the UK to Germany in response to the countries’ differing approaches to Covid-19 travel restrictions.
Covid Scotland: 'Game-changing' antibody test can detect variants
Scientists have developed a “game-changing” antibody test that can detect whether people have been exposed to new variants of Covid-19.
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