[1andrew1]

Hmm, this is the most read article in the UK section of the FT:

Jump in England Covid deaths alarms hospital leaders

Nicola Sturgeon refuses to rule out new lockdown measures in Scotland as cases more than double

Hospital leaders have expressed concern at strain on the NHS shortly before young people return to school and university after deaths in hospital from Covid-19 reached their highest level in England for five months and hospitalisations continued to rise.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed deaths from Covid in England rose almost 10 per cent between early and mid-August. Deaths from Covid in hospitals in England and Wales, at 468, were the worst since late March, although still well below the levels seen at the height of the second wave.

Over the past seven days the number of people hospitalised has risen 9.1 per cent, according to data up to August 20.

Scotland, where pupils are already back in the classroom, may offer a foretaste of potential developments in England and other parts of the UK. New coronavirus cases have more than doubled over the past week since schools and professional football resumed, with the daily total hitting 4,323 cases on Tuesday — the highest daily number recorded during the pandemic so far, first minister Nicola Sturgeon told a Covid briefing.

https://www.ft.com/content/8271a173-...2-9ca25b59507a