London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Jul 31, 2025

Coronavirus fears grow as more cases found across Europe

Coronavirus fears grow as more cases found across Europe

Virus appeared in new cases in Italy, Spain, Austria, Switzerland and Croatia
The spread of the coronavirus has accelerated across Europe with new cases in four countries and a rising death toll in Italy, which is desperately struggling to contain the outbreak.

Concern about the proliferation of cases prompted a dozen UK schools to send home pupils and the teachers who accompanied them on half-term skiing trips in the Italian alps to self-isolate for 14 days after their return. The schools include ones in County Antrim in Northern Ireland, Pembrokeshire in Wales, Guernsey in the Channel Islands and others in Cheshire, Liverpool, Yorkshire, Berkshire, Teesside and Cornwall.

Despite advice from Public Health England and the Department for Education that schools should stay open, two closed completely to all pupils for deep-cleaning.

Trinity Catholic college in Middlesbrough said it would reopen on 3 March, while Cransley school in Northwich, Cheshire is shut until 2 March after the headteacher said a number of pupils were showing “flu-like symptoms”.

The schools’ response came amid growing confusion over the government’s advice on whether it is safe to travel to northern Italy, with the health secretary and UK chief medical officer expressing conflicting views.

Prof Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, initially said that advising people to avoid travel to the area was “not a reasonable thing to do”.

Matt Hancock, the health secretary, contradicted that, signalling that he thought it best to avoid northern Italy, where the bulk of the country’s 320 positive cases have emerged.

Asked on Sky News if he would fly to Italy, he replied: “Certainly southern Italy is perfectly reasonable to travel to.” But when asked if he would travel to the north, he said: “I’m not planning on [it], put it that way.”

On Tuesday evening, official Foreign Office guidance clarified the situation, advising against all but essential travel to 11 towns in northern Italy.

All 11 deaths in Italy so far have occurred in elderly people who were suffering from underlying health conditions, the youngest of whom was 62. However, the virus is spreading there, with new cases detected in Tuscany, Liguria and Sicily, well south of the centre in Lombardy.

Public Health England said that anyone who has been to a large area of the region above but not including Pisa, Florence and Rimini should self-isolate for a fortnight if they develop flu-like symptoms on returning to the UK. The advice came as:

The virus appeared in more European countries, with confirmed cases reported in Spain, Austria, Switzerland and Croatia.
Nearly £100bn was wiped off the value of Britain’s biggest companies in 48 hours, with the FTSE 100 index closing at its lowest level in a year, reducing the value of Britain’s blue-chip companies by about £35bn.
British tourists were among 1,000 holidaymakers and workers quarantined in a hotel in Tenerife after an Italian doctor and his wife tested positive for coronavirus. Austria also placed an Innsbruck hotel under lockdown when an Italian receptionist was found to have contracted the virus.
Ireland’s Department of Health called for the Six Nations rugby match between Ireland and Italy to be cancelled . The Irish Rugby Football Union has yet to confirm if the match will be cancelled or not.
The government banned the “parallel export” of two drugs – one for treating HIV, the other a malaria medication – that are being tested as potential treatments for the virus. Parallel exporting is when firms buy medicines for the UK and resell them for a higher price abroad.
The number of confirmed cases in Spain rose to seven on Tuesday after an Italian woman living in Barcelona tested positive following a recent trip to northern Italy.

Spanish health authorities had already identified two confirmed cases, one on the remote Canary island of La Gomera and another on the Balearic island of Mallorca. The Catalan case is the first detected in mainland Spain.

About 1,000 holidaymakers at the H10 Costa Adeje Palace hotel in south Tenerife have been told to stay in their rooms and were set to be tested for the virus, according to a guest. Police officers have been stationed around the building, which has been locked down.

Speaking as the 108-room Grand Hotel Europa in Innsbruck was locked down, the Austrian interior minister, Karl Nehammer, urged people not to panic. “No one can get in and out of the hotel to make sure that if other infected people are staying in the hotel, the virus won’t be spread. All these measures have one purpose – to stop the virus and its spread. There is no reason to panic,” he said.

In a further expansion of British efforts to detect and contain the virus, patients who have flu and other breathing conditions will be tested. Health officials plan to start with patients in eight hospitals in England, including some in intensive care, and also at 100 primary care centres, including GP surgeries.

Experts said the move will help show if the virus is spreading. However, officials stressed there is no evidence that it is circulating in the community at the moment. So far, 13 Britons have tested positive for coronavirus but have not suffered any major setback to their health as a result of Covid-19, the illness the virus can trigger.

“We have taken a belt-and-braces approach throughout this outbreak,” said Prof Yvonne Doyle, Public Health England’s medical director. “This new system is another important way we can help limit the impact of Covid-19 in the UK as we continue to ensure we have the best possible intelligence to protect the public’s heath.”

She added that while “there is no change in risk for the public ... taking this preparatory step will enable us to better detect and contain the spread of the virus”.

Nathalie MacDermott, an academic clinical lecturer in paediatric infectious diseases at King’s College London, said older people and children in hospital because they are struggling to breathe normally would be the most likely to be tested.

In updated advice, the Department of Health and Social Care said people who have returned since 19 February from Iran, lockdown areas of northern Italy, special care zones in South Korea and Hubei province in China should call NHS 111 and self-isolate even if they have no symptoms. Anyone who develops symptoms after coming back since that date from the defined area in northern Italy, Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos and Myanmar should do the same, even if their symptoms are mild.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
Flying Taxi CEO Reclaims Billionaire Status After Stock Surge
Epstein Files Deepen Republican Party Divide
Zuckerberg Faces $8 Billion Privacy Lawsuit From Meta Shareholders
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
SpaceX Nears $400 Billion Valuation With New Share Sale
×