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COVID-19 expert claims he was told to ‘correct his views’ after criticising ‘implausible graph’ shown during official briefing – Sky News

A senior epidemiologist who advised the government during the coronavirus pandemic claims he was told to “correct” his views after he criticised what he thought was an “implausible” graph shown at an official briefing.

Professor Mark Woolhouse has also apologised to his daughter, whose generation “has been so badly served by mine”, and believes that closing schools was “morally wrong”.

The Edinburgh University academic is deeply critical of the use of lockdown measures and says “plain common sense” was a “casualty of the crisis”.

Speaking to Sky News, Prof Woolhouse seemed concerned about a possible “big-brother” approach to the control of information about COVID.

He says he was told to watch what he was saying following a briefing given by Chief Scientific Adviser (CSA) Sir Patrick Vallance on 21 September 2020.

https://web.archive.org/web/20220307102955/https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-expert-claims-he-was-told-to-correct-his-views-after-criticising-implausible-graph-shown-during-official-briefing-12555800

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News

COVID-19: T cells from common colds can protect against coronavirus infection, study finds – Sky News

People with high levels of T cells from common colds are less likely to catch COVID, according to a new peer-reviewed study.

Researchers said the findings could help provide the blueprint for the production of new vaccines which give longer-lasting immunity and would protect against current and future coronavirus variants such as Omicron and Delta.

http://archive.today/2022.01.10-095512/https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-t-cells-from-common-colds-can-protect-against-coronavirus-infection-study-finds-12512900

Archive of study: https://evidencenotfear.com/cross-reactive-memory-t-cells-associate-with-protection-against-sars-cov-2-infection-in-covid-19-contacts-nature-communications/

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News

COVID-19: Impact of lockdown on children’s development will ‘last for years and years’ – Sky News

The impact of lockdowns on young children “will last for years”, according to experts, who are warning that delays in communication and social skills will affect learning in the future.

Social and emotional development, interaction with their peers, behaviour, self-regulation, and anxiety have all been highlighted as areas of concern by Sara Bonetti, head of early years development at the Education Policy Institute.

http://archive.today/2021.12.23-211241/https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-impact-of-lockdown-on-childrens-development-will-last-for-years-and-years-12500806

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Opinion

Nudging the news – The Critic

The collaboration between a major UK broadcaster and the Nudge Unit to promote one of the most controversial policies today is deeply alarming. The report, The Power of TV: Nudging Viewers to Decarbonise their Lifestyles, jointly published by BIT and Sky, shows little regard for the obligation imposed on broadcasters by Ofcom’s Broadcasting Code to maintain “due impartiality” across all their output, particularly when it comes to news and current affairs. It also neglects the requirement that broadcasters expose viewers to a wide range of different views when it comes to “matters of major political and industrial controversy and major matters relating to current public policy”.

https://thecritic.co.uk/nudging-the-news/

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News

COVID-19: Ireland’s Co Waterford has one of the highest vaccination rates in the world – so why are cases surging? – Sky News

Waterford, in south-eastern Ireland, epitomises the country’s coronavirus conundrum. Why is there a surge in COVID-19 cases in a nation where around 92% of all adults are fully vaccinated?

A massive 99.5% of adults over the age of 18 in Co Waterford are double-jabbed. That’s thought to be one of the highest rates of any region anywhere in the world.

But, according to the Health Protection Surveillance Centre, the county now tops the national infection league table, with a 14-day incidence rate of 1,294 per 100,000.

http://archive.today/2021.11.07-041904/https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-irelands-co-waterford-has-one-of-the-highest-vaccination-rates-in-the-world-so-why-are-cases-surging-12461642

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Videos

JCVI member Professor Adam Finn: Jabs for kids ‘could be doing more harm than good’ – Sky News

JCVI member Professor Adam Finn said that the latest data from paediatric cardiologists in the US shows that there are concerns about the long-term side effects of COVID-19 vaccine for children.

http://archive.today/2021.09.04-151744/https://news.sky.com/story/covid-19-ministers-could-overrule-jcvi-and-push-ahead-with-vaccines-for-those-aged-between-12-and-15-12398722

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News

Five years before a vaccine can ‘hold the line’ against Covid variants, England’s medical chief says – CNBC

He said that Covid-19 “has not thrown its last surprise at us and there will be several more [variants] over the next period,” according to Sky News. He added that it would likely take five years before there are vaccines that could “hold the line” to a very large degree against a range of coronavirus variants.

https://www.cnbc.com/2021/06/18/whitty-5-years-before-vaccine-can-hold-line-against-covid-variants.html

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News

Coronavirus not among 10 most common causes of death in September – Sky News

There were 2,703 excess deaths across England and Wales in September, official figures show – but coronavirus was not in the 10 leading causes of fatality.

The leading cause of death in September for both nations was dementia and Alzheimer’s disease.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-not-among-10-most-common-causes-of-death-in-september-ons-12111980

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News

Vitamin D reduces infection and impact of COVID-19, studies find – Sky News

  • Patients with sufficient levels of vitamin D are less likely to experience complications and die from COVID-19
  • It has also been found to reduce infection rates.
  • Vitamin D sufficiency was linked with a significantly decreased level of inflammatory markets, and higher blood levels of immune cells, in new research from Boston University’s school of medicine.
  • In patients older than 40, those who had sufficient levels of vitamin D were more than 51% less likely to die than patients who were deficient.
  • Sufficient vitamin D can reduce the risk of catching the coronavirus by 54%, the vitamin can also help against other viruses affecting the upper respiratory tract.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-vitamin-d-reduces-infection-and-impact-of-covid-19-studies-find-12081132

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News

Common colds ‘may account for some reported COVID-19 cases’, PHE survey says – Sky News

Rising cases of the common cold could be giving a false picture of the spread of coronavirus among children.

Public Health England’s weekly coronavirus report shows a rise of almost 23% in rhinovirus infections, which include the common cold, in the last week.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-common-colds-may-account-for-some-reported-covid-19-cases-phe-survey-says-12075554

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News

GPs recorded three times more suspected cases of COVID-19 than official figures – Sky News

Suspected cases of COVID-19 recorded by GPs at the height of the pandemic were three times higher than officially confirmed infections, according to new research.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-gps-recorded-three-times-more-suspected-cases-of-covid-19-than-official-figures-12066280

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News

Government paid reality TV stars to promote NHS Test and Trace – Sky News

Taxpayer money was used to pay social media influencers and reality TV stars to promote the NHS Test and Trace system, the government has admitted.

The Mirror cited a social media expert as saying the influencers would usually be paid between £5,000 and £10,000 for an ad post.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-government-paid-reality-tv-stars-to-promote-nhs-test-and-trace-12059587

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News Opinion

Children are at more risk from flu or car accidents – Dr. Jenny Harries, BBC, Sky News

According to Dr. Jenny Harries, England’s Deputy Chief Medical Officer, the evidence shows:

  • The vast majority of children, even those deemed to be in the vulnerable category, do not have severe outcomes from COVID-19.
  • The risk child dying in a road traffic accident or from flu “is probably higher than their risk from COVID-19”.
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News

For every three COVID-19 deaths, lockdown may have caused another two – Sky News

The national lockdown may have indirectly caused 16,000 excess deaths in two months, according to government analysts.

However, the report concludes 41% of those deaths were the result of missed medical care rather than the virus itself.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-lockdown-may-have-indirectly-caused-16-000-excess-deaths-study-12044923

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News

Coronavirus: Under-20s half as likely to catch COVID-19, according to study – Sky News

Researchers found school closures had little effect on preventing coronavirus transmission compared to that of the flu.

Under-20s are half as likely to catch COVID-19 as over-20s, making school closures less effective at stopping the spread of the virus, a new scientific study has found.

Researchers at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine found that susceptibility to the coronavirus was low for younger people, before increasing around the age of 20.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-under-20s-half-as-likely-to-catch-covid-19-says-study-12007936

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News

Coronavirus ‘no longer clinically exists in Italy’, top doctor says – Sky News

COVID-19 is losing its potency and no longer clinically exists in Italy, a senior Italian doctor has claimed.

A study conducted at the San Raffaele hospital found that the number of viruses present in people who tested positive decreased significantly between March and May.

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-no-longer-clinically-exists-in-italy-top-doctor-says-11998608

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News

Sky News still pushing for lockdown while revealing low public trust for the media

https://news.sky.com/story/coronavirus-britons-still-support-lockdown-despite-being-sadder-and-more-anxious-poll-11977655