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Coronavirus news – live: Thousands of British tourists face quarantine as UK adds France and Netherlands to travel no-go list

AFP via Getty Images
AFP via Getty Images

The centralised test and trace system failed to reach nearly 40 per cent of people who came into contact with individuals infected with coronavirus, the latest weekly call centre figures show. Overall, including local public health teams brings the percentage traced to 74.2.

Separately, Germany’s health minister says he believes the world is certain to have a coronavirus vaccine in 2021. “Thanks to us all working together – researchers, scientists, the public – we will probably have a vaccine faster than ever before in the history of humanity,” Jens Spahn added.

Meanwhile, in Oldham, Greater Manchester, residents fear that if a second lockdown is imposed they will not have a town to come back to. One told The Independent: “There’s a lot of shops here that just about survived the first lockdown. They’ve scraped through. But a second one...”