Were very proud of our track record as you know on the Vaccines Task force and of course the deployment programme, but this is another part of the armoury. Eleven of the uks leading Health Groups have signed a letter urging the Prime Minister to make the temporary £20 per week increase to the standard allowance of universal credit and working tax credits permanent. Theres International Condemnation of china after a bbc report alleges women were systemically raped and tortured in uighur camps. Beijing brands it fake news. And, how green is your Football Club . Fans are encouraged to persuade their team to be more environmental. Hello. The uks rapid covid 19 Vaccination Programme will help the economy rebound strongly this year as people become more confident about spending thats according to figures released today by the Bank Of England. The economy is expected to shrink 4. 2 in the first three months of 2021, amid tighter Lockdown Restrictions to slow the spread of the virus. ami and while Government Support schemes to slow the spread of the virus. And while Government Support schemes are expected to limit any immediate increase in unemployment, the jobless rate is still projected to rise to 7. 8 later this year as the Furlough Scheme winds down. However, high earners working from home have saved more during the pandemic. The Bank Of England said £125 billion more was squirrelled away in uk Savings Accounts last year. Speaking after the data was published, the governor of the Bank Of England said he can see light at the end of the tunnel for investment and growth in the uk economy. I am optimistic that we are now seeing a hugely impressive programme of vaccination and that were now also beginning to see the positive benefits of it. And i think, as we move forwards, that should reduce uncertainty. It will take time but it will reduce uncertainty, and that will create something thats hugely important in the economy Going Forward to support growth, which is to support business investment. Its a very high priority, very high priority of mine, by the way, to create the conditions that support it. We can speak to our business presenter, victoria fritz. There presenter, victoria fritz. Seems to be a bit of a contradiction there seems to be a bit of a contradiction between the figures the Bank Of England have released which sound like the economy is in trouble and then the more optimistic tone from the governor himself. The ke to all tone from the governor himself. The key to all of tone from the governor himself. Tue key to all of this tone from the governor himself. Tte key to all of this is time. Basically what we are looking at is historic numbers and what they think might happen in the future. Well look at what has happened so far, we know that the economy actually has not done as badly as at first thought. Yes the economy by 8 come up thought. Yes the economy by 8 come up with these unheard of numbers in peacetime britain. However, the expectation was for far greater than that. Those Furlough Scheme to government assistance games have definitely taken some of the edge off the economic pain that britain would have otherwise fell. However, there is more contraction to come. This latest lockdown has really hammered the economy so we will see further contraction before we start seeing anything really starting to recover. How much we will recover and when, very much depends on the speed and pace of the vaccine roll out. When social distancing is relaxed, we will see a pick up in Economic Activity and that should lead to greater spending and lead to greater investment. The best guess for the Bank Of England at the moment is the middle of the summer for when we will see this pick up. But what happens beyond that is very much unknown. As you say, the Furlough Scheme have yet to unwind and it is difficult to know exactly what the unemployment picture in this country will be because for sure, the nature of unemployment in britain has completely changed, so is Andrew Bailey says, there may be light at the end of the tunnel, but i am saying just dont expect the picture when we emerge from that tunnel to be quite as familiar as the one youre used to. So tunnel to be quite as familiar as the one youre used to. Tunnel to be quite as familiar as the one youre used to. So isnt the case the vaccination the one youre used to. So isnt the case the Vaccination Programme i the one youre used to. So isnt the | case the Vaccination Programme has allowed Andrew Bailey to be more optimistic than he otherwise would be but it is still quite a dark picture . T be but it is still quite a dark icture . ~. , be but it is still quite a dark icture . ~. , , picture . I think that is probably riuht. Picture . I think that is probably right. Probably picture . I think that is probably right. Probably the picture . I think that is probably right. Probably the right right. Probably the right assessment. We saw a similar picture over states from the federal reserve. The biggest Monetary Policy tool at the moment from the independent Bank Of England is what is going on with the vaccine. Something they cannot control whatsoever. However, the latest numbers that we have seen in terms of the 10 million vaccines handed out, that is encouraging. Of course, at the summer arrives and things start to get a little bit easier, we will see Economic Activity picked up. But it is very difficult to know what shape the economy will be and beyond that because we have more people Self Employed and more people underemployed and more people working morejobs, so it is very difficult as companies, to know exactly the whole economic picture will be. It will be very different from the britain pre covid i9. Maw; from the britain precovid19. Many thanks. Labour has accused the government of � Risking Lives, but failing to implement its Hotel Quarantine policy so far. In a letter to the Home Secretary, seen by the bbc, the shadow Home Secretary, nick thomas symonds, has asked priti patel for an � urgent update, after the Prime Minister promised that the plan would emerge today. Subsequently, Government Sources suggested the details might not be announced until next week. Labour has also criticised the government for you turning on other issues. Our Political Correspondent iain watson is in westminster. Strong words from labour but it appears to be something of a gap in the governments implementation of this policy. The governments implementation of this oli. , ~ the governments implementation of this oli. ,. , this policy. That is right. We have this policy. That is right. We have this letter from this policy. That is right. We have this letter from the this policy. That is right. We have this letter from the shadow this policy. That is right. We have | this letter from the shadow Home Secretary in the past few minutes and there is really a ramping up of the rhetoric in that letter to priti patel accusing the government of Risking Lives by not having a tougher policy at the borders, but also a range of specific questions in that letter to priti patel as well. So for example, nick thomas simmons, the shadow Home Secretary, is asking whether any hotels have been consulted over the policy and when a start date will be announced for a policy which was in a self announced more than a week ago at in this letter again at labour claiming it is 46 days since the government became aware of the South African variant so why is he not taking tougher action now . What i think its edge thing about this is not only trying to rip up the rhetoric but also trying to get some kind of clarity from the government and they understand there will be further meetings about it later today but it follows from the Prime Minister apparent pledge to provide more details on this policy today and he said the Health Department would be provided more details and then later we were told after his Press Conference yesterday that he had been misinformed but the Health SecretaryMatt Hancock Today denied there was any delay to the scheme for Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are alwa s Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are always looking Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are always looking to Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are always looking to make Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are always looking to make sure Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are always looking to make sure wej Hotel Quarantine. Clearly we are always looking to make sure we have more always looking to make sure we have more security at the borders. Hence we brought more security at the borders. Hence we brought in the need for isolation for everybody arriving in this country for everybody arriving in this count. ,. For everybody arriving in this count. ,. Country. On the specific policy, he still hasnt country. On the specific policy, he still hasnt been country. On the specific policy, he still hasnt been announced country. On the specific policy, he still hasnt been announced whenl country. On the specific policy, he. 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What that is is work to make sure that the borders is always to make sure that the borders is always executed as anisa b. We have iilht always executed as anisa b. We have right in always executed as anisa b. We have right in therefore isolation. As well right in therefore isolation. As well and right in therefore isolation. As well and is an argument over the timing well and is an argument over the timing of well and is an argument over the timing of the Hotel Quarantine. His timing of the Hotel Quarantine. Argument timing of the Hotel Quarantine. Ti 3 argument continuing over the substance. For example, if youre trying to come from a so called to read a list country, more than 30 countries where the brazil South African variant has been spreading, you will not be allowed to get into the uk at all unless you are a british resident. If you are, this must be going into Hotel Quarantine once that is set up but the government is stressing that it has to border measures in place such as pretesting before departure and also the obligation to self isolate for ten days in any case but what labour are saying is that this is not good enough. We dont really know where the variants are coming from so all of rivals into the country should have to go into Hotel Quarantine and it is that that the government is suggesting is impossible because that means 20,000 hotel rooms have to be found each day but we know that inside government to people are pressing for a much wider use of quarantines, so looks like some of the internal arguments may be continued in the absence of an announcement. Continued in the absence of an announcement. Interesting. Many thanks. Scientists have begun a trial to see whether giving people different Covid Vaccines for their first and second dose works as well as the current approach, using the samejab. Its thought the move could give more flexibility if theres any disruption to supplies and may even offer better protection against the virus. The results from the study wont be available until the summer so the government says theres no change to the Vaccine Programme yet. Heres dominic hughes. This fire station in hampshire is the latest venue to become part of the vaccination roll out, one of thousands of sites now operating across the uk. More than ten Million People have now had theirfirstjabs, but a new study aims to find out if mixing doses of the Oxford Astrazeneca and Pfizer Biontech vaccines could offer the body even more chances to develop defences against the virus. What were doing is seeing how well peoples Immune Systems respond if you give the first dose of one Covid Vaccine and the second dose with another. The reason to do that is to build flexibility into the uk Immunisation Schedule for Covid Vaccines. And even globally, it makes it much easier to administer the vaccines if we dont have to worry too much about always giving the second dose the same as the first dose. The trial will mix doses from the two vaccines currently being used. But others could be added as theyre approved. The study will involve 820 volunteers, none of whom have yet had the vaccine. All will be aged 50 or older, part of the group to be vaccinated in the next priority wave. The trial will run initially at eight sites across england. Tackling outbreaks of ebola is one reason why researchers believe this approach may work. Mixing vaccine doses was used successfully against this highly infectious virus. A second boosterjab that utilises a different way to prompt an immune response can sometimes be more effective than two jabs from the same vaccine, and it is already in use for many inoculations we are familiar with. It is something that is done historically with vaccines for hepatitis, childrens vaccines, polio, measles, mumps and rubella. It will hopefully maintain the uk at the forefront of research into Covid Vaccines. We are proud of our record on the Vaccines Taskforce and the deployment programme. But this is another part of the armoury. Given the erratic nature of vaccine supply, described by ministers as lumpy, a degree of flexibility in the Vaccination Programme could be a real help in the months to come. But perhaps the biggest benefit will be for those developing countries that have yet to get Vaccination Programmes up and running. Being able to mix and match supplies could make all the difference. The first results of this trial should be known by the early summer. Earlier, professor robin shattock, head of immunity at Imperial College london, explained why he believed trialling mixed vaccines would be worthwhile. Theres good scientific rationale for trying this. What is really important is to generate the evidence, and that evidence then means we can roll these out in an informed way of doing it, Rather Thanjust making the assumption that it is appropriate to mix and match. What is also important is that the data well get from this new study will tell us about the particular combination theyre testing, and it will need to be done for other combinations rather than being a generalised principle. So, other combinations of the available vaccines . Correct. So what we may see is the combination of the astrazeneca and Biontech Pfizer vaccine works well, but that doesnt necessarily mean different combinations will work to the same extent, so it will have to be done on a combination by combination process. Its fascinating, because the minister said there that this is done for other vaccines and he named a few there. Why does it work for some vaccines and not others . It is done for other va