Italian cases jump by 31,000 in a day – as it happened

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Here is a summary of the main developments.

• England is expected to go into national lockdown from early next week, with the prime minister, Boris Johnson, set to bow to pressure from his scientific advisers to impose tighter restrictions. On Friday the UK has reported 274 more deaths and 24,405 new cases.
• The US has passed 9m coronavirus cases, according to Johns Hopkins University’s tracker. The figure stands at 9,007,298, the highest in the world, followed by India with 8,088,851 and Brazil with 5,494,376.
• France has reported 49,215 new confirmed coronavirus cases over the past 24 hours, compared with 47,637 on Thursday. The total number of infections rose to 1,331,984 while the death tally went up by 256 over 24 hours to 36,565.
• Coronavirus infections in Italy rose by 31,084 on Friday, a jump of over 4,000 in a day, while 199 more fatalities were recorded. Hospital admissions increased by over 1,000 in a day, bringing the total across the country to 16,994, of which 1,746 are in intensive care.
• Canada needs to adopt a stronger response now to tackle a second wave of the coronavirus that has already killed more than 10,000 people and is growing worse, health authorities have said according to Reuters.
  
• Australia’s political fight over border restrictions is continuing, with the state of Queensland under pressure for continuing to bar entry to people from greater Sydney. The state of Victoria has recorded one new case, as Melbourne residents enjoy their first weekend since the end of one of the world’s longest lockdowns.
• Belgium will impose tighter lockdown rules from Monday, closing non-essential businesses and restricting household visits. Households will only be allowed to receive one visitor, half-term holidays for schools will be extended to 15 November and those who can adapt their jobs to work from home will be asked to do so.

The chief health officer of the Australian state of Victoria says the one case recorded in the past 24 hours was a “low positive”.

Brett Sutton made the statement on Twitter.

The United Kingdom government is expected to announce a national lockdown across England next week.

The Guardian has been told the prime minister, Boris Johnson, has bowed to pressure from his scientific advisers for new national lockdown restrictions.

They are expected to be announced early next week.

Sir Patrick Vallance and Prof Chris Whitty, who head the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), are understood to have warned the prime minister that the time has come for national action across England.

Sage scientists presented Johnson with evidence at a meeting in Downing Street, where they explained that Covid-19 is spreading significantly faster than their worst-case scenarios.

Read the full story here.

The Australian state of New South Wales has reported one locally transmitted case of Covid-19 in the past 24 hours.

A further three cases were recorded among overseas travellers in hotel quarantine, NSW Health said in a statement.

The locally acquired case is linked to a new cluster at Hoxton Park, which has now reached five infections.

NSW Health said the person attended the Flip Out Prestons Indoor Trampoline Park at the same time as a known case.

The case attends Cabramatta High School, which will be closed over the weekend for cleaning.

Contact tracing is underway.

Authorities are calling on people south west Sydney to come forward for testing, citing a number of recent cases in the area.

Australia has pledged new foreign aid funding to help eradicate Covid-19 across south-east Asia and the Pacific.

NGOs have welcomed the $500 million commitment, which will fund immunisation programs throughout the region over the next three years.

“We have been asking for Australia to dig deeper, just as it did after the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami,” said World Vision Australia acting chief executive Graham Strong.

“John Howard said at the time it was ‘a human tragedy on a scale that none of us in our lifetime have seen, and it does require a response above the ordinary’. Covid-19 marks a new era in human tragedy – once again ‘a response above the ordinary’ is urgently needed.

“This announcement, building on Australia’s previous commitment to the region is demonstrating the type of leadership and friendship our region has come to know and expect from Australia.”

Residents in the Australian city of Melbourne are easing in to their first weekend since the end of one of the world’s longest lockdowns.

Eased restrictions for the city of five million mean locals can now dine at cafes and restaurants, or grab a drink at bars and pubs.

However, strict patron limits remain in place and venues have been encouraged to seat customers outside.

Retailers are also open once again, and residents may now invite two adults from the same household into their homes.

The restrictions were eased on Wednesday, with some venues opening their doors to customers from just past the stroke of midnight.

Brazil has reported a further 508 deaths and 22,282 new cases of coronavirus in the past 24 hours, the country’s health authorities have said.

It takes the country’s death toll to 159,477, while more than 5.5m cases have now been recorded since the start of the pandemic.

Cristiano Ronaldo has recovered from Covid-19 after 19 days, and will be able to leave home quarantine.

The Juventus striker has missed four matches since he tested positive.

The club said in a statement:

Cristiano Ronaldo carried out a check with a diagnostic test (swab) for Covid-19.

The exam provided a negative result. The player has, therefore, recovered after 19 days and is no longer subjected to home isolation.

Australia’s Penrith Panthers rugby league club has copped a $10,000 fine after its fans breached Covid-19 restrictions during last weekend’s NRL grand final.

Footage showed excited patrons mingling, hugging and drinking while standing during the team’s 20-26 loss to the Melbourne Storm, reports AAP.

The ANZ Stadium was also fined $5,000 for allowing patrons to congregate in bar areas to watch the match.

Two other venues at Sydney Olympic Park - The Brewery at the Novotel and the Locker Room - were also issued $5,000 fines.

Brazil’s government will “of course” buy a Chinese Covid-19 vaccine that is being tested in the country, the vice-president, Hamilton Mourão, said on Friday, in the latest example of him contradicting the president Jair Bolsonaro.

Last week, Bolsonaro, a long-standing China critic, said the federal government would not buy a Covid-19 vaccine from China’s Sinovac, one day after the health minister said that it would be included in the nation’s immunisation program.

Reuters reports that his comments thrust into the open a simmering debate over vaccine policy between the president and key governors, who have been exploring alternatives to the AstraZeneca vaccine the federal government has prioritied.

However, in an interview in the magazine Veja that hit the stands on Friday, Mourão said Bolsonaro’s stance was without substance, putting it down to a war of words with political rivals, like Sao Paulo state Governor João Doria.

“The government will buy the vaccine, of course it will. We have already put the resources in Butantan to produce this vaccine. The government will not run away from that,” Mourão was quoted as saying.

Sao Paulo state biomedical research centre the Butantan Institute is testing the Sinovac vaccine. Doria hopes to have regulatory approval by the end of the year and start vaccinating people in January.

On Wednesday, Brazil’s health regulator Anvisa said it had authorised the import of Sinovac’s raw materials to produce the vaccine.