Coronavirus news – live: 3.4 million infected in England, study finds, as New Zealand outbreak grows - The Independent

The world is certain to have a coronavirus vaccine in 2021, if not within the next few months, the German health minister has said.

Meanwhile, about 3.4 million people in England have been infected with Covid-19, more than 10 times the official count, according to an Imperial College London study.

No new coronavirus deaths reported in Scotland.

No new coronavirus deaths have been reported in Scotland in the last 24 hours, the first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has said.

A total of 2,491 patients have died in Scotland after testing positive for coronavirus.

Speaking during the Scottish government's daily briefing, the first minister said 19,173 people have tested positive for the virus in Scotland, up by 47 from the day before.

There are 258 people in hospital with confirmed or suspected Covid-19, a decrease of seven in 24 hours.

Around two-thirds (67.4 per cent) who were tested for Covid-19 in the week ending 5 August at a regional site or mobile testing unit - a so-called "in-person" test - received their result within 24 hours.

Finland's government backs public health authorities' new recommendation to use facemasks on public transport and in other situations where social distancing is not possible, Prime Minister Sanna Marin said on Thursday.

Health authorities reported 41 new Covid-19 cases on Thursday, a daily record since end of May, bringing the total to 7,683 since the beginning of the pandemic.

The cluster involves a minimum of nine people, some of whom have tested positive, and work is ongoing to trace contacts, he added.

NHS Orkney last reported a positive case on 15 June, when there had been a total of nine cases since the start of the pandemic.

Since the launch of NHS Test and Trace, 214,890 close contacts of people who have tested positive for Covid-19 have been reached through the tracing system and asked to self-isolate, according to figures released today.

That number represents 81.5 of the 263,515 people identified as close contacts.

The remaining 48,625 people (18.5 per cent) were identified as close contacts, but were not reached.

By contrast, local health protection teams tracked 97.9 per cent of close contacts of people who tested positive for Covid-19, and asked them to self-isolate.

Indonesia's move to reopen schools in some areas risks creating new clusters of coronavirus cases, with at least 180 students and teachers infected since a new academic year started in July, a teachers' federation said on Thursday.

The world's fourth-most populous country has allowed schools to reopen with limited capacity in "yellow" and "green" zones, with fewer reported cases and covering 43 per cent of the student population, according to government data.

Wiku Adisasmito, a spokesperson for Indonesia's Covid-19 task force, told reporters on Thursday that new clusters would not break out at schools if all health protocols were adhered to.

An Indian man has been sent to prison for five months in Malaysia for violating a home quarantine order and precipitating dozens of new coronavirus infections, the Bernama state news agency reported.

Authorities previously said that the man had tested negative for Covid-19 and left his home to visit his restaurant.

German officials were forced to work through the night to clear a backlog of 900 positive Covid-19 tests - in order to inform the subjects that they had caught the disease.

Bavarian health minister Melanie Huml said all people with positive results would be informed today and that systems were being improved to prevent any further delays.

Hong Kong reported 69 new coronavirus cases on Thursday, of which 65 were locally transmitted?

Philippines reported 4,002 more coronavirus infections and 23 additional deaths on Thursday?

The Philippines plans to launch clinical trials for a Russian coronavirus vaccine in October after Russia became the first country to grant regulatory approval for a Covid-19 jab.

Russia reported 5,057 new cases of Covid-19  on Thursday, taking the national total to 907,758 - the fourth largest caseload in the world?

Moscow's coronavirus taskforce said 124 people had died over the last 24 hours, pushing its official death toll to 15,384.

Insurers paid a total of £90m during the height of the Covid-19 crisis to support the families of people who died due to the virus

A Covid-19 vaccine will be available in the coming months and definitely next year, Germany's health minister has said

He declined to give a specific month and said it was not yet possible to say how often people would need to be vaccinated or how long-lasting the immunity it conferred would be

Ukraine recorded a record daily jump of 1,592 coronavirus cases on Wednesday, the national council of security and defence said on Thursday

Health minister Maksym Stepanov urged people to obey broader restrictions that remain in place