Top story: ‘It isn’t over,’ says top medic in plea for public caution

Morning everyone. I’m Martin Farrer and these are the top stories to start your week.

The public must continue to observe social distancing and wear face masks to prevent a second wave of the coronavirus from “overwhelming” the NHS, senior doctors have warned. Despite ministers hailing the fall in new infections across the UK, some medics are concerned that people could abandon the discipline of lockdown and cause a surge in cases just as seasonal flu hits later in the year. The Covid-19 danger “isn’t over”, one said, while the BMA criticised government advice on face masks. The failure to develop a proper test and trace system was also risking another wave, according to a public health official. In Scotland, where new cases rose for the fifth consecutive day, there is concern about an outbreak of Covid-19 cases at a call centre in Motherwell that carries out contact tracing for the NHS.

Labour leader Keir Starmer has criticised Boris Johnson for leaving parents in an “impossible” position by encouraging people to return to work next month despite lack of support for the childcare sector and schools being closed. Parents are also concerned about the lack of summer camps for children over the holiday break. The shadow chancellor, Anneliese Dodds, says the government has to provide more targeted financial help if it wants to tackle any second wave with local lockdowns.

EU leaders are still struggling to reach an agreement about a proposed €1.8tn budget and coronavirus recovery package for the bloc, with Hungary accusing the Dutch of using “communist-style” tactics to crush dissent among less wealthy nations. It comes as European cities such as Barcelona and Rome rethink their economies amid the collapse of tourism. Donald Trump has accused leading virus expert Anthony Fauci of being “alarmist” about the pandemic and it was reported that his administration is trying to block billions of dollars worth of funding for track and trace efforts. You can catch up with all the overnight developments from around the world at our live blog.

Treaty suspension – Dominic Raab is expected to suspend Britain’s extradition treaty with Hong Kong today amid a worsening of diplomatic relations with China. The foreign secretary is widely tipped to make the announcement to MPs as part of a package of measures in the wake of Beijing’s introduction of a draconian new security law in the territory. The US, Canada and Australia have all made similar moves. It came as the Chinese government denied that Muslim Uighur people have been mistreated despite new drone evidence.

Elephant trap – Donald Trump has refused to rule out challenging the result of November’s presidential election if he is defeated by Joe Biden. The president is trailing the presumptive Democratic party nominee in the polls amid his administration’s disastrous handling of the coronavirus outbreak that has seen the US lead the world in cases and deaths. But, interviewed on Fox News, Trump dismissed the polls as “fake” and wouldn’t commit to respecting the outcome of the election. He also claimed that being able to identify an elephant in a cognitive test proved his mental agility. Seeing is believing, so we’ve done this highlights video for you. Another possible runner is the rapper Kanye West, who launched his election campaign tour with a chaotic event in South Carolina last night which featured a rambling debate with a pro-choice heckler.

Gender clue – The gender pay gap may be partly explained by teenage boys being more ambitious in their choice of university than girls, even if they are at the same level academically. A study of pupils in England conducted by academics at University College London found “clear evidence” boys already had more advanced plans for higher education than girls at the age of 15, with more boys aiming to apply to Oxford, Cambridge or other more selective universities, regardless of background or school attended.

Lift off – The first Arab space mission to Mars has blasted off successfully amid rapturous excitement at the United Arab Emirates-backed project. The Al-Amal probe – Hope in English – blasted off from Japan on a borrowed rocket but the head of the project hailed it as the “future of the UAE”. The project is one of three racing to Mars, including Tianwen-1 from China and Mars 2020 from the United States, taking advantage of a period when the Earth and Mars are nearest.

Digging deep – An unusual consequence of the lockdown has been a rise in accidental archaeology as Britons used their down time to tend to their gardens, unearthing artefacts in the process. The finds include a post-medieval belt hook shaped like a snake, a medieval silver coin discovered beneath a lawn and neolithic arrowheads.

Today in Focus podcast

We’ve got more on Mars in today’s podcast, which focuses on Nasa’s plans to place the Perseverance rover on the surface by February next year. Planetary scientist Sarah Stewart Johnson explains the long history of our fixation with finding life on the red planet.

Lunchtime read: A suitable moment for groundbreaking drama

The highly anticipated adaptation of Vikram Seth’s gigantic novel, A Suitable Boy, starts next Sunday and is the BBC’s first historical drama with no white characters. We’ve been behind the scenes to find out why some think the series doesn’t go far enough.

Sport

Stuart Broad revealed he has designs on emulating Jimmy Anderson’s evergreen Test career after a three‑wicket burst kept England in the hunt for a series-levelling victory against the West Indies in Manchester. World Rugby is considering banning trans women from playing women’s rugby because of significant safety concerns that have emerged following recent research. Frank Lampard urged Chelsea to build on their potential after they took advantage of a poor goalkeeping display from David de Gea to join Arsenal in the FA Cup final thanks to an impressive 3-1 victory over Manchester United. José Mourinho praised the “special” impact of Harry Kane after the striker’s second match-winning performance of the week brought two goals against Leicester and gave Tottenham a significant boost in their chase for a Europa League spot. Lewis Hamilton issued a stinging rebuke to the leaders of Formula One and some of his fellow drivers after the sport’s failure to deliver a coherent anti-racism message before the Hungarian Grand Prix. And some of the NFL’s biggest names have taken to social media to express their concerns and anger over the lack of Covid-19 safety protocols as teams prepare to open training camps this week.

Business

House prices have risen to a record high since the lockdown was lifted thanks to this month’s stamp duty cut, according to the property website Rightmove. “Britain is getting moving again,” it said, pointing to a rise in the average asking price of a property to £320,265. The FTSE100 is set to open flat. The pound is down at $1.252 and €1.096.

The papers

The Times leads with “China tensions mount as extradition treaty shelved” and the i has “China and UL trade barbs as relations hit new low”. The Telegraph has the extradition story on its front page as well but leads with “Lockdown may cause 200,000 extra deaths”.

The Guardian also leads on the virus but with “Doctors urge public: help prevent ‘devastating’ second wave of virus”. The Mail is worried about passports and driving licences being delayed in “Backlog Britain”. The Mirror is concerned that “NHS heroes forced to work for free”. But there’s no anxiety at the Express, which proclaims: “House prices bounce back to hit new high”. The Scotsman splashes on “PM heads to Scotland amid ‘panic’ over threat to Union” while the FT’s headline is “EY warned wirecard special audit risked misinterpretation”.

Sign up

The Guardian morning briefing is delivered to thousands of inboxes bright and early every weekday. If you are not already receiving it by email, you can sign up here.

For more news: www.theguardian.com