World Coronavirus Dispatch: All of Switzerland's ICU beds are full

UK govt under lens for £17 bn Covid deals, new cases in Russia top 22,000 a day, six-day lockdown in South Australia, and other pandemic-related news across the globe

UK govt under lens for £17 bn Covid contracts: Britain’s public spending watchdog has criticised the government for a series of failures when it awarded more than £17bn of contracts to private companies to tackle the coronavirus crisis, including a lack of transparency, errors and potential conflicts of interest. The National Audit Office said the Cabinet Office and the Department of Health and Social Care had failed to explain why some companies with government connections or poor due diligence records were chosen to provide crucial services during the pandemic, such as supplying personal protective equipment or consulting and policy advice.