The first question from a member of the public comes from Darren in Kent, who asks whether Van-Tam thinks masks should be made mandatory on public transport.

The evidence over the pandemic has become stronger that masks are useful, he says - but most useful when used in combination with other things.

"They offer some small personal protection effect, but the main effect is in protecting other people," he says.

He starts to explain how useful or practical they might be in different settings - and are, for example, less useful and necessary when outside.

In indoor settings involving food and drink, masks are not that practical to wear - so really you should wear masks when moving about, he says.

"So they have limitations," he says.

But in cinemas and theatres, where you're seated quite close together, wearing a face mask involves fairly little personal expense, he adds.

Sally Nugent asks Prof Van-Tam for his reaction to the news that Sir Jeremy Farrar has stood down from Sage - the government's advisory body.

Van-Tam says it's clear that Farrar felt that a lot of the information scientists needed to give to government has been given - and he needed to focus on his work as director of medical charity the Wellcome Trust.

He pays tribute to scientists who have "supported us so hard and so long" and given valued independent advice.

The first question is on where we're at with the latest stats.

Prof Van-Tam says it is a concern for scientists that "we are running this hot this early in the autumn season" - with cases higher than the rest of Europe.

On deaths data, he says "essentially deaths are increasing".

Hospital admissions have plateaued in the last four days, and the total number of people in hospital has gone down. It could be a pause, or the very first signs that things are beginning to stabilise, he says.

"My worry is that deaths are increasing and that shows that the infection is starting to penetrate into those older age groups," he says.

The key thing to take away from today is to get a booster and flu vaccine if it's offered.

Stay here for all the questions, answers, and latest Covid news.

We are shortly going to bring you a question and answer session from England's Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jonathan Van-Tam soon - but who is he and what does he do?

The 57-year-old became a household name during the daily government coronavirus briefings in 2020 - when he won fans with his frequent football analogies.

One of the country's top epidemiologists, Van-Tam has also been a clinical senior lecturer at the University of Nottingham and before that worked in the pharmaceutical and vaccines industries. He also has clinical experience in general medicine, emergency medicine, and infectious diseases.

He's been a consultant to the World Health Organization on flu since 2004 and sat on the UK Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) during the 2009 to 2010 swine flu pandemic.

JVT, as he has become known, is known for explaining scientific concepts in layman's terms - here are some of his best analogies.

As this chart shows, UK cases are falling - but remain high. The total number of cases in the past week is 10% down on the previous week, according to the latest UK government data., external

The number of deaths within 28 days of a positive Covid test is increasing - but remains way down on the peak of last winter.

The Simon family, whose nine-year-old daughter McKenna went to hospital with Covid, have no doubt the vaccine would have stopped her from getting so ill.

McKenna developed pneumonia and anaemia after getting the virus, whereas everyone else in the family were less affected.

But some mothers - part of a rising group called Moms for Liberty - say they have reservations.

Image source, Getty Images

Some 28 million American children aged between five and 11 years old will be eligible for a Pfizer coronavirus vaccine after health officials approved the roll-out.

The US is already giving the vaccine to those aged 12 and over.

This latest decision by the Centers of Disease Control and Prevention comes after careful consideration from US drug regulators.

The White House said it was likely the vaccination programme would begin before the end of the week.

President Joe Biden said the child vaccine "will allow parents to end months of anxious worrying about their kids, and reduce the extent to which children spread the virus to others".

Read the full story here.

In China, strict lockdowns are continuing as part of the country's plan to hit zero cases by the time it hosts the Winter Olympics in February.

At one primary school, dozens of children were held inside for hours after it was locked down because a staff member tested positive.

A large group of parents gathered outside the school, anxiously waiting for news which did not come until almost midnight.

The children were tested and, according to local site Jimu News, the school principal finally emerged at around 23:30 local time and told parents that some children would have to go into quarantine.

More here.

GP Dr Rosemary Leonard has been speaking to BBC Breakfast this morning about the Covid situation in her area.

Hospitalisations are creeping up, she says.

"We’re seeing a lot of Covid cases - particularly in young people who are yet to be vaccinated, but also unfortunately some older people who have not been vaccinated are being admitted to hospital," she says.

"The vast number of these admissions are in unvaccinated people but some of the extremely vulnerable also unfortunately are now catching Covid."

She's calling for a "rethink" on masks - urging people to wear them, not just to stop Covid but also coughs and colds as there's a "huge spike" in them.

"We are incredibly busy," she adds.

• The number of daily cases in the UK remains high, with a further 33,865 cases, plus 293 new deaths, announced yesterday
• Cases in the UK are falling though - down just over 10% week-on-week
• A member of the group of scientists advising the government on coronavirus, Sir Jeremy Farrar has stepped down from his role - warning the pandemic was "a long way from over".
• Meanwhile MPs will be asked to consider a bill to prevent future emergency school closures in the House of Commons later today.

Thank you for joining us for our coronavirus live page - this morning we've got a special question and answer session with the deputy chief medical officer for England, Jonathan Van-Tam.

He will be speaking on BBC Breakfast and BBC Radio 5 Live from 08:30 GMT.

If you have a Covid question you'd like him to answer, you can reply to this tweet, external or use the #AskJVT, external hashtag.