Trump rips off mask as he arrives back at White House after checking himself out of hospital

Latest updates and essential advice from The Independent [View in browser]( [Alternate text] Daily briefing October 06, 2020 Today’s essential news from the source you trust This morning’s headlines Donald Trump, who was taken ill with coronavirus last Friday, essentially [checked himself out of the Walter Reed military hospital]( last night and returned to the White House, just hours after his doctor said his condition was improving but that he “may not entirely be out of the woods yet”. The ever-defiant US president landed on the White House’s South Lawn via Marine One and immediately headed for the Truman Balcony to wave to the press, where he removed his mask despite being contagious. Mr Trump had earlier tweeted: “Feeling really good! Don’t be afraid of Covid. Don’t let it dominate your life. We have developed, under the Trump Administration, some really great drugs & knowledge. I feel better than I did 20 years ago!” In the UK, health secretary Matt Hancock admitted [the fiasco over 16,000 missing Covid-19 positive test results is “ongoing”](, with nearly half of cases yet to be reached to ask for their close contacts. As anger grew over the blunder – caused by an extraordinary failure to create spreadsheets large enough to cope with all results – Mr Hancock was warned he was “putting lives at risk”. Answering questions in the Commons, he refused to discuss details of the error, but appeared to pin the blame on Public Health England. Offshore wind [will power every house in Britain within a decade](, Boris Johnson has pledged, as he promised to make the UK a world leader in green energy. In his speech to the Conservative Party virtual conference, the prime minister will say he wants the UK to lead the globe in low-cost clean power. As he fights accusations his government is not doing enough to head off economic catastrophe this winter, Mr Johnson will talk of a green industrial revolution that in the next 10 years will create hundreds of thousands if not millions of jobs. The amount of money involved - such as £160m for ports and factories to manufacture the next generation of turbines - is small in comparison to the many billions spent battling the coronavirus crisis in recent months. For a daily briefing on the race for the White House, [sign up here for our Inside Washington newsletter](. . We need your support The Independent employs over 100 journalists around the world to bring you news you can trust. Please consider showing your support with a contribution. [Contribute]( . Top stories [They’re branded economic migrants – now young men trying to cross Channel tell us why they really want to reach UK]( [Protesters storm Kyrgyzstan parliament and set fire to ‘White House’]( [Government suffers string of defeats on Brexit immigration bill]( . Your trusted guide through a changing world Subscribe to Independent Premium for unbiased and uninterrupted coverage of the journey ahead [Get 3 months for £3]( . More news - [Hard border in Northern Ireland would become terror attack target]( - [Trump supporter interrupts Bernie Sanders' speech at Biden rally]( - [The winners and losers from the Premier League so far]( If you can spare two minutes we’d love to hear your [feedback]( on our newsletters [Alternate text] Join the conversation or follow us [Twitter]( [Facebook]( Please do not reply directly to this email You are currently registered to receive The Independent's News email. Add us to your safe list of senders. If you do not want to receive The Independent News email and Breaking News alerts, please [unsubscribe](list_name=IND_Headlines_Masterlist_CDP). If you no longer wish to receive any newsletters or promotional emails from The Independent, you can unsubscribe [here](. This e-mail was sent by Independent Digital News and Media Ltd, 2 Derry Street, London W8 5HF. Registered in England and Wales with company number 07320345. Read our [privacy notice]( and [cookie policy](.