this is your programme and your chance to get the answers you want. let's have a look at the story of coronavirus so far. early december, and doctors in china start to share messages about a new virus. they inform the authorities but, for weeks, nothing is done. it takes until new year's eve for china to tell the world health organisation they've had a case of pneumonia of unknown cause. this is the source of the outbreak — a meat and fish market in wuhan. it's shut onjanuary 1st. on the 9th of january,

china reports its first death. on the 20th, wuhan, a city bigger than london, is locked down. it becomes a ghost town. all these shops are closed. there's pretty much nobody on the street here. british expats trapped in wuhan are flown home to be put in quarantine. as the number of deaths continues to rise, china builds a new 1,000—bed hospital in just over a week. the worry for health experts — that the virus will spread beyond china — is about to be realised. the world health organisation declares a global health emergency as china's coronavirus spreads. injapan, 600 passengers on a cruise ship are quarantined. we are both positive. we are going to a hostel because there isn't a hospital bed anywhere around. in iran, the deputy health minister

appeared in public suffering symptoms of the virus. in south korea, there are now more than 4,000 cases. this is not wuhan but brighton. here in the uk, the number of cases is small but on the rise. the government says it has plans in place to contain the virus but the future of this outbreak is uncertain as it continues to spread around the world. keep your questions coming in and we'll do our best to answer as many as we can. tonight, we are live on the nhs front—line as the uk tries to contain the virus, and we'll hear from the prime minister. if you're confused about what you need to do to protect yourself, if you're going on holiday, if you're worried about taking time off work, or the prices you might be paying in the shops, we'll do our best to help. first let's talk to our medical correspondent, fergus walsh. so much information swirling around, but, first of all, how

worried should we be? well, this is a brand—new disease threat only been around three months since it made the jump from animals to humans and there is a huge amount we don't know about this novel coronavirus. that level of uncertainty is what is causing such a lot of anxiety. if we get a big outbreak, and it is and if, here, then it would place a lot of pressure on the nhs, particular on intensive care beds, routine operations would have to be cancelled. it is important we keep a sense of perspective. seasonal flu, which comes around every year, causes half a million deaths every year around the world. so far, we have had 3,000 from coronavirus. that's important context. let's take a look at some of the questions you've been asking us. i'm a barber from manchester, my question is do face masks work? i am worried about the elderly and children. who is most at risk? what will happen if

i catch coronavirus? what else can we do to protect ourselves except washing hands? so, that gives you an idea of the kinds of things people want to be answered. let's start with that last run first. how can we protect ourselves? number one is hand hygiene, good old soap and water. it isn'tjust a quick dangle under the tap, get a good lather going. think about singing two verses of "happy birthday". loads of guides on my to how you should wash your hands. if you're not near soap and water, you could use some hand sanitiser. but the key thing is it's got to be alcohol base to kill the coronavirus. don't, when you're out and about, touch your face, nose and eyes because you can pick up the virus from surfaces and infect yourself that way. so, it is getting out of those habits, coughing into tissues, that kind of thing? absolutely. what about facemasks? we heard from danny the barber,

how effective are they? these paper facemasks are not much good. they might give a false sense of security. leave them, i'd suggest, to the medical staff because they need to be changed frequently. they are quite good at preventing someone with an infection from passing it on, that is traditionally how they've been used, but those people should be staying at home. that question of who is at risk. are some people more vulnerable than others? anyone can catch it but the good news is young children are really pretty much in the clear on this virus. in fact, so far, of the reported cases, only to make out of 100 have been in people under 20 years of age. —— only two out of 100. most at risk are the elderly, the older you are, the greater your risk, and those with underlying health problems, things like heart disease, respiratory disease, diabetes. this is an indiscriminate virus and it can kill young people as well. one of the first to die was a doctor

in china who first raised the alarm about it, and he was 34. a question from peter on twitter right now. "how long does the virus live on surfaces, such as mail, food and packaging, and what is the risk from things like that?" there's little evidence that there is any risk from getting post from italy or china where the virus could blast there. it can survive on hard surfaces for quite a few hours. debra has also got in touch, she is on twitter and she says... is it possible to be a carrier of the virus but not actually to display the symptoms? yes, it is. these carriers, and there are quite a lot of reported cases, they can be shedding the virus and potentially infecting other people but those who are giving off the most virus are the most sick because, you know, there coughing and sneezing which is why health care workers are at particular risk. for the time being, thank you very much, fergus. if you have a question for fergus

over us, send it via social media using #bbcyourquestions. what is the government and the nhs doing to protect us at the moment? the official advice is, if you think you have symptoms, don't go to your doctor or the hospital, but call nhs 111. that's where we can join our global health correspondent, tulip mazumdar. we have heard they are experiencing many more calls to 111 at the moment, so how are they coping? well, they certainly are, and welcome to one of the most important parts of the uk's response to this outbreak. these call centre workers, including handlers, doctors and nurses, are dealing with 4,000 calls every single weekday. in call centres like this around the country they have seen a rise of around a quarter of call volume coming in and that number is expected to rise as new cases

or the uk braces itself for new cases. we can speak to another call handlers here for a moment. if i could disturb you, yasmin. talk us through what are the key things people are asking about when they cool. a lot of people don't know what to expect. they don't know what is the coronavirus, there worried to do, what about self isolation, had the get treated. what do you tell them? reassurance more than anything. we put them in the direction of public health england. just reassure them of what to do for the best. thank you so much. i'll let you get on. it is an extremely busy monday night. because there are so many calls coming in, people across the country are being urged to get in touch with that online nhs 111 service rather than calling in in the first instance. it's already had around 70,000 enquiries online, half of those came in in one day over the weekend. answering some of these calls

is jag, who was a pharmacist. what are you telling people who call up and you hear what they've been doing where they've been and you think they might have coronavirus? if we suspect a patient has been infected with coronavirus, we are asking them to self—isolate for 14 days and limit the contact they have with others which also means having deliveries of groceries and medicines to the house rather than venturing out. it is a really anxious time for people who are having to self—isolate. what are you telling them to try to reassure them? i believe patients feel better when they know they're doing the right thing. so the best thing we can do to reassure patients here at nhs111 is to provide the most relevant and up—to—date information. 0k, thank you very much. also here is the man in charge of this operation, anthony marsh, who is in the process of recruiting 150 more call handlers because of the volume of calls coming in. you are facing an unprecedented number of calls at the moment but some people have been on hold

for a long time, and some people have put the phone down before anyone answers. are you able to cope with this influx? yes, we are dealing with record numbers of calls to nhs111, doing a fantasticjob in this call centre and right around the country, doing an absolutely fantasticjob for which i am grateful. but we are dealing with more calls and it would be very helpful if members of the public would be able to go online and get that current information by going to our website, where they will receive the latest information because we are dealing with an evolving situation and the guidance is regularly being updated so members could really help us by going online, thus leaving the call handlers, the nurses and paramedics and doctors in our call centres to help those patients that really need to speak to a clinician in the call centre. and you are also dealing with a lot of misinformation, lots of rumours and fear mongering, to some extent going around,

so how are you handling that? it's so important that members of the public go online111.nhs.uk, you will receive the latest information that you need. thank you very much, anthony marsh. this call centre like others like it around the country are working 24/7 to answer peoples calls. it has been said a number of times make sure that in the first instance if you're worried, go online, go to the nhs online service, 111.nhs.uk. i did it and got useful information in less than a minute but the key thing all of us should be doing right now is what you've been hearing from fergus and around the programme, keep washing your hands. thank you very much, tulip mazumdar, a busy evening in dudley. you've heard about what the nhs is doing to stop the virus spreading in the uk, but what about the government's role? our political editor laura kuenssberg has been

asking the prime minister, whether he and his ministers are preparing for a widespread outbreak. you've got to consider the realistic, the realistic possibility that there is now going to be a significant expansion in the number of cases. and what. .. and so, you know, we will be setting out tomorrow the steps that we are going to take as a country, as a government, working together to inform the public about what we're doing, and setting out the method by which we'll be taking those decisions. are we looking already at closing lots of schools, cancelling big events? and, you know, the public have seen other parts of the world basically in lockdown because of what's been going on. understood. is that what people should expect? what we've got is a range of calibrated responses to the spread of coronavirus, and clearly, the measures that

you have mentioned are on that list. and the issue will be when and how and with what logic to deploy them, and we will be as transparent as we possibly can. but at the moment, i just wish to repeat, the crucial thing we can all do to help the nhs to stop the spread of the disease is wash your hands twice, two versus of happy birthday, hot water. but apart from that, laura, at the moment, i should stress that it should be business as usual. what would be the trigger, though, for that kind of widespread action of closing public buildings? you've just said you want to be transparent. what would be the trigger for that? ithink you... look at what we are going to be saying tomorrow about the timings and about the various considerations, and the menu of options that we have. will you make extra resources

for the nhs available if they ask for them? because there's already some anecdotal evidence, it's taking a long time for people to get through to 111 on the nhs. there is some evidence people aren't being able to get tested as quickly as they would like to. will you commit today to give the nhs exactly what it asks for, even if that runs into significant extra amounts of money? of course, we will do everything we can to address the problem and to stop the spread of the disease. and, as you know, we are putting record cash investment now into the nhs, and the nhs is a fantastic organisation, a fantastic health system, and they are very well prepared. will you give them everything they ask for, though? of course, of course. and are you worried about the effect on the economy, though? because if we are looking at very significant disruption here, there will be an economic impact, won't there? well... be in no doubt that something like a mass epidemic is going to have all sorts of consequences, and there is always the potential

for an economic downside as well. and you are seeing that around the world, and we are ready for that, but don't forget, the fundamentals of the uk economy are very strong. and i don't... i do not wish in any way to minimise the significance and the importance of the challenge that this country will face, ithink, almost inevitably, in the course of the next few weeks and months. i do not wish to minimise that, but what i do wish to reassure the public about is, number one, that we've taken every possible precaution and preparation that we can. and secondly, i have absolutely no doubt that this country will not be defeated by coronavirus, and that we will come through it very well in the end. the prime minister talking a short time ago. so many questions coming in. thanks for those. anything you want to pick up from that interview,

or anything else you want to ask, use #bbcyourquestions. but, right now, let's talk about some other ways coronavirus is already affecting the way you live. we'll discuss all things money and prices in a moment with nina, but first, let's talk travel. jon kay's at a travel agent's in somerset. lots of people want to know, how is this going to affect my holiday? we've heard this evening that british airways and ryanair are among the airlines who have announced tonight that they are cancelling some flights over the next few weeks. clearly, the travel industry is already being hit by this, but lots of your questions coming into night, like these people, wondering how this affects your easter holidays or maybe your summer holiday plans. should you cancel? should you go, and if you do? this is your travel agent's, thanks for having us. simon, shall we start with you? what is the official british government advice as things stand right now?

the only areas off—limits are mainland china, which came in three weeks ago, and two regions of south korea and the 11 towns in northern italy. and, by the way, they are not places that any tourists would normally find themselves in. everywhere else, according to the foreign office, the risks are tolerably low. although i know from unprecedented numbers of people getting in touch, there is a huge amount of stress and anxiety out there, anticipation of holidays turning into apprehension, i'm afraid. and what are you seeing? it's no surprise, our shops have been inundated with people coming in and asking questions. it is comforting to sit down in a travel agency and talk through what the questions are. 99% of people are carrying on as normal. they have seen hotels lockdown on cruise ships, so how are reassured can they be?

it is a matter of how many people effected, the areas affected, and in the scheme of things, still very small numbers of people and areas. simon, what are some of the options? if people are thinking, i don't want to go, don't fancy it, thinking about cancelling, what can you do? you have very few options. if you happen to be on one of the cancelled flights, then you can opt to get your money back. if you paid separately for accommodation or car rental, you might not get that back. you might be able to claim it from insurance, but that's unlikely. the vast majority of people who are booked to travel, if they decide not to go, they will lose some or all of their money. i must say, i know how upset people are, but genuinely, there has never been a safer era for british travellers to be going abroad. and i have seen irrational decisions made. i travel a lot, and talking to a lady and the security queue at stansted, she is off to cyprus,

but her partner has decided not to go. she is waking up on this wonderful island and he is waking up in rainy old essex with, i'm afraid, no holiday, and today, a case of coronavirus. we can talk about the effect on the wider economy, and go to amersham, where nina is, in a warehouse. iam indeed. good evening. china is often referred to as the warehouse of the world. have a look around the room you are sitting in. you can almost guarantee something there was made or partly made in china. this warehouse stocks and supplies toys, and up to 80% of them have in some way come through china.

let's chat to gary. so far, what has the impact been on your supply chain? at the moment, we are receiving most of the orders from the uk and europe that we are placing. there are containers leaving late from the far east. factories have been closed for an extended new year, and most of the stock we would have expected to be dispatched in late february has not been dispatched. what sorts of products are you worried about? i would expect to start seeing some ranges depleted from mid april. very much a delayed reaction, and it is notjust the far east these items all come from the far east. very much a delayed reaction, and it is notjust the far east you are worried about. a lot of our footballs come from italy and they are being caught up in the coronavirus that is taking place in italy, so it's notjust a chinese problem now. and gary has been stockpiling some

products, but it is unpredictable to know what will happen next. thank you so much for all of your questions that have been coming in. let's put them to linda, who is an economist. people want to know, is it too soon to quantify the full extent of this? it is, but the oecd today said that the coronavirus could tip the global economy into recession, which will be worrying for ros because we tried a lot with the rest of the world. at the end of last year, you might remember that the economy was stagnant, so it may mean that growth is not as good this year as was originally forecast before the coronavirus. we heard from the prime minister earlier, who said we have a robust economy. what can governments do to intervene? the bank of england could ease credit conditions and help firms with cash flow. the government has a budget on the 11th of march and they could look at tax measures to help factories and retailers, maybe looking at business rates, add vat. there is a range of things that could be done to help

businesses and consumers. some people have asked, should i start stockpiling now? and if i showed, what should i be feeling the cupboards with? coronavirus is affecting things mostly made in asia, like toys and computers, but it is spreading everywhere so it could be that tea and fresh food, car parts from europe, those could start to be affected. but i would stress that there are local producers for these things. it mayjust be that you have a little less choice in the future. of course, if you need something, then just keep watching and following developments closely. but do not panicjust yet. thank you tojim, to mike, to sue and to kate who all got in touch to ask about your rights if you self—isolate. if you are fully employed, the advice from government is, it is treated the same as sick leave.

if you are on a zero—hours contract, that is at the discretion of employer. just a thought to finish, the markets this morning recovered to the tune of nearly 3% after a terrible week last week, the worst in over a decade. when it comes to business and economics, this is very much a situation that is changing day by day. rachel? thanks very much, nina and jon there. hoping to get through plenty more of your questions now. with me again is fergus walsh, the bbc‘s medical correspondent. and we'rejoined too by professor sian griffiths. thank you for your time. this one from thom, who wants to know what self—isolating means. he says, "can we share a bathroom, kitchen and bedroom ? "can i dress the children or talk to them? "help!" self—isolation — the queue is in the title. you have to self—isolate. if you have kids running around and you have got to look after them, they have to stay at home with you, but they may be very pleased to stay

off school while you are waiting for your test result. a couple of video ones now. how can we protect our children from coronavirus? and will schools be closing? if someone is working on a cure for coronavirus, how long will it take to get to us? fergus, let's talk about children first. are they vulnerable and should we be closing schools? they don't seem to be. children are very good at spreading germs about, and school closures are always the first thing that public health officials turn to, because they tend to bring the bugs home with them and give them to more vulnerable people. so, watch the children in that case. and what about that question about a cure? and a vaccine? what treatment is there and how close is it? it is a new disease, so there are many groups working on the production of a vaccine and on which antivirals may

be the most effective. in terms of a vaccine, that takes time, so it won't be for about a year, and that will be pretty quick if it comes then. in terms of antiviral drugs, they have been used in other diseases and work is ongoing at the current time. again, any new development takes time. in some cases, people will get better without medical treatment. 80% of people get better without that sort of treatment. paul asks, "why have we not set up check points at airports to test for the virus?" in some countries, you see thermal imaging cameras. a recent study found they are about 10% effective in detecting a fever. you won't have a temperature as you come into the country and it is much more effective to have the system we have, which is that flights from high—risk areas are met and people are given information about 111 self—isolation.

claire asks, "should i wear gloves if i go out and i'm around other people? " if you touch your face, you will pass on a whole load of germs that way. social distancing, we may need to think about not shaking hands any more. the have advised french citizens not to kiss on the cheek, so maybe we should be careful about who we kiss. my friend from china said, do this rather than anything else. new ways of social interaction. don't do it too hard! lots of people asking about whether you are more susceptible if you have asthma or hiv. what do we know about people with suppressed immune systems? definitely, asthma, yes. no knowledge of whether people with hiv are at any greater risk. sian, this one, "how do i tell the difference between a common cold and coronavirus? "

through the test, probably, unless your symptoms develop into chest disease, then you are more likely to have coronavirus. but a sniffle isn't normally associated with coronavirus? the symptoms are fever, shortness of breath and a cough. a cold will have a runny nose and that. it is not foolproof, which is why the testing is being done through gps and hospitals at the moment, by public health england, to see if we are missing any cases. a final thought — how bad is this going to get? well, i've not reported on anything in a long career. ebola, sars, bird flu, swine flu. to cause havoc to the economy and problems in the nhs and to health care, but its potential. tb, and other infectious disease,

kills more people every day than the coronavirus has killed so far. sian and fergus, thank you for your time. that's all we've got time for. if you missed any of this, it will be on the iplayer and bbc sounds. more advice and explanation on the bbc website. there's also lots more advice and explanation if you go to bbc.co.uk/coronavirus. thanks for watching, goodbye. some of us will see sunshine at some

pa rt some of us will see sunshine at some part of the day. frost and ice on first part of the day. some pull away from northern ireland, but spread across scotland. early clea ra nce spread across scotland. early clearance from wales but then through england, showers could be heavy with hail behind it, returning. dashed blue sky returning. dashed blue sky returning. with light winds and clear skies on tuesday night, there will be wide frost setting in. temperatures stop from falling too far in the far southwest of england. cloud and operates of rain rifles of this is when the's wet weather dust wednesday's. it doesn't mean a spell of rain across much of england and wales heading in, reaching towards northern ireland perhaps southern scotland, some snow into higher parts of the pennines as well stock and afraid another spell of wet weather is on the way for many of us on wednesday.

welcome to newsday. i am mariko oi. i'm in singapore. the headlines. the world is in ‘unchartered terrotory‘ say health chiefs as the number of deaths from coronavirus passes three thousand. but what is it like to contract covid—19? we hearfrom one survivor on the impact of the virus. i almost felt like i wanted to go knock on the wall and talk to the other patient next door and have some conversation with a human being. i'm kasia madera in london. also in the programme. benjamin netanyahu claims victory in israel's third election in a year — but can he finally form a government?