this three. you're watching bbc newsroom live — it's11am and these are the main stories this morning: with coronavirus cases in the uk continuing to rise — the chief medical officer for england warns we are moving into the ‘delay‘ stage of the government's plan to try slow the spread of the virus the uk's top medical adviser says by by delaying the start of a the country is moving from containing coronavirus to slowing its spread. as the number of cases significant transmission, we can push back. hits 90, chris whitty says measures with 90 cases now confirmed in the uk, a new report says the nhs will be ramped up. doesn't have enough nurses, by delaying the start to deal with an epidemic of a significant amount of commuter elsewhere california declares transmission, and by a state of emergency, after a cruise ship passenger a variety of other measures that we‘ll come on to, arriving in san francisco push back the point in which we have dies from the virus. the peak of this epidemic. it comes as a senior doctor tells of fears the nhs is not in a position flybe passengers are told ‘do not to cope if there is a spike in travel to the airport‘ —

as europe's largest regional airline cases. also this lunchtime... goes into administration. absolutely gutted. especially as, uk airline flybe goes into administration. when did you first hear? again, ididn‘t absolutely gutted. especially as, again, i didn't realise that flybe we re again, i didn't realise that flybe were not at all protected, so we have to find another way of fight claiming a money back. with 2000 jobs at risk, the government says its ready to help employees but blamed a weak company and the coronavirus for the collapse we really try to do everything we possibly could back at the turn of the year, and unfortunately, with the year, and unfortunately, with the situation that's developed with coronavirus, i'm afraid and already wea k coronavirus, i'm afraid and already weak company has been able to survive. the charity save the children is accused of ‘mismanagement‘ in its handling of claims of inappropriate behaviour against two former executives this as school children celebrate world book day — manchester united's marcus rashford

good morning, welcome to bbc newsroom live. the chief medical officer says it's "highly likely" the coronavirus is being transmitted between people within the uk. giving evidence to the commons health and social care committee, professor chris whitty also said the response is already moving into the second ‘delay‘ phase of the government's plan. the number of confirmed cases in the uk has risen to 90, after three new cases were announced in scotland this morning, officials are now warning that a uk epidemic is looking "likely". it comes as a new report published today claims that the nhs in england doesn't have enough nurses. i'm expecting the number only to go

up, and there are several cases where we cannot see where this has come from in terms of a clear transmission, eithersomeone come from in terms of a clear transmission, either someone has come directly from overseas, because they have had close contact with someone they have had close contact with someone who has recently from overseas. that, i think, that, ithink, makes it that, i think, makes it highly likely that there is some level of community transmission in the uk. it seems to be at low levels at this time, but there needs to be the working assumption that we go forward with now. professor whitty also explained that the uk has now moved into the "delay phase" of tackling coronavirus, in an attempt to slow its spread. the idea

dear is that we can push back on this. if we can get a peek further away from the winter and into a time when there is more capacity to respond, that would be the first benefit. the second benefit is it buys us time to improve our understanding of the virus, because there are many things we do know, but also things we don't know which would help us either to target a response more effectively, or develop countermeasures. people think it might be worth coming back to this in more detail, drugs and diagnostic at this time are the most urgent priority. the third advantage of delay is that there may be a seasonal elements of this infection, meaning that as you move into spring and summer, the natural rate of transmission may go down. not the

point that it goes away, it is a risk directory virus, like flu and cough, and all of these tend to transmit in the winter months. we do not know that, but it isa is a possibility. now, a member of the world health organization working on research to prevent academics has been telling us that work to manage this, the contained phases actively identifying cases and making sure that they are hospitalised and isolated so that they are not transmitting to other people in the community. also, identifying their contacts and following them up to see if any of

them are affected, so that is the containment phase, to find people, get them out of the community so it doesn't transmit any further. as the number of cases increases, that becomes increasingly unfeasible to admit everybody in those kind of cases, so admit everybody in those kind of cases, so people who are in this mild or asymptomatic state are people who could self—isolate at home, and don't need to be admitted to hospital, so that you are not overburdening the health system. so, it isa overburdening the health system. so, it is a question of the flexibility of your system and a question of the flexibility of your system and your response, so you don't overwhelm either your public health system in identifying cases and contacts, or the health services and having people who are well occupying hospital beds. so, what else do we know about how it is affecting countries all over the world 7 know about how it is affecting countries all over the world? the source of the virus, china, has seen

more than 80,000 cases in more than 3000 deaths. the worst hit country outside china and south korea. it has confirmed more than 5700 cases, with 35 dead. it's prime minister has announced a ban on facemask —esque sports. the latest figures from around suggest more than three and a half thousand cases with at least a 400 deaths in the country. california has declared a state of emergency after announcing its first death, bringing us numbers to ii. it is thought the california infection happened on board a cruise ship in san francisco. more passengers could be infected. in greece, another cruise ship is docked. in australia, the arrival of all foreigners has been banned, and italy has closed

all its schools and universities for ten days. it is the worst hit country in europe. similar measures have taken place in dubai, which is closing all schools and educational institutions for a month until sunday. we will bring you more on coronavirus throughout newsroom life, but right now, our main other story, flybe has gone into administration. its website now advises customers to "not travel to the airport" unless they have arranged an alternative flight. the carrier had tried to secure a rescue package from the government during a day of crisis talks. writing to staff, the company said the coronavirus had put additional pressure on an already difficult situation. in a moment, we'll be going live to birmingham and southampton in the darkness, euro's largest

regional airline lost its battle for survival. this flight from manchester to belfast may have been the last. most people here are more concerned about themselves, we have seen some them in tears, we have seen some them in tears, we have seen some them in tears, we have seen some on here. flybe's collapse last night means all flights are grounded and the loss of 2000 jobs. when did you first hear? early hours of the morning. it's quite a shock. yeah, i thought we would be safe, but not this time. sorry. outbound passengers have been warned not to come to airports, but the sum at the news came too late. we are just so dup surprised, we didn't pay any attention to the tickets because they said air france on them. we didn't realise air france were tied in with flybe. we are flying to

jersey, so we have been floated off illness like ferries, or a different airport, but withjersey illness like ferries, or a different airport, but with jersey there are many options. unlike other travel operators, the civil aviation authority is not putting on flights to bring people home. for those stuck abroad, other airlines have offered to step in. easyjet have offered to step in. easyjet have offered a rescue package, £65 to return to the uk. people are being urged to contact their travel agent to claim money back. already, the blame game has begun. flybe ran into financial trouble in february last year, at the start of this year, it asked the government for financial assistance. ministers say that they would help, but now the company says the impact of coronavirus and future

bookings has made its future unviable. we really try to do everything we possibly could back at the turn of the year, unfortunately, though, with the situation that is developed with corona, and already wea k developed with corona, and already weak company hasn't been able to survive. unions say the government should have done more. allowing this company to collapse in these circumstances, it is a real test of the government, and its agenda, so we're going to be asking searching questions about this means. some regional airport say they have already had operators expressing an interest in taking over flybe roots, but such offers will come too late for many.

katy austin is outside flybe's headquarters in exeter. that's right. here at exeter airport it is very quiet, not many people around, and if you look at the departure boards, you can see why. this is page two of two, the first page is also full of red. cancellations, because nearly all the flights operating out of europe, whether to amsterdam or newcastle, etc, most of them are going to be flybe, so, with flybe ceasing trading, this airport has gone very quiet. just overhear where there check—in desks, you can see things being removed. for an area like exeter, this is a really important airport because of the connections it provides. you would have to travel ours further to be able to get those connections without taking

a flight. for example if you go to glasgow, it's an hour and a half for a direct flight as opposed to seven hours or so on a train. many people are hours or so on a train. many people a re really hours or so on a train. many people are really hoping that another airline can come in and fill those gaps, the roots that flybe will leave behind. there are lots of people whose jobs are at risk following the collapse, and i spoke to one member of the cabin crew, and she told me she was absolutely distraught. just all really sad, aren't we? just really sad.” distraught. just all really sad, aren't we? just really sad. i take it from your outfit, are you cabin crew? yeah. i have worked for them for 13 years, so straight out of college, really. not sure what to do now. when did you first hear? early hours of the morning. quite a shock. i thought we would be saved, but not

this time. there has been a joint statement issued by local councils in this area today, and they called today's news a hammer blow to the local economy, as well as being very sad for staff who were affected. those councils have chords on the government to do whatever they can to try and get other airlines in. i have spoken to the managing director of exeter airport today, he said discussions had been going on today with airlines, but it's unsure had developed any plans or when we will get news. it's a difficult time for the airline industry, because of the impact of the coronavirus eye break, which ultimately probably triggered the demise of flybe. it has been affecting other airlines, as well, so had to see how many routes can be covered, whether this airport gets back to the capacity it has seen up to now, and the government has said it will try to help people who have

lost theirjobs progressing to other roles, and it has said that rail and bus operators should be accepting tickets where possible. that will help you if you are getting a flight to amsterdam at outside uk. lets get reaction from other areas that are affected by this. thanks for taking the time to talk to us. we saw a few minutes ago passengers talking about there being no otherflights available from the airport. they we re available from the airport. they were able to get tojersey. available from the airport. they were able to get to jersey. it's an important airline partner, so it's a sad day. flybe have their origins in the jersey islands, sad day. flybe have their origins in thejersey islands, so it is very much the end of a chapter and the start of another for us. in jersey's

case, our passenger numbers are at record highs, unfortunately this is a step back today. so, with passenger numbers at record highs, who will serve them in terms of carriers? we are lucky we have a range of carriers that operate in jersey, and we are very active. we quite lucky thatjersey is a very popular destination, and the airlines making money, so we were looking and speaking to other airlines to replace his roots, but thatis airlines to replace his roots, but that is no consolation to the staff at flybe today, or people have bookings that aren't going to be fulfilled. our priority is helping them at the moment. sorry to interrupt, we are going to go to the commons to hear transport minister speak about this. flybe have filed for insolvency. uk airports handled 9.5 million flybe passengers in

2008, and 80% of these travelling within the uk. an estimated 15,000 passengers we re within the uk. an estimated 15,000 passengers were due to fly today, so our immediate priority is to support passengers travelling home, and employees who have lost theirjobs. flybe has had a challenging year in terms of its financial performance, with a declining bookings and increase competition. levelling up connectivity across on the regions and nations as a top priority for this government. we are driving forward hsz this government. we are driving forward h52 and northern powerhouse rail, and we have announced 5 billion funding package for bus and cycle links, and we are investing 6.6 billion to improve the condition of local highway networks between 2015 and 21. we are undertaking a review of regional connectivity to ensure the uk as a domestic

transport networks local communities rely on, including airports. the treasury is also reviewing their passenger duty to ensure regional connectivity is supported whilst meeting the uk's climate change commitment to reach net zero by 2015. these measures featured in conversations with flybe back in january, and in turn the group agreed to continue operating. since then, we have been working tirelessly to ensure multiple options with flybe shareholders to find a solution. flybe outlined the problems with their business have been compounded by the outbreak of coronavirus, which in the last few days has resulted in significant impact on demand. the directors are therefore decided it was not viable to keep flybe operating. unfortunately, in a competitive market, companies do fail, and it is

not the job of government to prop them up. given the time of year, the nature of flybe's roots and fleet and the route to play should be available, either with other airlines with rail. the number is swolle n, airlines with rail. the number is swollen, entities reduced by a coronavirus. for those passengers who are abroad, there is advice to return to the uk. the secretary of state is encouraging these airlines to rescue passengers, this is already happening. i would like to thank easyjet, who have said today they will go will provide a dedicated rescue fair starting today. i'm extremely grateful that the rail delivery group has this morning confirmed that all operators

are offering free travel to flybe staff and passengers for a week, free of charge. the passengers due to fly with flybe over the next few days, i would ask that they do not turn up at the airport. they should instead look at the website set up by the civil aviation authority and talk to the travel agents, travel insurance providers and credit card companies. for those that do arrive at uk airports today, we are making government representatives available to offer support, and provide information to passengers affected. i would like to express my sincere sympathy for those who have lost their jobs sympathy for those who have lost theirjobs as a result of this failure. this will include crew, people at flybe headquarters in exeter and others. this is worrying time for workers and their families. the department for work and pensions stands ready to support anyone who is affected by the closure. this will be available to all those

affected through the localjob centre, plus outlets. additionally, in the event of any owed redundancy payments, the redundancy payment service insolvency service can pay certain amounts owed to former employees from the national insurance fund. i will work with my ministerial colleagues to ensure that any payments are paid to affected employees as soon as possible. we recognise the impact of this will have on uk airports, particularly those which have large—scale particularly those which have la rge—scale flybe particularly those which have large—scale flybe operations. government stands ready to support the sector, and i have full confidence that it will respond as effectively as it always has. we are urgently working with our industry to identify opportunities to fill routes, and i have spoken to airlines today to emphasise this. globally, aviation is facing

challenges due to the impact of coronavirus. the government is for this, and has a wider epoch can or picture becomes clear, i will be chairing a roundtable with members of the aviation industry next week to discuss issues presented by coronavirus. i would like to take this opportunity to thank passengers for their patients and make known my appreciation for the work undertaken by everyone who has stepped up to make sure passengers and local communities are supported. we will continue to work across government to make sure passengers and staff are able to access to or access services they require. the collapse of flybe is disastrous news for passengers and employees alike, and will cause real anxiety for many

regions throughout the country. the loss of 2000 jobs, many in areas relying very heavily on aviation will be an extremely heavy blow, as well as the impact on supply chains and regional economies. ithink around 2000 direct jobs and regional economies. ithink around 2000 directjobs are due to be lost from this collapse, so what steps is the minister taking to help those workers find newjobs? sadly, flybe follows an ever—growing list of british airlines to go under in recent yea rs, of british airlines to go under in recent years, and we know that the civil aviation authority... if existing capacity does not prove to be sufficient to guarantee that every flybe passenger gets home safely, we must also recognise the generous office offers of

assistance, but again airline workers face an anxious and uncertain future while the government is set on its hands and allow this to happen. recent airline failures have already lost approximately 11,000 jobs. the government must respond this time and provide flybe staff with all the necessary support. flybe has said the impact of the coronavirus has contributed to its collapse, so i must ask the minister what assessment has she made of the risk to other airlines, and what preparations are now in place? flybe is provided critical regional connectivity from any location throughout the country with no other viable option than flying. while we listen to no end of the rhetoric on the importance of regional connectivity, yet again, the government has allowed the service

of critical economic importance to fail. any kind of positive a proactive approach has been com pletely proactive approach has been completely lacking. the government must now answer how those regional links will be maintained following flybe's collapse, and finally, the sector has asked the government to review the rule that if they don't use the slots they lose them. this forces airlines to continue with flights that are half empty or worse, so will the minister addressed the industry's concerns, and address this matter urgently? and actually break the radio silence that has been happening for many, many months on the issue of regional connectivity. i absolutely agree with the honourable gentleman in

regards of the sadness expressed by himself on the loss ofjobs for people working for flybe. it is a sad day when any organisation collapses in this way, and for the individuals and communities it affects, so i personally am extremely committed to making sure that as a government we are working with colleagues to make sure those individuals, the staff members, are given the right advice and support that they require, and just to pick up, particularly, on staff, we are very lucky, we have been engaging with the industry, who are pulling together, and there are some airlines who have said that they are going to prioritise staff from flybe into their recruitment process, so, i think that is good, and i'm hoping to see movement on that as time moves on. so, in regards to next steps, in regards to passengers, obviously everyone is concerned

about individuals travelling and how they will get back and move around they will get back and move around the country. i would like to reiterate that the majority of flybe passengers are travelling domestically. obviously, we are working with other airlines, as i have outlined already, in regards to fires and making sure that capacity is there. also making sure that they can travel on rail, and making sure these conversations will continue. i'm having a meeting later on, so if anyone would like to ask for specific questions or for an update, i'd be grateful if they can attend. whilst i have great respect for the honourable gentleman, because we have had many debates and discussions on a number of things over years, i don't do discussions on a number of things over years, idon't do disagree with the statement that they have set we have is sacked our hands. so,

the representative of the government saying that levelling up is a priority for the government, but she adds that unfortunately in a competitive markets, companies do fail, and it is not the government was myjob to prop them up. she spoke about solutions to passengers who are currently trying to get into other places, who had been booked on flybe flights, as well, talking about rescues being offered by other railand about rescues being offered by other rail and bus companies and other airlines. responding for labour, it was said that the government must supply flybe with all support, and what assessment has been made for the risk on other airlines? there is no end to the rhetoric from the government on connectivity, but they have allowed the service to fail.

when they began, i was in the middle of speaking with a representative from jersey airports. thank you for your patience. you are describing the connections between flybe and jersey. it was originally known as jersey. it was originally known as jersey european airways. you're also describing how you have a number of other carriers who operate in and out ofjersey. what did you make of that statement from the government? could they have done more?” that statement from the government? could they have done more? i think the challenge of how do you ensure the challenge of how do you ensure the economic benefits of connectivity are unlocked. i think thatis connectivity are unlocked. i think that is one thing the industry have been looking for some time. we need to our efforts. we need airlines going to be conurbations in big cities, but you can't miss out on connectivity, and when you take an island like jersey, connectivity, and when you take an island likejersey, it really is what we are talking about, our

ability to connect with the mainland. at the coronavirus issues be the straw that broke the camels back? i don't think now is the time for generating any additional concerns. i think the unique combination of a shock of iron like coronavirus, it's very much like other events that has happened to the industry before, you know, the volcano, sars, 9/11, which bans very, very quickly. i think the challenges, it's a hypercompetitive market, so while it is growing, it is very competitive, so while the margins are thin, it puts additional stresses on flybe. i think it is not to withstand the additional challenges for the airport, the question is how can we unlock that regional connectivity? thank you

very much. i am joined now by brian stratton, part of a union that represents 10,000 british pilots thank you very much forjoining us as well. from your perspective, you feel that flybe has been doubly let down, don't you? yes, well, ijust heard the minister in the clip you played saying that the government has not been sitting on its hands, but i think the government washed has its hands of flybe. it was in january that government ministers, very serious cabinet ministers promised that it would help flybe, help with the commercial loan arrangement, help the relaxation on the special tax that airlines pay, the special tax that airlines pay, the passenger duty. none of that has materialised, the government is now trying to blame everybody else but itself. the staff today are

devastated. they found out overnight, often on media channels, that they had lost their jobs. overnight, often on media channels, that they had lost theirjobs. they feel completely let down because the government told them that they would be rescued. what did you make of that specific statement from the minister seeing that unfortunately ina minister seeing that unfortunately in a competitive market, companies do failand it in a competitive market, companies do fail and it is not the government'sjob to prop it do fail and it is not the government's job to prop it up? why did it say it was its job government's job to prop it up? why did it say it was itsjob in january? this is the amazing thing. the government has done a complete u—turn on flybe. if you look back at the announcements that were made by the announcements that were made by the secretary of state for transport, the secretary of state for business and the chancellor of the exchequer back injanuary, this was a deal that the government had put together to keep flybe flying. now you are hearing completely the opposite, that it is nothing to do with us. what about its owners? the owners as well have a job to step up. they have to explain why they are not willing to back the company that they bought on the a year ago as well. my understanding is that

the owners were prepared to put in money, were prepared to back a business plan, but the bits that was promised by government as the bits that was not delivered and i think we need answers about that. what is your message to airline pilots today? how many of them are affected by this collapse? we contacted all environmental in flybe before six o'clock this morning. there are 600 pilots in flybe. we gave them the information that they have not been given either by flybe or the administrators as to what their rights are, what their opportunities are, what we can do for them. will be helping them to retrain for other jobs in aviation if we can. the type of aircraft they fly does not necessarily mean that they have tra nsfera ble necessarily mean that they have transferable skills, so we will be helping them find alternative employment, but it is going to be very difficult because all airlines are going to be going through a hard time the summer. brian, thank you very much for your time today. later

this morning, we will be answering your questions on the flybe collapse. you can send them to us by tweeting the hashtag or e—mailing your questions to us. that's coming up your questions to us. that's coming up at half past 12 here on bbc news. sport now and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre, here's gavin. ingo's matching italy into weeks' time is expected to be postponed. italy is the worst affected country by the coronavirus. adam, what is the latest? no confirmation of this just yet. we expect confirmation to come a little later today from the six nations authority for italy is the worst affected european country

by coronavirus, around 3000 confirmed cases so far, so this unusable not come as a huge surprise in light of that. crucially last night, the italian government said that all sporting events, including the likes of serie a football would not be open to the public until at least april, so we knew there would be changes to this fixture a week on saturday for originally, they thought they would play behind closed doors, but given the potential huge loss of revenue, remembered that the stadium in rome holds more than 7000 fans, the blow would be so big that the plan is to split for the time being. how long and whether it happens before it's still up and whether it happens before it's stillup in and whether it happens before it's still up in the air. they are talking about the tournament being resumed later in the year with things being little clearer, but as of yet, that is unclear as yet but we expect confirmation the next week's game against italy away and

the women's on the following sunday will both be postponed. thank you, adam. england are out of the women's t20 world cup. heavy rain prevented any play in the first semi, meaning india go through because they topped their group whilst heather knight's england only finished second in theirs. no chance for us getting out there today, i think. no chance for us getting out there today, ithink. obviously, the weather has cost us. we are gutted weather has cost us. we are gutted we did not have the chance to fight for a place in that final. there's not a lot we can do. we lost that first game against south africa which ultimate cost us, but our aim was to make the semifinals and then hopefully play our best cricket was then and obviously we have had that chance ta ken away then and obviously we have had that chance taken away from us. india have

india will face australia who have just beaten south africa. they were chasing 98 in a rain shortened innings. the english football association is to investigate tottenham midfielder eric dier after he climbed into the stands to confront a fan after their fa cup exit to norwich on wednesday. he had to be restrained by security after challenging a supporter, who had allegedly insulted him and his family. this was after their defeat at home to norwich. managerjose mourinho said diet should not have done it, but he understood his frustrations. this person insulted eric. the family was there, his young brother was not happy with situation and then eric, i repeat, did what we professionals cannot do, but did something that probably we would do. that is all the sport from us for now we will have more in the next hour. the uk is braced for an epidemic of coronavirus cases with

health officials warning widespread transmission is now "highly likely". if this happens, many will need hospital treatment. but will the nhs be able to cope? our health correspondent nick triggle is here to tell us. it is likely the number of cases will continue climbing possibly for two or three months until it peaks. so how well prepared is the health service? the nhs has quickly put plans in place to deal with the virus most most patients so far have been sent to the five big specialist infectious disease hospitals in england. between them they can care for over 100 patients at any one time in dedicated isolation facilities. there are another 25 hospitals across the uk that have expertise and have started admitting patients. those with mild illnesses are being told to self—isolate at home. what if there is a surge? this week, all hospitals in england were put

on an emergency footing and told to prepare for cases. they may need to cut back on other work and have been told to draw up plans to segregate coronavirus patients. there are more than 4,000 intensive care beds in total. so what can we expect? most people infected with have a mild illness, but one in 20 could need critical care. during the swine flu pandemic a decade ago 2,500 needed intensive care. but the elderly had some immunity to that virus — they don't with coronavirus so the numbers could be higher this time. so can the nhs cope or will it nhs buckle? there are huge pressures already. it has been the most difficult winter for a generation arguably. nearly one in four patients needing a bed have waited over four hours on trolleys and in corridors this winter. there are significant vacancies — one in 12 posts are unfilled. coronavirus looks set to test the nhs to its limit,

particularly when the peak weeks hit. anita. washing your hands is the "single most important thing that an individual can do" to protect against the coronavirus. that's according to the health secretary matt hancock. a major public health campaign has been launched to try and stop the spread, but how do we do that in our day to day life? john maguire has been out with a doctor to find out. barbara, hello, what do we do? do we shake hands? instinctive, isn't it? or should we do that? what do we do? i like to shake hands. ok, where ok to shake hands. great. the public health information and advice at the moment is that shaking hands is fine. but that may change, because things are changing all the time.

every day, there is new advice. if the infection becomes widespread, we may be advised to limit our social interaction. but even if we have been told to limit our social interaction and we accidentally shake hands, there is no need to panic, because we are touching surfaces all the time and, as long as we are following the hygiene recommendations, then there is no need to worry. fancy a coffee? i would love a coffee. thank you very much. good, why not? so, barbara, what do we need to think about in a coffee shop, cafe, in a restaurant? if you think about the process of walking into the cafeteria, touching the door handle, sitting down, touching the surface here. you have just handled this money. that money will have passed through dozens of hands before you touch it. i think the safest thing to do is to assume that everything is contaminated. don't touch your mouth, don't touch your nose and your eyes, because the mucous membranes

are where the virus gets access to. it gets into the upper respiratory system and invades the system and that's how it works. and if you haven't got access to a sink for hot, soapy water for 20 seconds, then use your sterilising gel, which i have in my bag. here is one you prepared earlier. and then when you use sterilising gel, the same scenario, really. it has to be at least 60% alcohol. spray your hands. and rub them thoroughly. and always have this with you. and if you are uncertain, just use it. so, interestingly, we are not getting into a scenario where, if we go into anywhere, we are cleaning the surfaces, cleaning money. it's impossible. you are just keeping yourself clean? yes. there we go. after you, barbara. thank you. there's a seat. well, lots of surfaces on the bus. you are obviously in close proximity to people, especially at rush—hour.

what are your thoughts? well, you have to sit near to other people. i can't hear anybody coughing. if they were, i might want to move seats. we do have to be aware that public transport, there may be a risk of catching an infection. so there is nothing i can do about this now. i've touched the surfaces. i'm just being aware, again, of my hands, and don't go near my face. and when i get off... because if i wash my hands now, or use the sterilising agent, i am still going to be touching things when i get off. so there is very little point in me doing anything until i get off the transport. thanks, driver. thank you. the workplace — what sort of thing should we be about here? well, if you look around here, i'm pleased to see there is some hand sanitiser here and some wipes for the keyboards, especially when people are hot desking

and using different keyboards and telephones. and we are all getting the phone to our mouths and coughing — without realising it we are spraying respiratory droplets onto the phone. so just be aware that when you come to use the equipment in a work environment that you should clean it before you use it and afterwards. we should also be aware of mobile phones. apparently, there are more germs on a mobile phone than they are on a toilet seat, so at least twice a day, with an alcohol wipe, keep your phone clean, because you are putting it to yourface. so, barbara, what is your key message? just take responsibility for your own space and your own health. and also be aware of other people. be aware of what you have touched. don't put your hands to your face, to your nose or mouth. if you have been on public transport, wait until you get to your safe space and give them a good wash for 20 seconds.

hot soapy water. singing happy birthday twice. and then try and relax about things. ok, great stuff. we can shake hands. we can. thanks a lot, see you later. i might use my hand gel now, though. thanks, barbara, thanks a lot. bye now. good common sense advice, but worth repeating. the imagery showing you just now is from the british chamber of commerce annual conference where we are expecting the health secretary, matt hancock, to appear soon and talk about the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak in the uk and we will bring that to you when he arrives on the stage and you when he arrives on the stage and you can find out more about the symptoms of coronavirus and how to protect yourself against it on the bbc news app and on our website. in the current political climate, it can be difficult for those on different sides of the big issues

to listen to other points of view. for many people, it can be hard to find common ground across a range of issues, whether it's climate change, immigration, or even how easy it is to get ahead in britain. that's why bbc news is bringing people together today who disagree, and who might never normally meet, to discuss the big issues, in an event called crossing divides live. we can now cross to our correspondent nina warhurst in salford. nina, how are the conversations going? lots happening behind you, i see. yes, they are. good morning to you from sunny salford. it is not often i get to say that, let me tell you. we have invited 50 people to media city this morning to sit down and talk to people who we know they disagree with on certain issues, so before they got here, we asked them about some key issues including membership of the european union, immigration regulation, funding of the nhs, funding of climate change

policy. we have sat them down opposite somebody who we know they disagree with fundamentally on those issues, but we taught them how to do something called deep listening. it isa something called deep listening. it is a technique used by psychotherapists and it is a simple as it sounds. you let the other person speak and keep speaking until they have said everything they need to say. you do not necessarily have to say. you do not necessarily have to agree with them, but what you have to do is try to listen. it is all about listening. let's just interrupt. do you mind if we interrupt? we have repair here and jonathan. you have been asked to talk about whether men and women are equal in the uk today. what was your knee jerk reaction to that question? ididn't knee jerk reaction to that question? i didn't really have a knee jerk reaction. i had a considered response which was the education syste m response which was the education system is gender neutral through primary and secondary, there are far more women than, say, a generation ago who are graduating in stem

subjects, engineering, technological subjects. in media type organisations, in the professions, in politics, there are far more women than there were a generation ago andl women than there were a generation ago and i would say that in terms of opportunity, it is not about the system, it is about the individual largely and the nurturing or not that they received as children. ok, what is your reaction tojonathan's thoughts? you think we have come a long way. personally, ithink thoughts? you think we have come a long way. personally, i think there isa long way. personally, i think there is a long way to go. we were talking earlier about how things are different from when i was at school and things are definitely better than they used to be, but what we are trying to do here is i am trying to park that are trying to listen to jonathan's point of view. which is so hard. i find it very hard, i keep wanting tojump in and so hard. i find it very hard, i keep wanting to jump in and jonathan so hard. i find it very hard, i keep

wanting tojump in and jonathan is a great partner to be with because he is helping to keep me focused on the task which is to listen to each other and to hear, i really do want to hear his point of view. i know mine. i know what i think, i know what my friends thing, i want to year but other people think. jonathan's hat is one of the things that... jonathan's had signals one of his beliefs and it is one of the things that actually would make me normally avoid him. interesting. or avoid sitting down and having a one—to—one conversation, so i think it isa one—to—one conversation, so i think it is a wonderful opportunity because actually i thing we have a lot in common and so, yes, for me, the challenge is to just listen rather than yes, but, the challenge is to just listen ratherthan yes, but, because the challenge is to just listen rather than yes, but, because those words are just so natural. it is very ha rd words are just so natural. it is very hard for us, especially as journalists. jonathan, how hard is it for you to sit back and not to say verily make anyjudgment but just listen until she has stopped arcing? extraordinarily difficult. but you are giving it a go. we are

giving it a go. it is an interesting technique and as i am speaking with herand, indeed, technique and as i am speaking with her and, indeed, with technique and as i am speaking with herand, indeed, with the technique and as i am speaking with her and, indeed, with the group sessions, i am thinking about my relationship with my wife and my daughters and you are not listening is what i hear all the time. of course, they are wrong, obviously. clearly, jonathan. well, hopefully your wife and kids will be glad you have been here today. it is really fascinating to your wig on our contributors here today. they are all really keen to listen and learn. checkin all really keen to listen and learn. check in on us later. hopefully not any black eyes or split lips. i do not think they will be the best of friends, but we will hopefully all have learned something today. thank you very much, nina. and you can use the hashtag crossingdivideslive to take part in this day of debate across bbc5live and bbcnews on twitter. we'll be giving you the tools to break out of your bubble, and listen to the other

point of view. time now for the business news. i'm alice baxter. uk airline flybe has gone into administration, putting 2,000 jobs at risk, after a bid for fresh financial support failed. the carrier said the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on demand for air travel was partly to blame for its collapse. john lewis has warned it could close shops as a plunge in profits forced it to cut staff bonuses to their lowest level in almost 70 years. the retailer, which also owns waitrose, has launched a review of the business which it said would involve "right sizing" its stores across both brands. the uk will miss its goal of net zero carbon by 2050 unless it finds a way to finance nuclear power stations, the nuclear industry has said. the industry sent a confidential letter

to chancellor rishi sunak which has been seen by the bbc. the letter was prompted by fears that the government will use next week's budget to ditch a plan to pay for new plants through a levy on energy bills. so as you've been hearing, flybe is telling customers "not travel to the airport" unless they have arranged an alternative flight. the exeter—based airline went into administration last night after narrowly avoided going bust in january. in a letter to the airline's staff, chief executive mark anderson said: "despite every effort, we now have no alternative — having failed to find a feasible solution to allow us to keep trading. i am very sorry that we have not been able to secure the funding needed to continue to deliver our turnaround." earlier we spoke to matt roach, the boss of exter airport and asked him what impact last night's announcment will have on regional connectivity.

i think the onus on us now is working with airline partners, local stakeholders and the government to try to make sure that we feel that regional con activity gap that has been caused by this sad news. i think the government is clear that regional connectivity is a clear strategy going forward and we will be working with them closely now to close the gap that we now have. i think all regional airports that have been affected have got similar challenges in terms of written networking and conductivity. where exeter sets, the airport is key for con activity to the south—west and so that as wide as important a local stakeholders and national government are alljoined up to make sure that that regional conductivity gap is filled. john lewis has revealed its full year results and they are not very good following a brutal year on the whole high street. they will pay the whole high street. they will pay the lowest bonus to their staff, known as partners, in on the 70 yea rs. known as partners, in on the 70 years. earlier, we spoke to a retail a nalyst

years. earlier, we spoke to a retail analyst who took us to the numbers. actually, a poor performance was pretty well— known, although they have decided to stop doing it in so much detail. john lewis partnership actually until recently released wee kly actually until recently released weekly sales figures for both the department stores and waitrose and over the past year, they have been pretty poor, especially on the department store side, so the real question for us all this morning was where they going to pay a born 5 at all? i think in the circumstances, 296 is all? i think in the circumstances, 2% is probably pretty good and it could have been a lot worse, ie zero. shares slipped in london despite a surge on wall street yesterday as governments and central banks geared up for more aggressive measures to fight the virus outbreak and its effects on the economy. itv has become the latest business to announce a hit from coronavirus

as it revealed that travel companies are deferring their tv advertising because of the disease. but insurance giant aviva posted a record annual earnings haul — saying it provided support to ‘several thousand' customers amid the recent uk winter storms. that's all the business news. thank you, alice. it is world book day and many of you have been scenting in lovely photos of your children dressed up as their favourite characters. joshua in melton mowbray went to school as dennis the menace. what a fantastic face paint or mask. harry potter fan lacey went as harry's friend hermione granger. little ella dressed as the gruffalo — a favourite character for many children. lily has gone as roald dahl‘s book—loving heroine matilda.

thank you very much for sending those pictures and hopefully we can see some more throughout the day, but right now, we will return to the british chambers of‘ annual conference we mentioned this a moment ago and the health secretary matt hancock is going to be addressing the audience and talking about the government's response to the coronavirus outbreak in the uk and here he is. thank you very much indeed. it is not often that a health secretary gets invited to the british chambers of commerce and i do not think you have invited me here because of my reputation as an app here because of my reputation as an app developer. i want to talk today about the coronavirus and the contribution that british business can make to helping us as a nation to tackle it. but i also wanted to say what a huge honour it is to address you today, to address this

conference. for a pro—business conservative like me, the keynote speech at the bcc is a little bit like being asked to play glastonbury. this organisation speaks to british business and in my belief, speaks for british business so well because it is so firmly rooted in communities. i know that because my mum was a member of the local chamber up because my mum was a member of the local chamberup in because my mum was a member of the local chamber up in cheshire and i still remember the first time i heard about the concept of a chamber of commerce from her and your brilliant chair, sarah, was until re ce ntly brilliant chair, sarah, was until recently the chair of my local chamber in suffolk. before i turn to the coronavirus, i want to say something else as well which i think it's very important and important that we always hold onto and remember. iwant that we always hold onto and remember. i want to say something about why i believe in business. we hear about this sometimes, but

sometimes we hear too much about it ina sometimes we hear too much about it in a functional, practical way. that is important, but it is notjust about the jobs that you create, it is notjust that i am deeply mindful of who pays the taxes that fund the nhs. it's more than that. it's that business, done right, is a force for goodin business, done right, is a force for good in the world because great businesses ultimately succeed by solving other people's problems. look at the life sciences, the area that i am most directly responsible for as health secretary. just recently, i announced a deal with novartis that will mean the nhs is among the first in the world to access a brand—new cholesterol—lowering drug at scale. this is a twice yearly injection that can prevent tens of thousands of heart attacks. life sciences, the clue is in the name. they save and improve lives and business done

right is a moral force for good because it links efforts and reward. it's about something for something. for me, this is really personal. i grew up watching my parents battle against the odds to build a brilliant software business and i know what the challenges feel like. in the recession of the early 19905, we almost lost everything because of a late payment problem. the business was strong, orders were coming in, but we were literally one cheque from going under. and i remember the feeling of injustice that everything they had worked so hard for was on they had worked so hard for was on the line, all because of a problem that was not on their making and was outside of their control. now, fortunately, the check came through and the business went on to thrive, but that experience is engraved on my heart and in politics, i have always worked for economic security

as the foundation of everything else. because i know, like you know, that the economy is notjust numbers ona that the economy is notjust numbers on a spreadsheet. it is people's ha rd on a spreadsheet. it is people's hard work and livelihoods and streams. right now, leading the health care system's response to the coronavirus is, of course, taking up the overwhelming majority of my time, but in very conscious that over the last few weeks, small businesses across the country will have been listening to the news and worrying about the future. let me turn to the biggest near—term challenge facing british businesses. our approach to tackling coronavirus is to prepare for the worst and work for the best. we are basing our preparation is not just for the best. we are basing our preparation is notjust on the most likely scenario, but on the reasonable worst—case scenario. this week, no doubt you will have seen, week, no doubt you will have seen, we published our four— part week, no doubt you will have seen,

we published our four—part action plan to contain, delay and research and mitigate the virus. that plan is driven by the science and guided by the expert advice of the chief medical officer and others. contain, the phase we are currently in, means detecting the early cases, tracing their close contacts and preventing their close contacts and preventing the disease from taking hold in the uk foras the disease from taking hold in the uk for as long as is reasonably possible. this approach has bought time for the nhs to ramp up its preparations, but this in advice is that we may not be able to contain the virus forever. especially if the numberof the virus forever. especially if the number of cases continues to rise in europe. at that point, on the advice of the chief medical officer, we will activate the next phase of our plan, which is to delay. this is about slowing the spread, lowering the impact, to push it away to the winter season when the nhs is under

maximum pressure. iwill always prioritise protection of life, but we will seek to minimise the social and economic disruption, too. the scientific advice is very clear, that's going too far or too fast carries risks of its own. ultimately, we are working to a timetable that is set by the progress of the virus itself. with 85 confirmed positive cases in the uk, shutting down all of our schools and universities, for example, would not have a clinical benefit at this stage, but it would impose huge social and economic costs. so, we will follow the science. that brings me to the third phase, as well, which is research. research has been ongoing since the moment that this coronavirus was identified at the end of last year. we have the finest minds in the world working day and

night on a vaccine, but we do not think that a vaccine will be available in the coming months, and just as important is research to understand what current research and treatments could help. i'm incredibly proud of the role the british people had in finding the genome of this virus, and in developing testing kits that are used around the world. we could not do this without you. if coronavirus does become established in the uk population, we will only be able to delay widespread transmission for so long. at that point, we were moved to the mitigate phase of our plan. this is about focusing our resources asa this is about focusing our resources as a nation, supporting those who

are most seriously ill, and keeping essential services going. at a time when large parts of the workforce may be off sick. you may have seen some of the estimates in the plan we published on tuesday. we have a range of options to support business, to support supply change in the wider economy should the situation require it. i know that the business apartment on the treasury are thinking very hard about how to do this in the budget next week. i know the hit that many businesses are already taking. i understand the sense of trepidation that something outside your control is such a looming risk on the horizon. i will do everything i reasonably can, not just to protect business, but to help business through. this is going to be a difficult time for us all. what i can offer is transparency and support, and a rational, science led

approach, and i know this not least because i started my life the right foot surrounded by small businesses. tackling coronavirus is a national effort. first, we need you to engage, engage with us. keep talking so that we can incorporate your views into our preparations. second, we need you to stay informed. we publish specific guidance for employers telling you what to do if someone in your workplace comes in contact with covid—19, as well as advice responding to it. furthermore, we need all, we all need to support our employers to do the right thing, including to self necessary. yesterday we announced that we would bring forward measures

to provide statutory sick pay from the first date. it's clear that no one should be penalised for doing the right thing and following the official advice to self—isolate if they test positive. it is in your employees interest, and it is in the national interest. one of the things that this teaches us is that health and work our umbilical link. it is a lesson that we can't afford to miss. of course you need a strong economy to pay for the nhs, but a strong nhs is good for business, too. health ca re is good for business, too. health care that is always there for you and conditionally supports risk—taking entrepreneurial economy, and it is recognised that the nation was health is... a quarter of

contribution to life span is her health the rest is about lifestyle. ajob that is rewarding is good for your health, and almost by definition, employers have a chance to intervene much earlier than the nhs. we all need to play our part, so, mental health support, musculoskeletal support, bike racks and charities, support for healthy eating, these are notjust because, they are investments. just like your investment in your skills and training budget. so, afterthe budget, i think we need to bear down on the 9 billion a year lost to sickness absences, it is a big part of what to do or how we can deliver on our goal of extra years of healthy life across the population

asa healthy life across the population as a whole. we are going to come back to matt hancox the health secretary during the question—and—answer section, but he was just reiterating that the government isn't the containment phase of dealing with the virus, the government would activate the delay phase, the next phase, but at the moment they are looking at the wider implications of the benefits, and the government would be following the government would be following the science. we are joined byjeremy hunt, former health secretary. thank you for taking the time to talk to us. first of all, can you explain to us. first of all, can you explain to us the next phase, what exactly does it mean? it means that we have

concluded that we are not going to be able to contain the outbreak of the virus to a few isolated cases, and we have to therefore prepare for the final phase which is called the mitigate phase, and get our heads around the very challenging facts like the possibility that this could bea like the possibility that this could be a fifth of the population, and getting our heads around how the nhs could cope, and the chief medical officer has decided on a very important announcement, that they will allow final year medical stu d e nts to will allow final year medical students to do some of the things that doctors are able to do in that situation, and they might allow foundation year of junior doctors to do some of the things they wouldn't normally be allowed to do, to increase the capacity on the nhs front line. that is interesting,

because there are concerns expressed today that there would not be enough nhs staff to cope with the virus if it reaches epidemic levels, considering that the nhs is already under pressure, but you have no guarantees, do, and having those numbers of people ready to cope if we do get to that stage in the uk? no health care system anywhere in the world can function as normal business as usual when you have an epidemic or pandemic. it is true the nhs needs more doctors and nurses, thatis nhs needs more doctors and nurses, that is the only long—term way we are going to reduce pressure on the front line, and the government has plans to do that, but for this very narrow period, a sort of nine week period with three weeks of the most intensity, then you do everything you can to try and increase the capacity for that short period, and i think the comfort that people should draw is that countries that don't have an nhs in moments like this, that is when they wish they did have one, and i think there was

an independent us study that said of other countries in the world, in terms of preparedness free pandemic, the uk was number two in the whole world. so, if it happens, if we move into this mitigate phase, it will be very serious, very into this mitigate phase, it will be very serious, very severe, into this mitigate phase, it will be very serious, very severe, huge social and economic challenges, but this is very much one of the better prepared systems. with talk now of wider community transmission, and as matt hancock was reflecting, it will bea matt hancock was reflecting, it will be a national effort to try and tackled coronavirus, do you think there needs to be more information by way of telling people where cases are cropping up, perhaps even daily updates, so the people in specific areas can become even more conscious of the steps that they need to take. the hand washing, not touching the face, those basic hygiene measures we have been hearing about.|j face, those basic hygiene measures we have been hearing about. i agree, the more information the better, because if you don't put out enough information, you create a vacuum,

and that is when you get fake news and that is when you get fake news and the rumour mill working overtime, so we were very pleased as a committee that the government has changed its decision, which appeared to make your stay, that it wasn't going to publish daily updates of where they have been outbreaks of the virus. the chief medical officer said that he would do that. he said there would be a 24—hour delay to make sure that they got the information right, i think that is fairenough, information right, i think that is fair enough, but generally speaking, people in the uk are quite capable of understanding the risks and the things they need to do, so the more information the better. thank you very much for your time. let's go back to the british chambers of commerce, where flybe is answering questions. making sure our new immigration system can serve the needs of the economy and public services. so, that is an important

factor, the points—based immigration syste m factor, the points—based immigration system can address it by its nature, because it means that we are in control of the immigration system, and therefore we can make adjustments as necessary to make sure we get the right people, who have the right skills in the right sectors, as needed. but i can go further than that until we publish more details. a lot of businesses are going to see a drying out of raw materials, manufacturing businesses, but i hope that if the worst happens, a lot of what they do will simply be delaying sales rather than cancelling sales, but that is not the case with the hospitality industry. i'm sick of the newmarket racecourse, for example, there is nothing so

valueless as a ticket to yesterday's event. that would be a serious issue for a lot of the restaurants... continuing with the health secretary asking questions. i live between haven hill and newmarket, in case people got upset about the local geography, and choosing between them would be like choosing between my children. it's a very important consideration. this is why the whole principle has been to minimise the economic and social disruption, subject to keeping people safe, which, of course, has to be the top priority, but also following the science. there are some things that are widely thought to have a very significant impact, but, in fact, the signs suggest that they don't,

and ourjob, leading the nation through this, is to explain what we are doing, and why we are doing it, and we have taken the proactive decision to have an approach that is led by the science. so, for instance, the start of this, i was encouraged to stop the flights from china, and the scientists told me they thought that would not be effective, and we decided not to, despite some pressure to do so. there was only one country that took the decision against the advice that i was receiving from our scientists, and that was italy, and that example demonstrates why it is best to follow the science, even if that means that we then have to explain the science. the science, and large events, is that now there is no material clinical benefit, academia logical benefit, of cancelling

events, so long as people follow the advice that i'm sure you will have heard of, wash your hands, if you have a cough or sneeze, catch it. that is the overall approach that we are following. of course, we understand there are economic impacts, and there are social impacts, and there are social impacts, and the reason that we set out the plan on tuesday including all the potential options is so that we are being as transparent as possible with the public, so that if we do have to do some of these things that you just wouldn't do in normal times, the public understand that it normal times, the public understand thatitis normal times, the public understand that it is part of a plan, and we are doing it for the very good reasons. after all, we are a herd. you can't get away from the fact that we, as a community, as a country, and, indeed, globally, we are all affected by this virus,

because others are affected. therefore, understanding the likely progress of what happens with the virus following the science is absolutely critical to then being able to make the best possible judgments in the national interest. that is the approach that we are taking. we ask for your forbearance when we do have to do things that are disruptive, and we are trying to explain as much as we possibly can how we are taking the decisions and why we take decisions, which may well be difficult, in order to keep the public safe. thank you very much indeed. matt hancock, addressing, saying

that coronavirus is the biggest challenge for the uk, but the government will be weighing up this science, and the social and economic cost. they say they will follow the signs. we in government can't do this alone, he said, tackling coronaviruses and national effort. some news just coronaviruses and national effort. some newsjust coming into us, a floor of the hsbc building in canary wharf in london has been evacuated. more than a hundred people work there. evacuated as the bird being used, because a colleague who had travelled to china had been diagnosed as having been infected. this flora is largely a research floor, it has been deep cleaned by a specialist. the floor of the hsbc building has been evacuated following a colleague who had

travelled to china being diagnosed with coronavirus over the weekend. the uk is braced for an epidemic. can you tell us more? it is likely that it will increase and to the peaks. most patients so fari and to the peaks. most patients so far i have been sent to the five big specialist hospitals in england. between them they can care for over a hundred patients. there are also another 25 hospitals across the uk that have expertise, and have started admitting patients. people

are being sold to self—isolate at home. what is the a surge in cases? all hospitals have been put on an emergency footing. they need to cut back on other work, and have been told to work out plans to segregate coronavirus patients. there are more than 4000 intensive care beds in total. so, what can we expect? most people infected have a mild illness, but one in 20 could need critical care. during the swine flu academic, the elderly had some immunity, but they don't with coronavirus, so the number is in intensive care could be much higher this time. can the nhs code, over will it buckle? there are huge pressures already. it has been the most difficult winter for a generation, arguably. nearly one in four patients needing a better way nearly one in four patients needing about have waited over dover for

hours on trolleys and in corridors this winter. there are significant bit vacancies, as well. it has tested the nhs to its limit, particularly when the peak week's hit. the regional airline flybe has gone into administration putting thousands ofjobs at risk after talks to try and save it failed. its website now advises customers to "not travel to the airport" unless they have arranged an alternative flight. the carrier had tried to secure a rescue package from the government during a day of crisis talks. writing to staff, the company said the coronavirus had put additional pressure on an already difficult situation. our news correspondent charlotte rose reports. in the darkness, europe's largest regional airline lost its battle for survival. this flight from manchester to belfast may have been the last.

most people here are more concerned about the staff themselves. we have seen some of them in tears, and they, too, will be fully aware of what is going on outside of here. flybe's collapse last night means all flights are now grounded, with the loss of 2000 jobs. when did you first hear? early hours of the morning. it was quite a shock. yeah. yeah, i thought that we would be saved, but not this time. sorry. outbound passengers have been warned not to come to the airport, as flights won't be departing, but for some this morning, the news came too late. we are just so surprised. we didn't pay any attention to the tickets, because it said air france on them, and i naively didn't realise that air france were tied in with flybe. we can't fly from here. there is no other airlines from here that will fly to jersey, so, you know, we have been floated options like ferries or, essentially, a different airport, but withjersey, there isn't really that many options.

unlike the collapse of other travel operators monarch and thomas cook, the civil aviation authority is not putting on flights to bring people home. for those now stuck abroad, other airlines have offered to step in. easyjet says it will offer a dedicated rescue fee for flybe passengers, £65 for return to the uk. people with future flights booked with flybe are being urged to contact their travel agent or tour operator, or debit or credit card company, to check how they can claim money back. and already, the blame game has begun. flybe ran into financial trouble in february last year. at the start of this year, it asked the government for financial assistance. ministers said they would help, and looked at delaying payments of air passenger duty due from the firm. but now the company says the impact of coronavirus on future bookings has made its future unviable. we really tried to do everything that we possibly could back at the turn of the year, and unfortunately, though,

with the situation that has developed with corona, an already weak company, i'm afraid, just hasn't been able to survive. but unions say the government could and should have done more. i think, for the government to allow an airline of this significance to collapse in these circumstances is its first real test of going from campaigning to the realities of government, and it is a real test of its levelling up agenda. so, we are going to be asking some searching questions about why this has happened so quickly, and what it means for the communities and our members directly. some regional airports say they have already had other operators express interest in taking over flybe routes, but for passengers facing chaos today, such offers will come too late. in the last hour the transport minister kelly tolhurst said that other airlines are ready to help passengers. u nfortu nately, unfortunately, in a competitive

market, companies do fail, and it is not the role the government to prop them up. given the time of year, the nature of flybe's fleet, and the roots it flies, should be available, either with other airlines over the road and rail. the number of passengers at brawdy is small, and is further reduced as a result of coronavirus. for those passengers who are abroad, there is sufficient capacity on commercial airlines to return to the uk. this variation of authority and the secretary of state encouraging these airlines to help. so far today, we have already heard from jersey and southampton. let's not go to belfast. who will replace

the company? yes, good afternoon from george best alpha city airport. you can see the flybe desks behind me, they would normally be busy, they would normally fly to inverness, southampton and a dozen places in between. the loss of flybe from belfast city airport is unique, but geographically it became part of in ireland, and also politically. the transport minister said maintaining connectivity is absolutely via important. sinn fein said it is important to the economy and businesses in northern ireland, and businesses in northern ireland, and businesses in northern ireland, and business leaders have also said it is important for commuters flying

in and out of belfast and northern ireland every week, and also students. there are thousands of northern irish students spread throughout the uk, so all across the board this is usually damaging for the economy, and the people of northern ireland. really there are very few other viable options. the chief executive of belfast city airport says that this has been a challenging time, but there has been interest in the 14 roots here. he said they are all profitable, and other airlines have expressed interest in taking over, and they say they are confident that within days other airlines will take up the slack here and move into some of those routes. there is speculation there might be an announcement of that later today, but it is said to be no consolation for the passengers queueing up here throughout the day.

these desks will remain closed, and passengers who are booked onto flybe have been told not to turn up to the airport here. we will be asking and answering your questions at around 12:30pm. if you want to try and squeeze on the question, you can do that using the hashtag... its tcan to conduct mouth across the top two thirds of the british isles, but a different story also. quite a vigorous area of low pressure across the south of england, not a great deal changing throughout the

afternoon, that rain creeping its way along the southern counties, behind the sky so much, much clearer. further north and west you go some showers rattling into scotland. having got to the lofty heights of seven or 8 degrees, as the sun sets the temperatures will fall again, the sun sets the temperatures will fallagain, a the sun sets the temperatures will fall again, a widespread frost in places. some of the temperatures in the north getting down to —4 —5, and then we are off and running to a chilly start on friday, but in the west there will be some sherry reverse of rain.

have been listening to the news and worrying about the future. this is bbc newsroom life. the headlines: with coronavirus cases in the uk continuing to rise — the chief medical officer for england warns we are moving into the ‘delay' stage of the government's plan to try slow the spread of the virus of the government's plan to try slow by of the government's plan to try slow delaying the s significant by delaying the start of a significant amount of community transition and a lot of other measures we could come to, we will push back the start of we have a peak of this epidemic. with 90 cases now confirmed in the uk, a new report says the nhs doesn't have enough nurses, to deal with an epidemic. 290 million students are out of

school around the world due to the coronavirus. flybe passengers are told ‘do not travel to the airport' — as europe's largest regional airline goes into administration. i don't know what i'm going to do now. when did you first hear? the early hours of the morning. quite a shock? yeah. yeah, i thought we would be saved, but not this time. with 2000 jobs at risk, the government says it is ready to help employees, but blamed a weak company and the coronavirus for the collapse. we really try to do everything that we possibly could back at the turn of the year and unfortunately, though, with the situation that has developed with corona and an already weak company hasjust not corona and an already weak company has just not been corona and an already weak company hasjust not been able to corona and an already weak company has just not been able to survive.

it's now time to answer some of your questions on the closure of flybe. thank you both very much for coming to join us today. we will begin with a question for you, then. this is from gabriel in southampton. he says, i have a flight in southampton. he says, i have a flight next week which was booked yesterday. what can i do? i guess this will cover what a lot of people wa nt to this will cover what a lot of people want to know who have flights booked with the airline. well, what bad luck, particularly having booked it just yesterday. audio. the bad news is that it is not going to happen. there is a small chance, if you booked with a partner airline, because flybe did a lot of code sharing with other airlines. if by any chance you have booked with a partner airline, that flight may still be happening, however there is

a very strong chance that if it was just with flybe, all he or she can do is book with another airline and try to get the money back. if they booked through a travel agent, the first thing to do is to travel mystic may contact the travel agent and they will hopefully be able to handle all of that and rebook them. if they booked direct, it is a different story, so it is going to be how did they booked, did they book with a credit card, if so, they need to contact their credit card company, hopefully get their money back. if it is through a debit card, they should hopefully be able to get it back under the chargeback scheme where if you have not had your goods, you can hopefully get it back. but that is really, unless they booked the chav agents, —— travel agent, all they can do is find another airline, find another way to do it and try to find another way. gary, vicky has a question,

vicky from kidderminster. she asks, will the flights that flybe ran now be run by other airline companies and we were just in belfast city airport a minute ago, we have been at various airports affected by this around the uk is so far today and lots of questions in all of those about who, if anyone, might step in. well, yes, there is still an outside chance that some other airline might step in. if you look from the belfast perspective, and belfast would probably be from all the flybe stations around the uk, belfast would probably be the second most exposed. 80% of all the flights out of belfast city airport are flybe flights. southampton is 65%. the airport management have told me this morning that all 14 of those routes are profitable, so this potentially is something that an incoming airline could look at. there are some problems in that flybe

generally fly the smaller type of aircraft, the twin prop aircraft. if, for argument's say, flybe or british airways's owner were to come m, british airways's owner were to come in, they tend to use bigger frights. there is also the problem that belfast city airport in that the ru nway belfast city airport in that the runway is slightly shorter than belfast international airport, so it restricts the type of planes that can go, but... ithink restricts the type of planes that can go, but... i think that is the case around other airports around the uk as well, that questioning some of them about whether the ru nways some of them about whether the runways would be long enough to accommodate larger aircraft. absolutely, and that is the case. we saw a absolutely, and that is the case. we sawa numberof absolutely, and that is the case. we saw a number of years ago when ryanair flew out of belfast city airport, there was a proposal at a time to extend the belfast city airport runway which was subsequently knocked back by the planners, so ryanair in that instance withdrew their services from belfast city airport. but there is still a chance, and the city airport in belfast would be quite confident, that something could

happen now, whether happens today, next week, next month. in the short—term, it is problematic for those who have booked to fly, but it is not a complete lost cause. so, yes, and with other airports around the uk affected by flybe, there may not be an immediate solution. a question that is linked to that now from dean who sent us this via e—mail. from dean who sent us this via e-mail. will another airline stepping to honour existing flybe bookings? well, what is happening is that various airlines are being askedif that various airlines are being asked if they can offer a rescue fare. ryanair has dropped in right away to offer rescue fares and so these are not free fares, these are perhaps good value, cheaper fares. easyj et perhaps good value, cheaper fares. easyjet as well, i believe. so i think as the day goes on and, of course, the situation is changing our by ourat course, the situation is changing our by our at the moment, but as the day goes on, i think we will see more airlines offering rescue fares on these routes and the government is also appealing to the rail

companies and so on to see if they can offer cheaper fares or rescue fa res, can offer cheaper fares or rescue fares, certainly for the british mainland, sold... if you are hoping to travel further afield or hoping to travel further afield or hoping to travel further afield or hoping to travel back from further afield, it becomes more, gated. it does, but there is a relatively small number of people actually overseas. that is partly the time of year, partly because of coronavirus and saw the majority of people affected are actually individuals. ok, gary has e—mailed us to ask our other flights which are operated by flybe such as virgin also counselled ? which are operated by flybe such as virgin also counselled? well, all flybe flights will be cancelled because the company is and is mistreating for top as regards virgin, theirflights mistreating for top as regards virgin, their flights will continue to fight as normal unless there is a direct link. they actually have an ownership part of flybe. you may rememberat the end ownership part of flybe. you may remember at the end of last year when flybe first indicated that it

was in trouble, and syndicate involving virgin and the store about group you are probably best known for their haulage lorries up and down the motorways and a fund from america give some solace to flybe. i have no indication that any virgin flights will be cancelled flybe flights, absolutely. you will not fly anywhere with flybe. virgin, you should be ok. ok, now from david in swanage who asks is the coronavirus having such a big impact on domestic air travel? rel companies also being hit to the same extent? good question. as far as flights go, i think the more cynical would say that actually flybe was in so much difficulty anyway that actually, you know, this might be a handy thing to blame. but, yes, airlines are definitely being affected by coronavirus already in that situation could get worse over the coming weeks. there is talk that

there may be even other failures around the world. we are notjust talking about the uk here. as far as rail travel, in the uk, there is no indication yet that rail travel has been impacted. now, obviously, as the virus goes on, it may be that people want want to be in a public space and there is talk of offices potentially closing down and people working from home. that might have an effect. but actually, every indicator seems to be that people at the moment still travelling by rail and, infact, more the moment still travelling by rail and, in fact, more people probably choosing to spend easter in the uk rather than travel overseas. it is really a very fluid situation as people wait to see what happens with the spread of the virus. gary, lets get back to costs involved here. bethany and aberdeen is asking if we asa bethany and aberdeen is asking if we as a debit card to boot, do we get our money back? it is probably a little bit more difficult with a debit card than with a credit card. if you have booked via credit card,

you are most lately to get your money back. id code is slightly different. if the flight you booked was over £100, you will probably have the same rights as if you booked it by credit card for if, however, it costs less than £100, it becomes a little bit more difficult under the rules around debit cards. some on this morning said the best advice really is to speak to your bank but if you booked your flights, for instance, two or three flights for instance, two or three flights for a family or whatever, the likelihood is that that was over £100 and you will probably be able to get that money back on a debit card. what about a voucher? we have another question from sheila who says she has a flybe voucher after a refund, how do i stand for getting my money back? unfortunately with that, we have seen in the past when big stores, big retail outlets collapsed in the past, the vouchers become almost a lost cause. i am not quite sure the flybe vouchers, how

they operate. again, if you have booked as you have dots make a voucher is almost cash and if you have a cash voucher now to spend at flybe, there is no to spend it, so i imagine if you have a voucher that you have claimed a refund through a voucher, i imagine that unfortunately that will be something that you willjust have to take on the chin that you may not get a refund on that voucher. well, we await more information, of course, on all of this, but thank you so much to both of you. thank you to you for sending in your questions. we just have one more you for sending in your questions. wejust have one more piece you for sending in your questions. we just have one more piece of news to bring you in relation to coronavirus. egypt has announced its first confirmed case of the virus.

a44—year—old man who had returned to egypt from serbia with a 12 hour layover in france, it says, so this isa layover in france, it says, so this is a website quoting health ministry statement as saying that egypt has announced its first confirmed case of coronavirus. the presidents of turkey and russia have met in moscow as the crisis in syria continues. the country's rebel held in lib provinces under heavy bombardment by government forces and the russian allies and dozens of turkish trips have died in recent days. a dog and who support the rebels says he hopes putting will support a quick ceasefire. in the current political climate, it can be difficult for those on different sides of the big issues to listen to other points of view. for many people, it can be hard to find common ground across a range of issues — whether it's climate change, immigration, or even how easy it is to get ahead in britain. that's why bbc news has been bringing people together today who disagree, and who might never normally meet,

to discuss the big issues, in an event called crossing divides live. we can now cross to our correspondent nina warhurst in salford. tell us more about how those conversations are going, nina. yes, good afternoon anita. look at these questions that they are writing on the window in salford. it is about making the future we want, not the one we are given. amen and women equal in the uk, the eu is making decisions for people despite the will of the people. we have been putting these big issues to 40 members of the public across the four nations. here they are, eating their lunch. we sat them down one to one opposite someone who we knew never as of today had very different thoughts on these issues. we asked them to listen. they went through a training process of something, deep listening which is where you stop, listen, listen again and repeat back to that person what they have been

saying and the hope is that if we feel we are listen to, that defensiveness and hostility is diminished slightly. let's find out whether it has been working. who does not like being interrupted when they are having their lunch? geraint and donna. we have here a meat farmer sitting next to ev again. evidence, though, your rice and noodles. what if you loan today, donna? i have learned that people are donna? i have learned that people a re really donna? i have learned that people are really wonderful. i have met some fabulous, fascinating people, points of view i have never thought of before. give me an example. we we re of before. give me an example. we were talking to alastair, matthew, matthew works with inner—city kids who are in gangs,, works in a inner—city office with interesting views on transport for sub i have met a garage was explained farming to me. i have met some absolutely fabulous people behind you who told me all about what they do and it is

wonderful to learn because if you do not learn anything, what is the point of being on this planet?” some of these people people who aren't paper you would not necessarily agree with and choose to hang around with but having met them face—to—face, it is a different story? i never look at anything written down that way. ijust story? i never look at anything written down that way. i just think from points of view politically or economically, we probably would never have met. but i am glad i did. iam glad never have met. but i am glad i did. i am glad i never have met. but i am glad i did. iam glad i met never have met. but i am glad i did. i am glad i met all of them. i never have met. but i am glad i did. iam glad i met all of them. iam glad i met geraint who has probably put up with a lot of waffle from me, but i really enjoyed it and i have loved listening tojenner but i really enjoyed it and i have loved listening to jenner and but i really enjoyed it and i have loved listening tojenner and to anyone because that is what we are here for. your cue to listen to each other. what have you learned from the deep listening? first of all, i have met a lovely feed again who i actually get on with. a lovely vegan and a meat farmer! the process of producing meat, we have an understanding here that it is not

what i am doing and someone, it has just been enlightening and the understanding that is there and the other people i have met here, it has been good. to learn to listen to them and not look for negatives and to positively ask questions as we move forward, it has been great. we are going to speak to mark eaton, home editor. we heard therefrom geraint and from donna, the super city of listening. we said at the beginning of the day, i think polarised? i beginning of the day, i think polarised ? i think beginning of the day, i think polarised? i think more divided than they have ever been? they are saying not. i do not think it is more divided. in many ways, in the 40 years i have been a journalist, i have seen our country become much more tolerant of differences and much more quick to challenge bigotry and prejudice, so i think in many ways, i say is more united. i think that the brexit debate itself exposed a very deep divide in our society, something that went to a very visceral level within us about the kind of country that we want to be. i also think that social media

and that opportunity to surround yourself with people with views like yourself with people with views like yourself and to say what you think without having to look into the eyes ofa without having to look into the eyes of a real person, that makes a difference. and that is what i think is interesting about this deep listening because human beings are short of hard—wired to deal with challenge with either fight or flight. challenge with either fight or flight. you are going to attack someone we disagree with or withdraw from the argument. this is asking you to do something else, it is asking you to listen, to really listen and try to understand the viewpoint of someone else and what is really interesting is that when people are physically together and looking into each other's faces and being required to listen properly, then of course, although they may disagree fundamentally on the point being discussed, they also recognise the shared humanity that they have. they can see this as a person just like me and many other things that we all worry about and concern as are equal to both of us. absolutely, and honestly, it has been very emotional today. we have seen people

embracing, crying, laughing. people are sitting on these tables who on paper disagree under the inflammatory issues but yet face—to—face, they are enjoying one another's company. come back to us later and we will see how they are progressing. and you can use the hashtag crossing divides live to take part in this day of debate across bbc5live and bbcnews on twitter. we'll be giving you the tools to break out of your bubble, and listen to the other point of view. it's time now for some more business news with alice. let's update on the business news this hour. uk airline flybe has gone into administration, putting 2,000 jobs at risk, after a bid for fresh financial support failed. the carrier said the impact of the coronavirus outbreak on demand for air travel was partly to blame for its collapse. john lewis has warned it could close shops as a plunge in profits forced it to cut staff

bonuses to their lowest level in almost 70 years. the retailer, which also owns waitrose, has launched a review of the business which it said would involve "right sizing" its stores across both brands. the uk will miss its goal of net zero carbon by 2050 unless it finds a way to finance nuclear power stations, the nuclear industry has said. the industry sent a confidential letter to chancellor rishi sunak which has been seen by the bbc. the letter was prompted by fears that the government will use next week's budget to ditch a plan to pay for new plants through a levy on energy bills. so as you've been hearing, flybe is telling customers "not travel to the airport" unless they have arranged an alternative flight. the exeter—based airline went into administration last night after narrowly avoided going bust in january. in a letter to the airline's staff, chief executive mark anderson said: "despite every effort, we now have no alternative —

having failed to find a feasible solution to allow us to keep trading and deliver our turnaround." transport secretary grant shapps said everyone was "gutted" about the news but the government has also said it is ready to help flybe's workers find newjobs and work with other airlines to replace services. earlier we spoke to matt roach, the boss of exter airport and asked him what impact last night's announcment will have on regional connectivity. i think the onus on us now is working with airline partners, local stakeholders, and the government, to try to make sure that we feel that regional connectivity gap that has been caused by this sad news. i think the government is clear that regional connectivity is a key strategy moving forward, and we will be working with them closely now to try and close the gap that we've now got. i think all regional airports of or that have been affected have that have been affected have got similar challenges in terms of route network and connectivity, right where exeter sits the airport is key for connectivity into the south—west,

and that is why it is important that local stakeholders and national government are alljoined up to try to make sure that that regional connectivity gap is filled. john lewis has unveiled its full year results and, as expected, they're not pretty. following a brutal year on the whole of the high street, the retailer will pay its lowest bonus to its staff — known as partners — in nearly 70 years. earlier we spoke to richard hyman, a retail analyst who took us through the numbers actually, a poor performance was pretty well known. although they have decided to stop doing it in so much detail, john lewis partnership actually, until recently, released weekly sales figures for both the department stores and waitrose, and over the past year, they have been pretty poor, especially on the department store site, so, the real question for us all this morning was were they going to pay a bonus at all? i think in the circumstances, 2% is probably pretty good, and it could have been a lot

worse, ie zero. the markets have had to mulch or time of late. shares slipped in london despite a surge on wall street yesterday as governments and central banks geared up for more aggressive measures to fight the virus outbreak and its effects on the economy. itv has become the latest business to announce a hit from coronavirus as it revealed that travel companies are deferring their tv advertising because of the disease. but insurance giant aviva posted a record annual earnings haul, saying it provided support to ‘several thousand‘ customers amid the recent uk winter storms. that‘s all the business news. thank you, alice. he‘s known as one of manchester united‘s best players, but now marcus rashford has swapped football training for sign language lessons as he takes on a new challenge off the pitch. in honour of world book day, he‘s judging a poetry competition for children with hearing loss — and it all came about after

a fan wrote him a letter asking him to do it. sally nugent went to meet him. he very recently posted a picture of yourself reading. yes. what were the responses to that like?” yourself reading. yes. what were the responses to that like? i don't know, probably a mixed response. robbie because people do not know that i enjoy reading, so, yeah, that was just something that i enjoy reading, so, yeah, that wasjust something i that i enjoy reading, so, yeah, that was just something i thought i should let everyone know. the children who have entered this competition have varying degrees of hearing loss. some of them are profoundly deaf. what are you hoping to see in their poems, what do you wa nt to to see in their poems, what do you want to see from them? for me, i wa nt to want to see from them? for me, i want to be able to understand a little insight on what each

individual is like, so for me, if you can sort of get your personality across by writing a poem, then, you know, it is good, so that‘s what i‘m looking for. i have to say, remember the boy who wrote to you? this is his poem here. i have already read this and i no you have not had a chance to read it, but he has written about my family. he has also put some very important pictures on it which looks like chicken and chips, xbox, fireworks and venice. that‘s pretty creative, isn‘t it? very creative. my mummy is happy, my daddy is big. it‘s great, isn‘t it? one thing that is really moving about this is that they are so honest and there is no awkwardness or sense of being different.” honest and there is no awkwardness or sense of being different. i was found that in school as well. when you are at that age, sometimes seeing things is difficult, so it is a lot easier to write it down and,

you know, you can bring that emotional side out. so, one of the things you are definitely going to have to learn in the next couple of weeks is sign language. our you ready? yes, i am ready. what we are going to do is start with good morning because hopefully you are going to come and give the prizes to the three winners, so what do you think the sign for good is? you are in natural! goods and then mourning isa in natural! goods and then mourning is a bit like blessing yourself. so good morning. the sign for footballer? i like that! all, it's running. tina, thank you very much and we will hopefully see you soon because you have got some work to do. yes, i do. plenty of homework.

pop star katy perry has revealed that she and her fiancee orlando bloom are expecting theirfirst child. the star announced her pregnancy in the video for her latest song, never worn white. here she is revealing a baby bump in the final frames of the video. after the reveal, she tweeted, now it‘s time for a look at the weather with phil avery. hello. thursday got off to a pretty chilly start for central and northern parts of the british isles. a widespread frost, nothing like it further south, though. miserable affair apparently according to peter and layer down on the cull said hastings. you are that bit closer to the centre of quite a vigorous area

of low pressure dominating the scene across the channel more than us. we are on the northern flank but still enough about it to produce quite a bit of rainfall. moderate for the most part, but the odd heavier burst has been showing up through the morning and will continue to do so until the first byte of the afternoon. further north, the further away you are from the centre of that low, decent enough day. plenty of sunshine around but it is doing absently nothing for the temperatures. locked in single figures. a passing shower, many more of them across northern and western parts of scotland, but a lovely afternoon in northern ireland. make the most of it. as the low pressure centre gradually slips into the heart of the continent, clearer skies will get into that north—eastern quarter and although here the temperatures are probable holding up, elsewhere, underthe clear skies, a pretty chilly night with temperatures down to —4 or —5, something of that order. here we are for friday and diane showing you another weather front lurking across the western side of the giles, but even the western side of the giles, but eve n a cross the western side of the giles, but even across that scale, you cannot

see an off a lot of rain. certainly, across northern ireland and down into wales, south—west england, the west midlands, eventually through the day, sharia bursts of rain rather than anything else and i think you will keep your sunshine the further east you are —— shower re—bursts of rain. getting towards double figures. towards the weekend, no name to stores to report but there will be some rain at times but by no means a wash—out of a weekend. yes, the first frontal system produces the wind and rain into the western side of scotland to northern ireland eventually with the north west of england and north wales, but it is slow progress. generally speaking, the further east and south you are, the drier your table b and you are, the drier your table b and you will not see that rain until the frontal system complete its journey across the british isles during the course of saturday night and on into the first part of sunday. eventually, it gets away from east anglia and then the day itself is one of sunny spells and showers and the temperatures again are

struggling to make double figures.