this is bbc news i'm martine croxall. the headlines at 11:00: 1a more patients who tested positive for coronavirus have died, bringing the number of deaths in the uk to 35. the health secretary warns that measures to combat coronavirus will disrupt the lives of everybody — and older people and those with underlying health conditions will be asked to stay at home. and in the past half hour, downing street has said the government will hold daily televised press conferences to update the public on the fight against the virus. also — the united states cuts interest rates to almost zero and launches a stimulus programme in a bid to protect the economy from the impact of coronavirus. british companies are urged to join a "national effort" to produce more ventilators and other medical equipment "at speed". huge queues today as supermarkets urge shoppers

not to buy more than they need, saying there is enough for everyone if people are considerate. and we'll be taking an in—depth look at the papers with our reviewers dawn foster and lucy beresford — stay with us for that. good evening. the government's said that in the coming weeks it will advise people over the age of 70 — and those with underlying health conditions — to stay at home for up to four months, to protect themselves from coronavirus. the health secretary matt hancock has also appealed to the manufacturing industry — asking if production lines could be switched to making extra ventilators for the nhs. today the number of deaths in the uk of people who'd tested positive

for the virus rose to 35, with confirmed cases now close to 1,400. in the last hour — the bank of england and five other central banks, including america's federal reserve, have announced coordinated action aimed at limiting the economic fallout from the virus. our first report tonight is from our home editor mark easton. the centre of leeds today, as the government warns we may be just weeks from asking britain's elderly to go into self—imposed quarantine. to protect those most vulnerable to the virus, ministers plan to encourage more than ten million pensioners and those with respiratory conditions to consider isolating themselves for what may be several months. we do not want formally to say yet that people should do that, and the reason for that is simply this length of time that they'd need —— we do not want formally to say yet that people should do that, and the reason for that is simply this length of time that they'd need to stay self—isolated, stay at home, to protect themselves, it's a very big ask, it's a very long time. it is a big ask, a measure

that poses agonising questions for every family. both myself and my wife have elderly parents who, at the minute, are relatively physically fit, but we've had to change plans with having them looking after our children. my mum, she's 87 now, and i've given her the advice myself to stay in and not go out. whatever they advise, we'll have to follow, won't we? we trust in them, don't we? the government knows there's a balance between shielding at—risk groups from the virus at its height and exposing them to the health risks of loneliness, anxiety and depression. i've got underlying circumstances and, yeah, i'm 77, so i'm right into that category and i don't fancy it. i do think we do have to take it very seriously, and people protect themselves. hasn't everything gone crazy? you're just walking around, people are going... constantly. it's been revealed that six residents in a nursing home in north lanarkshire have tested positive for coronavirus.

no visitors are now being allowed at the highgate care home in uddingston. but what if you're caring for someone in their own home? the health secretary says britain will need an army of volunteers. every single person in this country is going to be affected and going to have to do things. if you are healthy and they are healthy, then please go and help them. the government's plan is based on reducing infections while increasing nhs capacity. this is how the virus might spread without interventions. scientific advisors hope the peak of the virus can be delayed, allowing time for the health service to free up more beds, train more staff and source more equipment. hospitals like this one in central london may soon run out of intensive care beds, so one idea is to requisition what these days are largely empty hotels, for extra space, drafting in retired medics and volunteers to treat and support patients. dissecting forceps. 0perating theatres, with their supply of oxygen, may be used as emergency wards.

there aren't nearly enough medical ventilators in britain for those whose lives may depend on them, so the government is asking engineering companies to switch resources to making as many of those as possible, although manufacturers warn it may take months to get production started. tonight, it was confirmed that nick matthews, a 59—year—old former police officer from somerset, is among those who've died after testing positive for the virus. he had previously suffered a heart attack and been off work. ministers don't want to spread panic along with the infection, but they do want to prepare the country for some very difficult days ahead. mark easton, bbc news. downing street have announced fresh plans to keep the public more informed with the its coronavirus strategy. borisjohnson or one of his senior ministers will hold a daily press conference, supported by experts including the chief medical officer. the first one will be after the cobra meeting tomorrow where he will appear along side alongside chief medical officer

professor chris whitty and chief scientific adviser sir patrick vallance. with me is our political correspondent, jessica parker. my my understanding is that prime minister is keen to chair those where possible himself alongside people at the chief medical officer, this chief scientific officer. figures we have become rather used to with recent press conferences and media appearances as well. it will not always be those people. they might bea not always be those people. they might be a rotating cast list depending on what people are working on. however, ithink depending on what people are working on. however, i think the effort is to inform people and it does follow some criticism over the weekend of the government public messaging. the way in which the announcement of asking the over 70s within weeks to stay at home emerged in dribs and drabs overnight in this apparent contradiction on whether the government exit herd immunity, tilting up immunity within the population, is something they should

be aiming for. labour are welcoming the fact there is going to be a daily crest saying it is something they have been calling for. i think government sources will probably suggest daily press conferences are something that has always been on the cards in the time is right. clearly they have decided the time is right tomorrow. john mcdonnell has said that it has taken a lot of pressure for the government to get to that point. he has said that in the government will push back and say that it is something they will possibly have always planned to do. you can look at the timing and say the government has been criticised specifically this weekend for some of its communications for the reason we have discussed and here they are announcing that daily press briefings will begin tomorrow. because it does coincide with what does appear to be ramped up efforts to tackle the coronavirus. you're also going to see the emergency legislation this coming week. because, learn friday night into saturday morning that the government is going to ban mass gatherings. do

not know the details of that but possibly as early as next weekend. i think clearly they think medication will be key going forward but perhaps some critics will look at the situation over the weekend and say, if there is a vacuum of information, it just say, if there is a vacuum of information, itjust gets filled with speculation, misinformation, andi with speculation, misinformation, and i think downing street clearly wanting to take hold of the narrative as much as they can from tomorrow. jessica, thank you very much, jessica parker. the us federal reserve has cut interest rates for a second time in a fortnight to 0.25%. central banks in the united states have also taken coordinated action in an effort to protect the american economy from the impacts of the coronavirus pandemic. president trump welcomed the decision. it makes me very happy and i want to congratulate federal reserve. for starters, they have loaded the rate from what it was which was one — 1.25, and it has been lowered down

to zero, zero point 25 or 0.25. so it is 0— to zero, zero point 25 or 0.25. so it is 0- 0.25 to zero, zero point 25 or 0.25. so it is 0— 0.25 so that is a big difference. it is quite a bit, a point. and in addition, very importantly, the jewel reserve point. and in addition, very importantly, thejewel reserve is going to be purchasing 500 alien dollars of treasuries and $200 billion of mortgage—backed securities and that number can increase but they are going to start with that and that is really good news. it is really great for our country. it is something that we are very happy, i have to say, very happy. and they did it in one step, they didn't do it in four steps, over a long period of time, they did it in one step and i think people in the market should be very thrilled and that brings us to being the strongest country in the world by far, financially and every other way, and it rings us in line with what other countries are. they

actually have negative rates but look what we got down to, potentially zero, so that is a big step and i am very happy they did it. and you will not hear anything bad about me unless it is about a month or two from now. with me now is our north american correspondent david willis who's in los angeles for us. for a cut to come so quickly after the one on march the third tells you that they are worried. i think that isa that they are worried. i think that is a very good conclusion to reach. very sound conclusion to reach, martin. yes, they cut interest rates by 0.5 and until —— instead of waiting until the next federal reserve meeting on wednesday of this week, the federal reserve board acting on a sunday night to announce this very large cut in interest rates, bringing them down to almost

zero. we haven't seen that sort of thing since the recession of 2008 and president trump, as you heard, very pleased about that. he said it was phenomenal, terrific, and he hoped it would have a good effect on the markets when they open tomorrow. he has good reason to help —— hope that, martin, because they have been in freefall, very nervous about the effects of the spreading coronavirus. this is a co-ordinated action with other countries?m coronavirus. this is a co-ordinated action with other countries? it is indeed an aside i think that central banks all the world over are recognising that such as this crisis, they need to stick together and co—ordinate. this will do is make borrowing money cheaper so that will of course help small businesses whose customers may well be deserting them but they still have the same overheads and so on. of our interest rates will be lower, so will the interest rates of people

using credit cards. what effect it will have in terms of stimulating the economy, prompting those who we re the economy, prompting those who were perhaps in rental accommodation a moment ago is another matter because a lot of analysts are saying people here have other things to think about right now. david, thank you very much, david willis in la. amid concern about stockpiling, 12 large food retailers have come together to urge people not to panic buy. they say they're working night and day to keep the nation fed and people should not buy more than they need. here's our business correspondent katy austin. queues for supermarkets and shelves emptied of essentials like loo roll, hand wash and long—life foods. pictures like these show shoppers aren't listening to official advice. how was it in there? an absolute nightmare, to be perfectly honest. not a lot on the shelves left. no toilet roll at all. have you tried to stock up on anything yourself? yes, to be perfectly honest,

just because everyone else is doing it. but they did limit us when we went to pay. it's a bit ridiculous. i can't find toilet paper. i'm looking for toilet paper for a couple of days, three days, actually. supermarkets have had to adapt quickly by speeding up supplies, increasing warehouse space and they are running online delivery services at full capacity. they are also being allowed to extend their delivery hours. but still, many shops are limiting the purchases of the most in—demand products. here at aldi, customers are being asked not to buy more than four of anything. now food retailers have written to customers asking them to be considerate in the way they shop, telling them, "buying more than is needed can sometimes mean that others will be left without." they are reassured, though, there is enough for everyone if we all work together. the risk is that we alljust buy that little bit more than we actually need and if we all did that, then that would cause more of a problem in terms of making sure that we have got the right supplies coming through the system.

superstores may be selling out, but stocks are holding up better at corner shops, although they say wholesalers' prices have soared. today's letter from retailers is a plea to all customers to stop panic buying for fear of overstretching the system and leaving the most vulnerable without what they need. katy austin, bbc news. train companies today joined airlines in calling for government support because passenger numbers have dropped amid the outbreak. on some rail lines last week — they were estimated to be down by nearly a fifth. here's our tranport correspondent tom burridge. passenger numbers are significantly down at peak times in major train stations across the uk. as the coronavirus spreads, more people are working from home and avoiding non—essential travel.

i do a lot of travelling with work, and now we've restricted that to dire need only, so a lot of work is being done via the internet. conference calls, etc. with what's happening at the moment, i think we're definitely looking in a bit more detail and only going places where we have to go. so, yeah, i suppose our habits will be changing. the worry and expectation from train companies is that passenger numbers will continue to fall, so they're negotiating with government and they want relief on payments they make to run franchises. some train companies were already losing money before the coronavirus outbreak, so with passenger numbers falling, drastic measures are now needed from government, i'm told, if those companies are to survive. all of our travel habits will, for a period of time, change. my grandparents have just gone away to spain, and they're stuck in an airport at the moment, wondering whether they're going to get back, so it's made me think about travelling, obviously. ryanair is the latest airline to cut

virtually all flights to and from spain for the coming days, the airline telling staff they'll have to take unpaid leave. job cuts could follow. jonathan matthews was due to fly back home with ryanair tomorrow from ibiza. now we've read this lockdown that was supposed to start on monday has been brought forward and we're not supposed to leave, so all today's plans are cancelled. at airports like ibiza, a limited number of flights are still running, but most aren't. 0ne scandinavian airline says it will temporarily lay off 9,000 of the 10,000 people it employs. the uk civil aviation authority called it "the worst moment ever", as travel companies fight to survive. tom burridge, bbc news. with me now travel journalist, arnie weissmann. the advice around travelling

changing by the date from the world health organization? it is a very fluid situation. with new information and new closings and foreign teens coming in every day so it is just very difficult, really, for everybody, what is going on. how great an for everybody, what is going on. how greatan impact for everybody, what is going on. how great an impact is a going to have when in the united states introduces further restrictions for travellers from europe including the uk?m will be significant. the travelling industry is considered an export, or a currency. you have $1.1 trillion in the tourism economy in the us and the uk is the largest single group of inbound travellers. they represent about $12 billion. 4.7 million travellers coming in. adding

them to the list of banned travellers is going to have a significant impact and the impact is obviously on hotels, on airlines but also lots and lots of small businesses that depend on travel and tourism. everything from restau ra nts, tourism. everything from restaurants, travel agencies, to smaller attractions that still bring people in. how has the coronavirus already had an impact on the travel industry in america before these new restrictions? there was some concern but the government had downplayed, to be honest, a lot of the concerns so to be honest, a lot of the concerns so people are really only in the last few days beginning to get a heightened sense of even just gathering in any size. there was a greater concern about being

florentine abroad . on was now that the virus is