it's for 30 pm, you are watching a bbc news special with the latest on the coronavirus pandemic, and we will be live in downing street for the prime minister's news conference very shortly. so far, there are 1543 confirmed cases in the uk. government ministers have held an emergency cobra meeting today to discuss measures to protect the elderly and vulnerable. it has been another volatile day for global financial markets, the us stock exchange temporarily suspended again after the dowjones fell by 10% shortly after opening. the european commission is calling for a month

long ban for nonessential travel to the eu. nonessentialtravel long ban for nonessential travel to the eu. nonessential travel should be reduced right now too in order not to spread the virus further, be it within the european union or by leaving the european union, but also to avoid nonessential travel, not to have more potential strain on our health care system. germany becomes the latest european country to closes its borders — and the french president will make a national address this evening. the psa group — which owns peugeot, citroen and vauxhall — is to pause vehicle production in europe — including their plants in ellesmere port and luton. the foreign office says it's working around the clock

to help bring home 600 britons stuck on a cruise ship in the caribbean. it's 4:30, welcome to viewers on bbc one and the bbc news channel, for this special programme with the latest on the coronavirus pandemic. in around 15 minutes, the prime minister borisjohnson and his chief medical and scientific advisers will appear at a news conference in number ten downing street and they'll no doubt field further questions about the government's strategy, and the stark contrast with the restrictive measures being adopted in many other countries. the day's main developments so far... the latest number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the uk is1,51i3. government ministers have held an emergency cobra meeting to discuss social distancing for the elderly and vulnerable. in other words more rigorous measures.

the head of the world health organisation has said the measures countries are taking to stop the spread of coronavirus are not enough. all foreign travel to the eu looks set to be banned for 30 days. the number of infections outside china passes 87,000. in china, they stand at 80,860. the us authorities advise against gatherings of more than 50 people. world stock markets have fallen sharply, despite action from central banks. and peugeot—citroen—vauxhall have announced the gradual closure of all its european plants, including ellesmere port and luton. sophie hutchinson has the day's developments. what new measures are we announcing today? the health secretary arriving at number ten today ahead of another

emergency meeting on the coronavirus pandemic. at the entrance to downing street, a small group of campaigners echoed more widespread concerns about whether ministers should implement a major shutdown, like other countries. and those on the front line treating patients say they need more information. we need to know much more from the government about the preparedness. we of course have real concerns about the number of doctors. we are already short of doctors in the uk, and the immediate priority from my end representing the nation's doctors is to keep them protected, keep them free from protection, because if they fall sick and they are not able to work, we won't have the workforce to look after acutely ill patients. and there are growing concerns about whether enough is being done to protect elderly people and those with underlying conditions. ministers have said those over 70 could be asked to stay at home in the coming weeks, but

some have already taken action themselves, staying away from other people, and doing online shopping. themselves, staying away from other people, and doing online shoppinglj feel extremely vulnerable, and because i am alone and i have no family, ijust because i am alone and i have no family, i just don't because i am alone and i have no family, ijust don't want to be in that position where i don't know what to do, and i can't breathe. having had pneumonia several times, and asthma all my life, which is regulated, i know what it feels like to not be able to breathe, and i don't want to be then feeling that i might die and i am all alone. so i'm trying to do my best to avoid it.|j wa nt trying to do my best to avoid it.|j want to make sure today that everyone knows how to wash your hands. schools across the uk are still open, despite blanket closures and other european countries. the education secretary is meeting head teachers later to discuss their concerns. some universities have halted classes and moved all their lectures online. in scotland today, measures came in advising gatherings of more than 500 people to be

cancelled. 0fficials warned it could remain in place for up to four months, but it is not clear when similar measures could be introduced to the rest of the uk. we are absolutely, religiously, if you like, following the advice of medical and scientific officers. so we think the best way to handle this is not to do what sort of politicians think is the right thing to do but to do what the experts, the scientists, the medical experts tell us and what needs to be done. and following a clamour for more information, borisjohnson and following a clamour for more information, boris johnson and ministers will now hold daily televised briefings, to update the public on how to stay stay. there are now more than 1500 cases confirmed of the virus in the uk, but the true figure is believed to be many thousands more. sophie hutchinson, bbc news. sophie with some of the main development so far today. as i say, we are expecting the prime minister and his medical and scientific experts to appear at a news conference, possibly within ten

minutes‘s time. that is the expectation but we will be there in downing street as soon as that happens. in the past half hour... the head of the world health organization has said the only way to beat coronavirus was to test everyone who believed they had symptoms. the most effective way to prevent infections and save lives is breaking the chains of transmission. and to do that, you must test and isolate. you cannot fight a fire blindfolded and we cannot stop this pandemic if we don't know who is infected. we have a simple message for all countries — test, test, test. test every suspected case. if they test positive, isolate them and find out who they have been in close contact with two days before they developed

symptoms and test those people too. of the world health organisation, that message was very clear, not enough is being done. not specifically mentioning individual countries, but certainly as michelle will be telling us now, our health correspondent, the expectation people will be comparing and contrasting what different countries are doing. so as we look ahead to this news conference, as we think is in about ten minutes' time, just where are we right now with the way that the uk's strategy is working out, or is seen to be working out, and the fact that ministers are still facing questions about the kind of approach they have adopted? so as we have heard, the latest? is able testing how much should be done, how much is being done. different countries have taken different approaches, so the uk is obviously looking at testing now

most recently only the most sick people, whereas previously it was suspected cases in the general wider public as well. but we've stopped doing that, which other countries have been praised for how much testing they have done. south korea isa testing they have done. south korea is a good example. they've got a similar population size to us in the uk. they've been doing 250,000 tests so uk. they've been doing 250,000 tests so far, we've been doing 114,000 so far. so it is quite a big gap. yes. the us has come under criticism by some parties that it has not done a massive amount of testing too. where are we with the rate of increasing new cases? some people rely on the figures in recent days but for the uk where are we with that trend? we have had 171 extra cases we have heard about today, bringing the total up to 15113 who have tested positive for the virus. 0bviously total up to 15113 who have tested positive for the virus. obviously it is difficult to compare, because a week ago we were testing more people, we were looking at suspected

cases who had had a travel history, or who had developed symptoms will stop now, the testing isjust happening in hospitals, among patients who are ill with something that they think could be coronavirus. so it is very difficult to get a handle on how much communities spread there is, and thatis communities spread there is, and that is the part that will tell us how widespread the symptoms are. if we don't know how the people are infected, we can't then really get a good handle on how many get sick with it. when we take a look at this graph, which is about the number of new recorded cases, suggesting it is slowing down, what context can you provide for that? so you have to be careful. 0bviously, provide for that? so you have to be careful. obviously, the testing began, we have done a lot of tests, 44,000, but the earlier part of this graph includes wider testing in the community. now, although it looks like it is going down, we are targeting testing to people in

hospitals who have respiratory symptoms. so to put that in another way, which may be a little blunt, that isn't entirely reliable as it stands, you think? the test itself is very good. no, that outcome. that outcome on the graph, you also have to question how much is in the community. when we get the news conference today, what you expect will be said about the latest stages of the government public response, whether they are going to be adjusting some parts of that or not? they have been accused of you turning on some things in recent days, so what you expect the message to be today? i think we are very much still in the delayed phase full stop we talked about the different phases that are in the plan to try and this virus, and the delay is still about trying to shield the most vulnerable, reduce the number of new cases that the nhs might need to deal with. so i expect we will be hearing more about protecting people

over the age of 70, people with pre—existing health conditions, and more advice about social isolation. so we have heard before how people should be staying at home, but then we have today heard that people might be able to go for a walk. that doesn't necessarily mean locked up in their house with no contact at all with the environment. michelle, we will talk again later but thanks very much. some breaking newsjust coming in, this is from the ministry ofjustice. the implications of this clearly are interesting to say the least. and could be very, very concerning. a prison officer is among those who has tested positive for coronavirus, this is from the ministry ofjustice just a few minutes ago. the male prison officer from high down prison in surrey is believed to be the first person in any uk prism to be confirmed as

infected with coronavirus. he tested positive —— any uk prison, he tested positive —— any uk prison, he tested positive on saturday, now home recuperating. four prisoners who we re recuperating. four prisoners who were in close contact with the office i have been placed in isolation as a precaution. high down prison is a local category b prison located in ba nstead, prison is a local category b prison located in banstead, surrey. an inspection in 2018 since 400 of the 1100 or so men were held in overcrowded cells that had been designed for one person. so the question marks about the actual crowding, overcrowding, or not, of the prison itself. butjust to confirm that news, i'm just scanning the rest of it, yes, just to confirm that news, a prison officer has now tested positive for coronavirus, the ministry ofjustice saying this happened on saturday at high down prison in ba nstead happened on saturday at high down prison in banstead in surrey, and he is expected to be believed the first

person in any uk prison to be infected with the virus. it is for 40 3pm on this bbc news special on the coronavirus pandemic. we are expecting the prime minister to address journalists and others at a news co nfe re nce address journalists and others at a news conference in a short while in downing street, but my colleague helen catt is outside number ten. just a thought on what you think are the kinds of questions they will be facing today. well, certainly there will be questions on why uk policy isn't quite in line with some other countries. as you mentioned on that issue of testing, why the uk is saying we won't test a mild cases of people who are just self isolating at home for example, and again we have heard repeated questions about theissue have heard repeated questions about the issue of school closures, the number ten spokesperson saying earlier we are not ruling that out but now is not the time. i think we will also hear questions, this institution of a daily news briefing comes institution of a daily news briefing co m es after institution of a daily news briefing comes after a week and when questions have been raised about the government's transparency and its

communication strategy over the coronavirus outbreak. there has been confusion overfor coronavirus outbreak. there has been confusion over for example that issue around what happens for people over 70, the fact that emerged on a journalist's blog over the weekend certainly raised some eyebrows. there has also been confusion over this idea of herd immunity. this was something mentioned by the chief scientific adviser in interviews towards the end of last week, where he was saying building some degree of herd immunity could slow rates of transmission and then you heard the health secretary matt hancock rating in the papers yesterday saying that is not government policy to get herd immunity, the goal was to protect life, the vulnerable and the nhs. there has certainly been some confusion over the weekend and of course this is a really, really fast moving situation, things are changing by the minute, by the hour, as your breaking news just showed. there will be a huge amount of questions borisjohnson will be answering.

thank you for talking to us, we will be back in downing street when the prime minister emerges. our global trade correspondent darshini david is here. lots of things in terms of markets and the impact on individual companies, not least the airline companies, not least the airline companies, motor manufacturers. what for you are the main thing is to look out for? it is like deja vu, the markets in london have closed in the markets in london have closed in the last few minutes, the ftse 100 the last few minutes, the ftse100 down by 4.5%. if you have a pension fund invest in that index, it is worth about 25% less than it was a month ago. but the story is changing and as we get these warnings out from companies and car manufacturers, saying they are shutting down their factories temporarily and airlines grounding up temporarily and airlines grounding up to 80% of their fleet. we are no longer talking about if there is going to be a recession, it is a downturn in activity because there isn't much activity going on.

whether or not this can be stopped from becoming a lengthy downturn, a depression with firms going under and unemployment rising. so we will have to wait and see what central banks do. have you been surprised with the speed of which some of these big corporations have now moved to say we are stopping production, we are putting an end to people gathering in big numbers in certain places. you know, and no kind of end in sight, it is all very open—ended. has it taken people by surprise? it has, but these are desperate measures and not decisions companies take lightly. because every time you close a company, you are losing money, but these circumstances we have never seen before. it underlines how important the situation is and why those markets are falling. dow in america falling by over 10% and that is how serious it is. they have got the interest rates there. you can cut interest rates there. you can cut interest rates there. you can cut interest rates but if people don't go out and spend because they have

more money in their pockets because they are staying at home, there is little point. the markets are saying, this is an emergency and we know company representatives are meeting with government over the next day or so to ask for more help. the airline industry once billions of pounds in targeted support and it is that kind of coordinated action they want to see from around the globe. some people are calling it an induced coma for business, give them this lifeline, get them through it and make sure we can get out the other end and the combo co nvalescence other end and the combo convalescence in financial terms can be easier. i am being told the news conference will be getting under way injusta conference will be getting under way injust a few conference will be getting under way in just a few seconds. so, we will be in downing street within a couple of minutes. with that in mind, when you are prime minister or a newly appointed chancellor who has just delivered a budget with all kinds of ambitions in it, all kinds of talk of infrastructure and major spending

plans, if then, through no fault of your own because of the coronavirus, as people would argue, suddenly economic activity is going to slow down to a trickle and some of your own revenues look rather less reliable, what does that budget look like today? that budget looks very different, it looks different to what that new chancellor would have imagined a few weeks ago. this is what governments are therefore, emergencies like this. that is what the chancellor has the coffers for to open a bank get us through hard times. george osborne used to say, fix the roof while the sun shines, so it is looking pretty billowy and raining out there. we saw £12 billion announced in the street‘s budget and about 6 billion of that is for small businesses in particular. 0nly1 billion to help those workers who are more vulnerable. so plenty more demands around the country from travel

companies to hotels, even bookmakers having a terrible day, their share prices slumping because that kind of activity isn't happening at the moment. we will talk later, thank you very much. just talking about the economic impact, but among the other news is the fact germany has taken some incredibly rigorous moves and taken some big decisions about who can move some big decisions about who can m ove a cross some big decisions about who can move across borders. jenny hill is our correspondence in berlin but we are going straight to downing street where the news conference is about to get under way. that afternoon. thank you to everybody for coming. i wanted to announce the new national fightback against the new coronavirus and the decisions we have taken in cobra for the whole of the uk. as we said last week, our objective is to delay and flatten the peak of the epidemic. by bringing forward the right measures at the right time, so that we can

minimise suffering and save life. everything we do is based scrupulously on the best scientific advice. last week, we asked everyone to stay—at—home if you had one of two key symptoms, high temperature ora two key symptoms, high temperature or a new two key symptoms, high temperature ora new and two key symptoms, high temperature or a new and continuous cough. today we need to go further. because according to the scientific advisory committee on emergencies, it looks as though we are now approaching the fast growth pa rt as though we are now approaching the fast growth part of the upward curve and without drastic action, cases could double every five or six days. so, first we need to ask you to ensure that if you or anyone in your

household has one of those two symptoms, then you should stay—at—home for 14 days. that means, that if possible, you should not go out, even to buy food all the essentials other than for exercise, and in that case, at a safe distance from others. if necessary, you should ask for help from others for your daily necessities. if that is not possible, then you should do what you can to limit your social contact when you leave the house to get supplies. and even if you don't have symptoms, and if no one in your household has symptoms, there is more that we need you to do now. so second, now is the time for everyone to stop non—essential contact with others. and to stop all unnecessary

travel. we need people to start working from home where they possibly can and you should avoid pubs, clubs, theatres and other such social venues. it goes without saying, repeat the message, we should all only use the nhs when we really need to and please go online rather than ringing nhs111. really need to and please go online rather than ringing nhs 111. now this advice about avoiding all unnecessary social contact is particularly important for people over 70, for pregnant women and for those with health conditions, with some health conditions. and, if you ask why are we doing this now, why not earlier or later, why bring in this very draconian measure? the a nswer this very draconian measure? the answer is, we are asking people to do something that is difficult and disruptive of their lives. and the

right moment, as we have always said, is to do it when it is most effective, when we think it can make the biggest difference to slowing the biggest difference to slowing the spread of the disease, reducing the spread of the disease, reducing the number of victims, reducing the number of fatalities. and as we take these steps, we should be focusing on the most vulnerable. so third, in a few days' time, by this coming weekend, it will be necessary to go further and to ensure those with the most serious health conditions are largely shielded from contact, from social contact for around 12 weeks. and again, the reason for doing this in the next few days rather than earlier than later, this is going to be very disruptive for people who have such conditions difficult for them, but i believe it is now

necessary. we want to ensure this period of shielding, this period of maximum protection coincides with the peak of the disease. it is now clear that the peak of the epidemic is coming faster in some parts of the country than in others. it looks as though london is a few weeks ahead. so, to relieve the pressure on the london health system and to slow the spread in london, it is important that londoners now pay special attention to what we are saying about avoiding nonessential contact and to take particularly seriously, the advice about working from home and avoiding confined spaces such as pubs and restaurants. last, it remains true, as we have said in the last few weeks, risks of

transmission of the disease at mass gatherings such as sporting events are relatively low. as we advise against unnecessary social contact of all kinds, it is right that we should extend that advice to mass gatherings as well. we have also got to ensure that we have the critical workers we need that might otherwise be deployed at those gatherings, to deal with this emergency. so from tomorrow, we will no longer be supporting mass gatherings with emergency workers in the way that we normally do. so mass gatherings, we are now moving emphatically away from. i know many people, including millions of fit and active people over 70, may feel, millions of fit and active people over70, may feel, listening millions of fit and active people over 70, may feel, listening to what i have just over 70, may feel, listening to what i havejust said, that over 70, may feel, listening to what i have just said, that there over 70, may feel, listening to what i havejust said, that there is something excessive about these

measures. but i have to say, i believe they are overwhelmingly worth it. to slow the spread of the disease, reduce the peak, to save life, minimise suffering and to give our nhs the chance to cope. 0ver life, minimise suffering and to give our nhs the chance to cope. over the last few days, i have been comparing notes and talking to leaders around the world and i can tell you, the uk is now leading a growing global campaign amongst all our friends and allies, whether in the g7, the g20, the un, the imf, all those bodies in which we play a significant role, we are leading the campaign to fight back against this disease. to keep the economy growing, to make sure that humanity has access to the drugs and the treatments that we all need and the uk is also at the front of the effort to back business, to

back our economy, to make sure that we get through it. i know that we are today asking a lot of everybody. this is far more now than just washing your hands, though clearly washing your hands, though clearly washing your hands remains important. but i can tell you, that across this country, people and businesses, in my experience, are responding with amazing energy and creativity to the challenge that we face. i want to thank everybody for the part you are playing and you are going to play. 0ur chief scientific adviser will now update us on where we are. thank you. we have looked a long sage that can save lives and protect people. the objectives, as i laid out last time are to really suppress the curve in order to keep it below nhs capacity. so that the

nhs can cope and to shield the vulnerable and those most likely to get severe disease, so that we protect them across this period. most people, it is worth reminding us, have a mild disease, but some do not. this is a very fast—moving situation. the latest numbers we reviewed at sage suggest we are entering a fast growth period, or on the cusp of doing so and london is ahead of other parts of the country. we, at the outset, laid out a plan and advised we would implement it, the measures at the right stage and in the right time is now for many of these measures. what we are doing is implementing them actually at a

stage of the epidemic which is a little bit earlier than has been donein little bit earlier than has been done in some other countries, given where we are in terms of the epidemic now. the measures have two objectives. 0ne, epidemic now. the measures have two objectives. one, is to delay the transmission of this virus across the community and the second, is to keep people safe. the measures, as the prime minister has outlined, include whole household isolation. so if one person gets the symptoms of new persistent cough or fever, the whole household stays isolated for 14 days. the reason it's 14 days is the seven days for the person who has got the infection, the incubation period that others may catch it, and the seven days after that. we are also recommending increased social distancing, that's the phrase that

you hear, which means trying to reduce contact between people, again to try to delay this transmission. that means, where businesses can do it, and where individuals can do it, home—working is recommended. unnecessary travel should be reduced and stopped. avoiding gatherings in crowded places is important, and those gatherings, big or small, are important so that you get the whole thing together, it's notjust the size of the gatherings, actually all gatherings, which become important. and reducing social contacts. there are specific measures for the vulnerable groups, the people who are most likely to get serious illness with this infection, and chris whitty will say more about that. there is measures would need to go on for 12 weeks or so across this period, may be a little longer.

these measures, like case isolation that we talked about last week, staying at home, if you have got the symptoms, these new measures have a big effect. this is not a series of small interventions. you would anticipate this could have a dramatic effect to reduce the peak and to reduce the death rate. they are not easy but they are important, and they will have the effect if we all do it. this is a matter for us to take accountability, to make sure we help each other, protect ourselves, and protect the nhs. it is also possible, as laid out in the plan, that other measures may be necessary, including at some point, as we've said, it may be necessary to think about things like school closures, but those things again need to be done at the right time, in the right way, at the right stage of the outbreak. i will hand over to

chris. thank you. i'mjust of the outbreak. i will hand over to chris. thank you. i'm just going to add a few comments additionally, from a medical point of view, but i'm not going to repeat points that have already been made. the first thing is to make an obvious point that this is now a very global disease, and the way you deal with global pandemics is different in public health terms than the way you would deal with a localised outbreak where you are the first country, or a very significant region that has got it. and the second point is the obvious point again that in this country, this disease is now accelerating up the curve, but it is still at a low level, but it will accelerate up now really quite rapidly. now we obviously need to do things that are both effective and all the measures here have been gone over by several large numbers of scientists in different ways, looking at mathematical models, behavioural sciences, many other

forms of science, define the things which are the most effective, but they also have to be sustainable, because this is going to go on for some time, and i think we should not be underany some time, and i think we should not be under any illusions that if we just do this for a couple of weeks, thatis just do this for a couple of weeks, that is sufficient. this will have to bea that is sufficient. this will have to be a prolonged period. for any individual person, let me start off with the most cheery point about this, for any individual person, the chances of dying from coronavirus are actually very low. some people will not get the infection, and many of the measures we are doing at the moment will help with that. some people will get it and will have no symptoms at all, they won't even realise they have had it. of those who do have symptoms, the majority will have either a mild disease or a moderate disease, meaning they can easily manage it at home without having to go to the nhs, directly or indirectly, in any other way. but

obviously a small minority, but a significant one, get significant disease, requiring hospital care. a small proportion of those will go on to need intensive care, and sadly some people will go on to die. and as we have discussed before, the overall mortality rate looks to be at least a bit less than 1%, but that defence only to forget the symptoms a symptomatically. but some people get it. we know that older people get it. we know that older people are at greater risk, but it is important to stress that being old does not necessarily mean you will get it worse, and there was a rather nice article by my minister nadine dorries who explained when she had coronavirus, her mother who had it from her had it more mildly, so it is not a necessary fact that older people will necessarily have it worse. so you might say wire with a disease where we have such small numbers at the moment, and which ——

why with a disease, where most people will have a mild or non—noticeable disease which we want to do anything at all? the reason is this acceleration, and our overall aim and oursingle this acceleration, and our overall aim and our single aim is to reduce death rates and the numbers of people who might die as a result of this. but i think it is important to recognise, and the reason i am explaining this is so people understand the logic of what we are doing, that there are broadly three groups of deaths and other impacts on health we need to consider. there are the direct deaths, which are caused by the coronavirus disease itself. with good medical care, tragically a few people, the great majority of them in less good health, but not necessarily all, will pass away. however, and this is really important, there are a significant number of other deaths which if the nhs became overwhelmed

in any of the four nations, if the intensive care units got to the point when they were overwhelmed, then people will die from indirect deaths because they did not have the ability to get medical care, and a lot of what we are trying to do is trying to reduce the chance that those indirect deaths might occur. and then the third possibility, and it is an important one for us to consider, is that some of the measures we are doing will undoubtedly, or could have negative impacts on people's health in themselves, so there are negative effects of what we do to try and combat the coronavirus. 0ne effects of what we do to try and combat the coronavirus. one of the reasons we are very keen not combat the coronavirus. one of the reasons we are very keen not to go in advance of the need work because of those negative facts, and i come onto one of them later on. nowjust to explain where the different things fall into this, the very profound changes, in terms of social distancing that the prime minister laid out, which are going to be very

difficult for people to maintain over a long period of time and will have very significant social effects do have the capacity, significantly, to pull down the peak of this infection wave, and therefore make it easier for the nhs and particularly the ventilation support to be able to cope with the wave thatis to be able to cope with the wave that is heading its way. so that is really critical. people who do this, who restrict their social gathering, are doing things to protect the nhs to allow the nhs to treat both people with coronavirus and people who have other things as well. it has an overall effect on the nhs. the second group of things the prime minister has laid out are those things which we want the quite large group of people who either are over 70, possibly quite healthy or very healthy over 70, but over 70, or who are younger than 70 but have a significant health condition, and this is mainly in adults, we want

them to take even greater care, because this is in addition to making sure that they don't end up helping fuel the epidemic themselves, it means they do not have to go to hospital, which is good for the nhs, have to go to hospital, which is good forthe nhs, but have to go to hospital, which is good for the nhs, but most importantly it reduces the risk that they will catch the virus, particularly at a time when the nhs is under strain. this is absolutely critical, and the group of people who we want to take this advice particularly seriously are older people above 70, people who are in aduu people above 70, people who are in adult life would normally be advised to have the flu vaccination, so these are people with chronic diseases, such as chronic heart diseases, such as chronic heart disease or chronic kidney disease, and also as a precautionary measure, because we are early in our understanding of this virus, and we wa nt understanding of this virus, and we want to be sure, women who are pregnant. and those three groups of the groups we want to take particular care to minimise their social contact, which of course will

have very significant risks for them. and later on we will be giving, very shortly, a much more specific list of an even smaller group of people who have very profound health problems. they all know they have very profound health problems, for example, people who might have advanced my limer or leukaemia, things that significantly affect their immune system. the final bit being talked about today in addition to what we have previously talked about is the 14 days of stay at home. if one person in the household has symptoms, the whole household stays at home. now there has to be some common sense around this. if there is a very vulnerable person in the household for example, people will need to ta ke for example, people will need to take that into account. people need to think through the practicalities of their own position. but the reason for this is because they are helping to stop it be transmitted

onto the rest of the community, and these people... the trouble is if you are actually in a house with somebody who has coronavirus, there isa somebody who has coronavirus, there is a reasonably high chance you will be infected and go on to get this, so this in a sense some things that people are doing to help protect the re st of people are doing to help protect the rest of society. we do want to stress that the great majority of these people will have mild or moderate disease, they don't need to contact the nhs, they can use the nhs online service, there is very extensive information there. we really would encourage them not, if they have mild or moderate disease, not to phone 111, because the service, we need to protect it for those who are in greatest need. but really important to stress if anybody's health starts to deteriorate significantly, then they should phone 111 or contact the health services in the way they normally would. so this is if people deteriorate, we want to make it clear they should then do so.

finally, ijust clear they should then do so. finally, i just want clear they should then do so. finally, ijust want to make a point on behalf of my other cmos for four nations will stop we are enormously proud of what our colleagues in the nhs and public health have so far done to delay this, and to do so in a safe way, and an enormous amount of work has gone on to do that. the next few weeks and months are going to be extraordinarily difficult for the nhs in all four nations. we know that our colleagues will rise to this challenge, but we know it is going to be very hard indeed, but we have enormous faith in them. thank you very much. thank you very much, chris. i want to thank both chris and patrick immensely for all the work they have been doing over the last few weeks and months, and i know it is a big imposition, but we are going to be making sure we give daily updates to you all, and i do think that would be valuable, so we can have, as i said from the

beginning, as much transparency as possible, really try and show our working and our thinking as clearly as possible to the british public. questions now, please. vicki young, bbc. prime minister, looking at these measures, can i ask you about enforcement? are you closing theatres, pubs, restaurants down, as of today, and a particular question which we have heard about the bbc, lots of questions about care homes. are you going to stop visitors going into ca re are you going to stop visitors going into care homes? lots of people very concerned about that, and then a more scientific question about testing. the director—general of the world health organisation hasjust said a clear message to countries to test, test, test. you cannot fight a fire blindfolded. test every suspected case will stop of people wondering how you can trap the pandemic in this country if you don't know who has got it. thanks, vicki. yes, absolutely, what we are

doing is giving very strong advice that public venues, such as theatres should no longer be visited, though the proprietors of those venues are taking the logical steps you would imagine. you are seeing the change happen already. as for enforcement, we have the powers if necessary, but i don't believe that it will be necessary to use those powers. when it comes to care homes and visitors to ca re it comes to care homes and visitors to care homes, you can take it from what we have just said about avoiding all unnecessary contact for those particular groups, you know, the really strong advice we are giving to people to avoid unnecessary contact with the over 70s, there is with particular health conditions. absolutely, we don't wa nt to conditions. absolutely, we don't want to see people unnecessarily visiting care homes. of course, we agree with the that

testing is critical. within the uk, we have three levels of testing at the moment. we have testing in intensive care systems, come across the whole system is a complete surveillance system. we have testing for people with pneumonia and milder diseases. and we have the gp network testing in the community. the one thing we stopped doing was testing based on geography, which was early on, because geography is less important at this stage in the disease. we do intend to continue to scale up testing. it is important to realise the scale of uk testing, which has been substantial and just to give some numbers, over 44,000 tests conducted which over 42,000 we re tests conducted which over 42,000 were negative. we will continue to scale up the testing every week from here on in. moving out into the wider community. the test we have at the moment only test for people who have currently got the disease. the

thing that will be transformational will be a test to reliably tell us if somebody has previously had disease so we can pick up and find out what proportion of people get this infection without any symptoms. currently, such a test isn't reliable but it is being developed very rapidly by public health england. beth rigby, sky news. thank you, prime minister. this is a big step change from where we were even four days ago but in other western european countries and the us, they are going further still, state of emergency, city is in lockdown and family is being asked to stay at home, even if they are not ill and schools close. are these the sorts of measures you think the public should expect in the next few days? and if i may, sir patrick vallance, he talked about london, when do you think london will hit the peak, what is the time frame? in terms of cases

of coronavirus across the country now, last week you said up to 10,000 people. how many people now do you think are carrying the virus, thank you? just on where we are in relation to others, other countries are at different stages in their movement up the curve. we have a lwa ys movement up the curve. we have always made it very clear the crucial thing is timeliness. 0ur interventions should be timely to have the maximum effect. we think this is the right package for this particular moment, as we start to move up the curve in the way we have said and as we foreshadowed over the last couple of weeks. but when you come to more extreme measures like cu rfews and so come to more extreme measures like curfews and so on, like you see in other countries, we are keeping all measures under review and the particularly, people will be thinking about school closures. there is an argument about school

closures. we think, at the moment, and balance, it is much better if we can keep schools open, for all sorts of reasons. but i appreciate that this is something we need to keep under review. in answer to the question about where is london on the peak, the important thing is, london is ahead in terms of reaching the inflection point, going into a faster growth phase. the measures being talked about our aim to completely suppress that so therefore the peak goes much further out. so it is a slower thing with a reduced number. that is what we are trying to achieve. numbers? well, the epidemic you would expect to double every five days or so, so you can work out there are many more from last week and you can do so from last week and you can do so from calculations as to how many you think you may have. the key thing, to reiterate what chris whitty has said is testing and ramping up our

ability to test. and in that, this ability to test. and in that, this ability to test who has had the disease, rather than who has got it now. both of those things are important to get a proper handle on this, especially this question of how many people have had it and been asymptomatic. that is the biggest unknown worldwide that would completely change all sorts of things if we can get a handle on that number. thanks, robert peston, itv. couple of questions. first, your restrictions on freedom of movement, your urge to families and households to isolate. these are volu nta ry. households to isolate. these are voluntary. in some countries, they have introduced criminal sanctions if individuals refuse to obey what is effectively a curfew. how likely is effectively a curfew. how likely

is it, how prepared are you to introduce criminal sanctions if necessary? and on this issue of testing, one issue that i hear repeatedly from people in the health service, is they are deeply uncomfortable about being forced home if they have got a cough because they would like to continue to work. will you at least, for health service workers, move fast to allow health service workers to be tested so that they at least know whether they are a risk to their patients? i will ask chris to deal with testing but on powers, this country already has tremendous powers in this field under an act of 1984, i think it is open to the secretary of state for health to ban handshaking if he wants to. but most people would accept we are a mature

and grown—up, liberal democracy where people understand, very clearly, the advice that is being given to them. i think they also understand that what we are saying, obviously, help the nhs and help them, it helps us all as individuals. but it helps the whole community as well. i think the british public do understand that. in answerto the british public do understand that. in answer to the question on testing, the next level out, once we have the capacity to do this, which is what we are going for very fast, is what we are going for very fast, is exactly as you say, is that health care and other critical workers, you can test them early on in their illness. if they end up having actually the right symptoms but in the sense, the wrong disease, not coronavirus, they will be able to go back to work, which is good for the nhs. if to go back to work, which is good

forthe nhs. if they to go back to work, which is good for the nhs. if they have got it, you know they have had it and will not get it again. so a positive and negative are useful for the service. so it isa negative are useful for the service. so it is a strong incentive to get this out as fast as we can practically manage it. jason grove, daily mail. thank you, prime minister. you have just daily mail. thank you, prime minister. you havejust announced the most extraordinary measures saying people shouldn't go to the pub, shouldn't go to cinemas or theatres. what are you going to do to support those businesses which are looking at the next three months and thinking, we are going to colla pse and thinking, we are going to collapse if this happens. sir patrick vallance, you told us in this room on thursday, i think, we about four weeks behind italy but we seem to be moving through the gears extremely rapidly now. are we further up that curve than the scientists thought we were? first of all, jason, you are absolutely right. this is going to be a considerable challenge for

businesses big and small and we will make sure we do everything we can to give them the liquidity they need and make sure they have the time to play, but make sure in our whole fiscal policy, the way we look at our whole tax and spend system, that we give business the space in which they can come back from this. i have no doubt at all we will be working closely with, as i said, all our partners around the world to coordinate our response. in response to the question, where are we? the numbers are quite small in the early stages of the outbreak. i said i thought we were about four weeks where italy was, the new numbers suggest we are more like three weeks, in terms of that. and importantly, it looks like we are on

the fast upswing, orjust about to get there and that is the reason to wa nt get there and that is the reason to want to come in quite quickly with these measures. thanks. george parker, financialtimes. george parker, financialtimes. george parker, from the ft. speaking to some of your g7 colleagues, you mentioned the tax and spend issue, is there a case for a general, global fiscal stimulus, leaving aside specific measures to help struggling businesses. how many ventilators do you think you can get into hospitals if manufacturers can help you and don't you regret not starting this process earlier? first of all on the fiscal stimulus, there isa of all on the fiscal stimulus, there is a widespread agreement amongst collea g u es is a widespread agreement amongst colleagues in the g7 that we will need to make sure everyone has access to liquidity and if we do things jointly, access to liquidity and if we do thingsjointly, then i think the global markets will understand we are all operating in the same fiscal

framework and i think we will be much more successful that way. there isa much more successful that way. there is a lot of work going on on that, george. and on the issue of all types of medical equipment, perhaps ican types of medical equipment, perhaps i can say that we have talked a lot in these discussions about what we are doing to flatten the curve, squash the sombrero and squash the growth of the cases and that is what we are doing today. but there is a parallel body of work which is equally energetic which is devoted to making sure the nhs has all the equipment that it needs. i can tell you that huge strides are being made right now on the living ventilators, testing kits, oxygen and everything we think we will need in the weeks ahead. gordon? thank you, prime

minister. gordon rayner, from the telegraph. prime minister and sir patrick vallance, last week you are talking about herd immunity. we have heard today of a case injapan where somebody has reportedly tested positive twice, having had it once, they have now got it again. does that mean herd immunity is com pletely that mean herd immunity is completely out of the window and chris whitty were saying just now, i think, if you test people and they have had the disease that means they cannot get it again and they can go back to work. are you absolutely sure about that in light of what we have heard today from japan? the first thing, to reiterate the objectives, and they have always been the objectives is to make sure we flatten the curve and keep it below nhs capacity limits. that is the primary aim and to make sure we save lives and protect the vulnerable. that is what we need to focus on. in any infectious disease, there are cases where people can

catch something again. they are rare but there is nothing to suggest this isa but there is nothing to suggest this is a common occurrence in this disease but we are learning as we go along. but at the moment, there is nothing particular to suggest that and we already know that there are some people who have had what are called neutralising antibodies which have actually stopped it. so that it looks like a normal response to an infection and there will be occasions, very rare, where somebody might get it more than once, as in any disease, any infectious disease. even in diseases which do not have long lasting immunity, there is only a short period of immunity and that is enough for a seasoned epidemic in the initial phases. it is important to differentiate between that and long—lived immunity. if people don't induce long—lived immunity, that makes the idea of a vaccine less certain. we need to be aware of that

and we will be watching very carefully. i haven't seen the details of this report. if people have got immunosuppression and various other things, they can make this more likely, but it is an involved area. it is always worth stressing what we have said continuously, it is our overriding objective in all cases, is to reduce suffering to minimise the incidence of this disease and to save a life. that is the absolute priority. at the beginning we described four things and one of them was research. research is vitally important in this and the uk is outstanding in clinical signs and the biological science underpinning this. research in the uk will be an important part of tackling this part of an international effort to make sure we get on top of this. thanks. thank

you, prime minister. first of all, can you give the nation any form of indication how long this ban on social contact will last a schmuck should they prepare for a couple of weeks, a couple of months and in terms of economy, no blame intended, but this has gone further than the chancellor might have thought last week, even when he was delivering his budget which was 1.1% growth this year. do you accept the economy will not grow by 1.1% and the chancellor is going to have to spend an awful lot more public money propping up businesses? just on the timing, i might defer to the experts on either side of me. butjust on where we are with the economy, it is perfectly obvious the g7 conversation i was having today, everybody sees this is going to be

potentially a severe blow for the economy. everybody can see the risks the situation poses, the risk demand and supply. but if we get it right and supply. but if we get it right and if we get the right response and if we work together, then we can ensure that it is a short—term problem. because the fundamentals of the uk economy are very strong. this is unlike 2008, there isn't this a steaming problem within the economy. if we can get the disease under control in there where we are describing, if we can flatten the peak and it starts eventually to decline and tails off, then there is no reason why economies worldwide should not come roaring back. so it isa should not come roaring back. so it is a very, very different category of difficulty from 2008. i think

people understand that. but on timing, chris? we stretched right from the beginning it would be a marathon, not a sprint, and i stress that the points i made sustainability is absolutely critical. this is not a situation where a couple of weeks and this virus is on the way, absolutely not. people should be thinking of a minimum of weeks to months, and depending how it goes, it may be longer. so it is really important people realise they are in for the long haul on this, but this is really important. if we are to defend the ability of the nhs to treat people, minimise mortality, we have to see this as a long game. victoria donald, channel 4. have to see this as a long game. victoria donald, channel4. can i ask, just a little while ago, we we re ask, just a little while ago, we were told last week indeed, it was seven days isolation. was it that the science moved so much, or that you made a mistake on that? and also, could you tell me about the

advice on pregnant women? because there have been reports of the course of babies at the weekend being born and then testing positive, but there have been no reports of in utero transmission. shall i take the second one, and patrick take the first? in terms of pregnancy, and the global literature at this point of time, one person who became severely ill, but we are very, very early on what we know this. the royal college of obstetrics and gynaecology, the professional body, reviewed the evidence, is on their website, and it was before this case was reported, and it makes clear that in the very small number of cases of pregnant women who delivered at the time they had this, there were no convocations will stop but there are two buts, for many infectious

disease there as there is a small but appreciable risk, and we will not know that until a lot more women have had children. we do not know for sure we can say reliably this is safe or there is some additional risk, and of course this is a very new virus, so the information we haveis new virus, so the information we have is relevant to people in the third trimester of pregnancy, but not in the earlier stages of pregnancy. i am giving a long answer because this is something people get very concerned about, but there is no evidence from other coronaviruses that makes us feel this is particularly dangerous for example in the way the zika virus was particularly dangerous to pregnant women. but infections and pregnancies are not a good commendation in general, that is why we have ta ken commendation in general, that is why we have taken the precautionary measure whilst we find out more to include pregnant women in the group alongside older women, and people who have pre—existing, significant health conditions. we may in retrospect fine that was overkill, but we would rather be cautionary now than the other way. shall i

answer the second point. forgiven, yes, the seven days. gray to really reiterate what chris has said, this isa reiterate what chris has said, this is a brand—new reiterate what chris has said, this is a brand-new disease, we need to learn as we go along. the seven days actually isn't a change. it is a little bit complicated and i want to explain it. if you are ill with the symptoms of either new persistent cough or fever, you isolate yourself for seven days. if you lived on your own, that is what you would do, that is the advice we gave last week. now we are saying if anybody in the family gets it, or anybody in the household gets it, the entire household gets it, the entire household stays together isolated for 14 days. the reason for that is the other people may pick it up over the other people may pick it up over the seven days or five days period, and then they have seven days to haveit and then they have seven days to have it and get better, or to be asymptomatic but have it, for seven days. so it is two different periods, but the principle is the same, when you have symptoms, seven

days. have you got that? it is the difference between individual isolation and household isolation. heather stuart. heather stuart from the guardian. you talked about giving businesses the space to deal with this crisis, i wonder whether you think you might need to take more action to give low—paid households the space to deal with it? you may now have a situation where couples are both having to ta ke where couples are both having to take 14 days off work, the budget measures relied on statutory sick pay but that is less than £100 a week. do you think you will have to do more? we certainly will be bringing forward all the measures we can, we are lifting the living wage bya can, we are lifting the living wage by a huge amount as you know, and we are making sure that statutory sick pay and benefits are payable as soon as possible, but the general principle that is guiding us, because you are totally right, we are going to have to look after people and help them for a considerable period, is that nobody

should be penalised for doing the right thing. so we hope very much people listening to this will feel that they can take the measures we have outlined in the knowledge that they will be protected. dennis staunton from the irish times, thank you, prime minister. the irish government has introduced more aggressive measures on social distancing, including closure of schools but the executive in northern ireland is following the same pace as the government and the rest of the united kingdom. are you confident that the people of northern ireland are being protected from this virus as effectively as their neighbours in the south?|j absolutely their neighbours in the south?” absolutely am, and we had a good discussion just now with arlene and michelle, and actually if you look at what is happening overall, the uk and ireland are on very much the same path, but perhaps patrick and chris, anything you want to say about the schools issue, any more

than you have said? i think we have cove red than you have said? i think we have covered the schools issue, and i think the key thing is the social distancing action we are taking around bars, theatres and so on, which is a really important part of this, which is probably more extreme in terms of reaction. the one thing to reiterate the point that, thankfully, this virus seems to spare children, relative to other ages. and we are in daily contact with the taoiseach‘s office and so on to make sure we are coordinating things as much as we reasonably can. yes, sir? thank you, prime minister. michael settle from the herald. it is really important you take the public with you whatever you do, do you think the uk government needs to try harder to be in lockstep with the scottish government, because any

perceived divergence of approach will not reassure the public that there is a unified approach? and i think it was sir patrick who said that london was ahead in the outbreak. do you think, prime minister, that westminster can stay open untiljuly? well, michael, look, a very good point about what is going on with all four nations, and actually if you had been at the cobra just now, it was a very, very good discussion between us and all the other devolved administrations. everybody is on the same page, eve ryo ne everybody is on the same page, everyone can see the importance of the measures that we have outlined today, and on your point about westminster, we will obviously be wanting to make sure that, as i say, that democracy carries on, that we protect our parliamentary institutions, but clearly those who are vulnerable, and lots of members

of parliament of both houses may come into that category, should receive the protections that they need. prime minister shall i just add, just to reassure people, i speak to my counterpart chief medical officers in all four nations very regularly, often several times a day. they listen in on the stage discussions and contribute under sir patrick and that a technical level there is really strong determination to make sure we understand the technical issues together. just on the parliamentary situation, there may be more to come on this. the speaker and all parties and the leader of the house of commons are working together to find a way forward that achieves those objectives, protecting our democracy, ensuring that parliament stays open but also obviously protecting the groups we need to protect. paul? ball ball from huff

post. just a follow up on that last point, are you suggesting all parliamentarians and peers over 70 should adhere to today's announcements? we take it you are, orare announcements? we take it you are, or are they some special category? and more importantly, can we be a bit said for example people in care homes should not be unnecessarily visited. what does unnecessarily mean, and secondly the chief medical 0fficer mean, and secondly the chief medical officer said it may be weeks to months that this blanket ban on unnecessary travel and non—essential contact lasts. what do we mean by weeks to months and when we will know when it is over? will there be an announcement by public health england, which says you can go back to work, or what? your first question, paul, about parliamentarians, you can take this asa parliamentarians, you can take this as a universal announcement intended

for everybody. there are no exceptions. chris, on the precision of the advice for instance on people visiting care homes. in terms of precise advice, we will be putting on the website a lot of precise advice, i'm not going to go through it line by line, but it is a really difficult area, so let me be clear that how to protect people in care homes and nursing homes is going to be one of the most challenging things for every nation on this question, because of course they are vulnerable and they do have to move in and out of health services from time to time, and it is not going to be an easy issue anywhere. in terms of the precision of the timing, this will really depend on how the epidemic curve plays out over time, but we are very confident that the minimum amount of time is going to be quite a number of weeks, and it will then depend on how it plays out, and we will officially be coming back to be much more precise

with people about how we feel this is going as time goes by. there is no point us, in a sense, putting a crystal ball in front of us and saying for sure it will be this numberof weeks, but saying for sure it will be this number of weeks, but ijust wanted people to feel that this is not a two we e ks people to feel that this is not a two weeks and we are done, this is a significant period of time. they're 0k, yes? harriet lane from the press association, what are the kinds of underlying health conditions that those people who died after contracting coronavirus had ? those people who died after contracting coronavirus had? chris? well, in every country they have tended to be in a sense what you would expect as common significant health conditions, significant cardiovascular disease, significant respiratory disease, sometimes people who have had significant neurological problems. there are now quite large studies, which lay this out in quite grander detail.

obviously, the first experience from china, where the situation is slightly different from the uk in terms of health services and risks, increasingly, sadly, information from italy, but our own experience here, looking at those who sadly have died in this country completely conforms with the international experience. i am going to wrap it up here, if i may, iam experience. i am going to wrap it up here, if i may, i am sorry to those of you who have not been able to get your questions in, but as i have explained there will be plenty more opportunities in the course of the next few days. clearly what we are announcing today is a very substantial change in the way we wa nt substantial change in the way we want people to live their lives, and i can't remember anything like it in my lifetime. i don't think there has really been anything like it in peace time, and we have to accept that it peace time, and we have to accept thatitis peace time, and we have to accept that it is a very considerable psychological, behavioural change that we are asking you, we are asking the public, the nation to do, but i absolutely have no doubt that

we can do it, we can do it together, everybody understands the need to do it, and as i said earlier on, that our economy will eventually bounce back, because the fundamentals are strong, and we will by doing the measures that we are doing, by taking the steps we are taking, we will ensure that we give our nhs the spaceit will ensure that we give our nhs the space it needs, and we depress the peak, as i say, in the way that our experts have described. and i have absolutely no doubt that we will also be able, in the time that we create, to move a lot further and faster in developing the treatments, the remedies, perhaps even hope to leave the vaccines that will enable us to deal with this new coronavirus. so thank you all very much for your patience, i hope everybody has felt they have understood what we are saying, and i will see you all tomorrow. thank

you. ending that news calm presence, the first of the daily news conferences that have now been instigated. i think we can say that is by any measure a major milestone in this crisis with a significant stepping up of the government's response to the pandemic of. pandemic of coronavirus. major social implications for people, work implications, the way we interact with each other, where we might go in ourdaily with each other, where we might go in our daily lives. how we might go shopping and all the rest of it. all the rest of it affected by the measures announced by the prime minister. let's recap on the points in that news conference. everyone should now avoid social contact with others and they should

avoid unnecessary travel. and that means you should avoid pubs and clubs and theatres and other social venues. they won't be forced to close down but the strong advice is, don't go there. you should also start working from home where you possibly can. anyone who lives with someone who has a persistent cough or a temperature should stay—at—home for 14 days and you should only use the nhs if you really need to. from tomorrow, the government will no longer be supporting, as it put it, mass gatherings, using emergency workers. and on schools, the chief scientific adviser said, it may be necessary to think about school closures but only at the right stage of the outbreak. just a selection there for you of the startling measures announced by the startling measures announced by the prime minister and the two chief advisers with him. as they were

speaking, the latest news came from rome, which has been the hardest hit european country, to say that italy has reported 349 new deaths from this virus, taking the total to over 2000. so, in italy reporting another 349 deaths from the total taken to over 2000. michelle and our correspondence are listening to that. i sense a major milestone, it isa that. i sense a major milestone, it is a stepping up that some had been expecting, but the scale of it is quite astonishing? it is, the wording was very careful. they are relying on people to do the responsible thing, they are not putting in blanket bans, or regulations. they are asking people to listen to the advice, which they say is strong and clear and to act responsibly. in terms of general

population, everyone can do their part. they can avoid contact with other people as much as possible. not go to pubs, clubs and all of those measures. and also, we heard more about if you have symptoms. people who are fit and well, try and keep your distance generally, work from home if you can. but people who start getting symptoms, the high fever, high temperature and the cough, they need to now be staying away from other people, as a whole family. if they are in the household and others aren't sit, stay away for 14 days. if you live on your own, it is seven days. comments on social media about schools, the concentration of young people there and staff, of course. what is the latest intelligence on that? there was a reference to it in the news conference but a lot of people are puzzled by this. social contact is to end and this is the way to stop

it spreading, why are schools still open? what is the answer to that?- some point, they might, so it is still a possibility. but obviously today, we are not hearing they will close. the thought process behind thatis close. the thought process behind that is how effective is it in protecting the most vulnerable? all of these measures are about looking after the people who could get really sick with it. we know that children, thankfully, don't appear to be one of those groups, although they can spread it. if kids are off school, who will look after them? chances are it could be vulnerable people looking after them. but the ramifications as well for health ca re ramifications as well for health care workers if their children were off, they cannot be looking after people in hospital. michelle, thank you very much, we will talk later on. let's go straight to downing street where the prime minister, as i say, and the advisers with a few

moments ago. what did you make of that, helen? it did go further than anyone was particularly expecting this morning. we were told about social distancing measures but they seem to be in the context of older and more vulnerable people. the fact the prime minister announced that this is everyone who needs to avoid nonessential contact was further than we thought they might go. obviously, the prime minister very keen to keep that message he has had for some time, this is being led by the scientific and medical advice. we saw him with the chief scientific adviser and the chief medical officer, explaining the detail of why they were doing some of these things and why they weren't doing others. he was questioned on the issue of testing. the game changing test wouldn't be to find out who has got it, but who has had it and that would help to change the course of this. the other interesting thing was the idea of the fact this isn't

about enforcement, the government are not saying they will close the theatres and the pubs and the clubs, it was very much we are in this together and it was to convince people we need to do these things voluntarily. as he heard chris whitty, the chief medical officer, he said it was the long haul, weeks, months or perhaps longer. it was an interesting tone for his first daily briefing. helen, thank you again. if you are just briefing. helen, thank you again. if you arejustjoining us on bbc news on this bbc news special on bbc one and the bbc news channel, let me recap very quickly because you may have missed some of the points up to half an hour ago. this is the government's new advice on coronavirus. it is a major stepping up coronavirus. it is a major stepping up of the advice from where we were even yesterday and a few days before. anyone who lives with someone who has a cough or a temperature, should stay—at—home for 14 days. that is only will i and

they have given today, new guidance. it isa they have given today, new guidance. it is a big increase in terms of the severity of it. start working from home, if that is possible. you should avoid pubs, clubs and other social venues. the government is not moving to shut down theatres and all the rest of it, it is hoping it will be necessary if people will simply avoid pubs, clubs and other social venues as avoid pubs, clubs and other social venues as well. only use the nhs if you really need to come don't put any pressure on the nhs that is not necessary. london should be especially cautious, says the prime minister. the capital is apparently a few weeks ahead of the rest of the uk in terms of having the virus, in terms of where it is on the curve itself. and then the chief medical adviser, chris whitty, saying the uk is overall, single aim is to reduce deaths from the spread of the coronavirus and thinking especially of the vulnerable and the elderly. we will talk now to someone who

represents their interests very effectively, dame esther rantzen, founder of silver line, a helpline for older people in our community. thank you for talking to us. there was a lot to get through there with the prime minister and the other experts in the room, what did you make of it and do you think the severity will alarm people?” make of it and do you think the severity will alarm people? i think what will alarm older people is the instruction that came from the prime minister, saying don't go out. except to exercise, don't go out to the shop, stop all social contact if you possibly can. i think that is very difficult for a lot of older people who may rely on going out to the shops to keep well, to get the food they need, to get the medical supplies they need. so really, the responsibility is on all of us, it is for people who live near older people, people who have older people and their families. think

people, people who have older people and theirfamilies. think of people, people who have older people and their families. think of them and their families. think of them and please telephone them. that is the one form of communication we can cheer ourselves up with, reassure ourselves and get support from without having social contact. i beg all the charities working in the field, whether it is the red cross, they ivs, age uk, join forces and make sure nobody is starving to death behind locked doors because they are not allowed any more to go out. when we think of the really dreadful situation that lots of people will find themselves in, i suppose the big message we need to put out then, people with your profile and your background, need to put out there that neighbours, friends and neighbours have to be really much more on the front foot than they would have been previously and the odd friendly gesture or act in the past, now needs to be turbo—charged? in the past, now needs to be turbo-charged? i think that's right. we have a british tradition of

privacy and independence, but i think now older people have to ask for help. if they need help, reach out to your family, even if they live far away. they will find ways of helping you. reach out to your local charities, ask them for help. if we don't know you were there, we cannot bring you the things you need andi cannot bring you the things you need and i am going to ask the broadcasters, please cheer us up. remember the second world war, there was a comedy with bracing music and fun to be had. please cheer us up because this is a difficult time for all of us and older people need to be reassured that life really is worth living. dame esther rantzen, as ever, good to talk to you. thank you very much indeed. thank you. dame esther ra ntzen you very much indeed. thank you. dame esther rantzen there and founder of silver line with some good advice to people and a message

to the broadcasters, which i am sure has been received loud and clear. i have got some breaking news again on another aspect of the coronavirus crisis. this is from fred olsen cruise lines which operates the braemar cruise ship. it said the 667 passengers on that ship will fly back to the uk from cuba on wednesday. in a tweet, the company said, we are still finalising the details and the flight times, but we can confirm the flight back to the uk will be operated by british airways and will leave cuba on wednesday the 18th of march. that will be excellent news for them and theirfamilies. we will be excellent news for them and their families. we will share details on flight times and flight numbers as soon as we have them. just to reiterate, fred olsen cruise

lines are saying, and it is news a lot of people are waiting for who know the 667 passengers on board the braemar cruise ship, that they will be returning from cuba, flying back on wednesday. so in a couple of days' time. just finalising the details and the flight times, but the flight back will be operated by british airways and will leave cuba on wednesday. so that news just in from fred olsen cruise lines. what i would like to see before bbc news at six is upon us and that is with sophie, just coming up in a couple of minutes. just to remind everyone watching now on the special coverage of the main things that have happened in the last hour or so. not just in downing street, but across government in different departments. this is the government's new advice and it is startling new advice in

many aspects, on the dealing of the crisis with coronavirus. anyone who lives with someone who has a persistent cough or a temperature should stay—at—home, not for seven days, but for 14 days. so anyone living with someone with a cough or a temperature should stay—at—home for 14 days. you should start working from home if that is possible. that is very, very important as well. you should avoid pubs, clubs and other social venues. places like theatres and cinemas included and the government is saying we're not going to force them to close down or do anything, but really this is to do with hoping that people are sensible and that they will cooperate along the way. so avoiding pubs, clubs and other social venues. an appeal where the nhs is concerned, which we all understand. only use the nhs when

you really need to. don't overburden the nhs with concerns that really don't need to be taken to the nhs at this point. and then londoners, especially to be cautious because of the numbers of people and of course the numbers of people and of course the pressures on the service here. bbc news at six coming up very soon, but for now, thank you for watching and goodbye.

all non—essential contact and travel should stop now, says the prime minister, as he urges people to work from home and avoid pubs, clubs and theatres. boris johnson outlines drastic new measures, telling whole families to stay at home for 14 days if one person has symptoms of coronavirus. but schools will remain open. they are overwhelmingly worth it to slow the spread of the disease, to reduce the peak, to save life, minimise suffering, and to give our nhs the chance to cope.