welcome to bbc news, i'm simon pusey. more us states are ordering everyone but essential workers to stay at home, to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. illinois, connecticut and new york made the announcements on friday. nada tawfik reports. from california to new york, an eerie emptiness across america's normally bustling urban centres. in the age of social distancing, people are avoiding hotspots in hollywood and the big apple. after a week of tightening controls, officials announced even more measures to combat the spread of the coronavirus.

in the golden state, a stay—at—home order went into effect on friday for all a0 million residents. people were told they could live their homes only for essential business. having gone through several catastrophic situations in past years, just gives us more strength. we had earthquakes, we had two fires. we are used to dealing with situations over which we have no control. new york also took drastic measures, as cases topped 7,000. governor cuomo said the state was on pause, ordering all non—essential businesses to keep their workers home from sunday and warning it would be enforced. this is not voluntary, it is not helpful hints, we are going to monitor it. there will be civil fines and there can be mandatory closures for businesses that do not comply. i am not kidding about this. the numbers are going up at such a rate that, as i said, it has more than doubled the capacity of the hospital system.

the changes are rapidly impacting people's daily lives, leaving many to question what might be next. president trump, flanked by his coronavirus task force, said a national lockdown would not be necessary. i don't think so. essentially you have done that in california, you've done that in new york — those are really two hot beds, probably the two hottest of them all in terms of hotspots. i do not think so. you go out to the midwest, you go out to other locations, and they are watching it on television but they do not have the same problems, by any means the same problems. he did however announce that the united states was closing its borders to all but essential travel from saturday, after agreement with mexico and previously canada. with increased tension on officials' handling of the pandemic, two republican senators have faced calls to resign. it's alleged they deliberately sold a large amount of stock before concerns over the coronavirus sent the stock market plummeting.

senator richard burr, of north carolina, received private briefings on the outbreak as the senate intelligence committee chair. in a statement he said he relied solely on public news reports to guide his decision, and asked the senate ethics committee to review the stock transactions. georgia's republican senator, kelly loeffler, who is married to the new york stock exchange chairman, said advisers handled her transactions. as the us enters a new stage in the fight against the virus, nature's wonders have provided a much needed distraction. in the nation's capital, people ventured outside to see washington dc‘s famous cherry blossoms in peak bloom. a safe outing, just as long as they keep their distance. the british government has announced unprecedented measures to tackle the economic impact of the coronavirus. the state would pay 80% of the wages of all those not able to work for the next three months. here's our political correspondent alex forsyth. this will be a familiar

sight across the country from tomorrow. restaurants, cafes, pubs, clubs, all shut down. no longer by choice, now by command. the impact enormous for business, having to cope with the doors closed, and for workers, who'll have nowhere to go. the prime minister said these were the next necessary steps to try and slow the spread of this virus. we are collectively telling — telling — cafes, pubs, bars and restaurants, to close tonight, as soon as they reasonably can, and not to open tomorrow. though, to be clear, they can continue to provide take—out services. we're also telling night clubs, theatres, cinemas, gyms and leisure centres to close on the same timescale. a serious moment matched by a significant intervention from the chancellor. a package worth billions, not just for employers, but those losing

work and wages too. we're paying people's wages, up to 80%, so someone can be furloughed rather than laid off to protect theirjobs. we're deferring over £30 billion of taxes until the end of the financial year. we're lending unlimited sums of money interest—free for 12 months. we're abolishing business rates altogether this year if you're in hospitality, retail and leisure. we're providing cash grants of £25,000 for small business properties. these closures come with a price. how long, if you can, do you see these measures lasting, and how do you plan to enforce them? i think everybody can see the imperative of doing what is necessary, of protecting our nhs and saving lives. as the signs go up and shutters come down, many will be working out what the help on offer means for them, whether

it's enough. claire's just taken on a five—year lease of this pub in norwich. we'd like to believe that we'll come through the other side of this. we really, really, really do. and i'm going to be honest, i'm struggling to hold it together at the moment. and it's not going tojust be me, it's going to be all of us. the government is putting in place significant measures to try and counter the impact of this virus in just days and weeks, policies that would usually take months if not years to implement, and all with the knowledge the decisions it takes now will have crucial consequences for all of us as the way we live our lives profoundly changes. this is a state intervention on a new level. some want more from the chancellor. i'd like him to increase the level of statutory sick pay. i'd like him to make sure that employers pay their way in making sure people get their wages. and i'd like to see that he improves benefits for those people who are unemployed and carers, and those with disabilities.

in scotland, an acknowledgement people will have to make sacrifices. doing everything we can to slow down the spread of this virus now means that we will save lives and we will protect our nhs. we cannotjust carry on as normal. life right now is not normal. it will certainly feel very different very soon. now the struggle to manage this virus has reached a whole new level. alex forsyth, bbc news, westminster. as always, there's plenty more information and advice on our website about the coronavirus, including this article on how you can keep up a healthy outdoor excercises. you can find that piece, as well as all the latest coronavirus developments at bbc.com/news or the bbc news app. more now on our top story — and the growing number of us states joining california in introducing restrictions to stop the spread of the virus. for more i'm joined by our north america correspondent peter bowes who is

in los angeles. this is focus first on california because this seems to be one of the states that is really seriously affected. the governor there saying that it of residents in the state could contract the virus, that is over 20 million people and what he says, in eight week period. it sounds pretty serious? that was a devastating figure for people in california to him and he did make a point of saying that was the projection based on the data that we understand to date and perhaps if people adhere by the measures that he is announcing and suggesting that people stay at home, that that people stay at home, that that may not be as bad as that of the end of the day. nobody can be certain about so california did become the first date with people being told to stay at home. of course, this is one of the world's biggest economies. it's only devastating effect already on people unable to go to work. of course, you can get out of your

home if you need to get medical treatment or groceries or if you work in one of those essential services. the most part, people are being that new regulations. it hasn't been terribly heavy—handed about it, as opposed to say new york city, which from the weekend is planning to post fines on people who break the rules there. nevertheless, a major impact on people's lives. what kind of measures have authorities in california implemented? has it been advice as opposed to you will be arrested or fine if you as opposed to you will be arrested orfine if you go out? well, it's arrested orfine if you go out? well, its strong advice but certainly people, there's been no threat of people being arrested here just yet. no threat of people being arrested herejust yet. i no threat of people being arrested here just yet. i think by and large, people are doing what is being suggested of them. i noticed some of the streets seem to be actually quite busy. some people going about their business, whatever that is. certainly, the malls and the busiest rates are much, much quieter than usual. even at the stores where there have

been queues outside grocery stores, they seem to be coming down a little bit compared to what it was like a week ago when everybody was panic shopping and asked to queue outside the stores. actually inside it is quite calm as people are allowed to buy what they need. in the last few hours, peter, mike pence, one of his staff has tested positive for the virus. can you tell us anything more about that? yes, mike pence, the vice president, who of course is leading the us response to the coronavirus. 0ne leading the us response to the coronavirus. one of the people working in his office, as you say, has tested positive. we are told by a spokesperson that neither the vice president trump has not had a close contact with that person and what they're doing now is just looking at any other contacts that that individual, who hasn't been identified, but at whatever contacts they might have been. according to the guidelines set up for everyone across america. if you do come into co nta ct across america. if you do come into contact with someone who is infected by the virus. peter bos, lots to discuss another we've got time for. thank you

very much indeed forjoining us there. as we heard — a swathe of public places across the uk are being told to close — in an effort to slow the spread of the coronavirus. danny savage reports from harrogate. as the prime minister announced that all pubs, bars and restaurants should closed, people were surprised at that the immediacy of the order. "can i finish my pint?" that's what i said. i thought you were kicking us out. drink up and go home was the gist of the announcement. it's the sensible thing to do, having them shut down and after this you will see it from today, people, the public not being outside as much. pretty annoyed. on your birthday. on my birthday as well. mental, crazy. you don't really believe it's happening. obviously, it needs to happen. yeah, it will affect many people's — just general routine as well. so yeah, quite shocking. the bar manager here now has to shut up shop but was putting on a brave face. we've kind of modelled our business plan around sort of a three month to six month

closure, should that be the case, and we think we can get through it with the help of the government and the loans. harrogate was a town of disparities. some restaurants and bars had closed down before today. now, it's a blanket order. on a friday night bars and restaurants should be busy and crowded, but look at the street here. it's virtually deserted. friday the 20th of march, 2020, will be remembered as the night that part of our culture, part of our lifestyle, abruptly stopped. and for how long? at the local theatre they reckon at least until the start of may. a few stragglers were making use of last orders, some pubs were virtually giving away beer tonight. shutting them is just another sign of how serious the government is about wanting us to stay in, not giving us an excuse to go out. danny savage, bbc news, harrogate.

schools across the uk closed their doors on friday afternoon — with no clear idea of when they'll reopen. they'll be shut to all but vulnerable pupils, and the children of key workers. there's also been more detail on how grades will be calculated for pupils whose exams have been cancelled, as our north of england correspondentjudith moritz reports. it's not even easter and this could be the last school drop—off of the year. for the children, it's bizarre. for their parents — facing weeks of home teaching — it's daunting. have a great day! it can bring tears to your eyes if you think too much, so you kind ofjust roll with the punches and just do what you can, really. it's going to be hard. we've already looked through my five—year—old's folder and it's lots of phonics and i'm thinking, oh, my god, phonics! what's phonics?! for children in year 6, it's extra emotional. this could be their last day of primary school. what will happen if we don't come back to school before we leave to year 7?

we're not sure what's going to happen, but obviously, here at stjohn's, we're a community. some children will now learn at home. others, whose parents are key workers like nurses or police officers, will still go to school. my dad's in the army and my mum's in charge of all the trucks that deliver food and that to shops. so, you're going to come to school, do you think? just over 10% of the children here will be in school from next week. we are providing a childcare service to make sure that our children are safe while their parents go about their really, really important and critical work to help the nation. and they'll be doing activities that look a little bit like school, but mainly it'll be things like board games, making sure that they're doing some of the work that they're set by their teachers. school playgrounds will be a lot quieter and pupils at home will face restrictions. though the advice is to allow children to play outside, even go to the park for a kick about, the instruction is also to stop them from playing too close to other people

and to prevent them from crowding together with lots of friends for long periods. for students in exam years, like these sixth—formers in bolton, there was news today that their grades will be awarded based on data including mock exams and teacher assessment. it's not as big of a deal when you're doing your mocks as, like, the real things and i think that's just, like, everyone thinks that way. so, i think it'sjust the uncertainty of what's going to happen. these year 115 should have their leavers' assembly in july, but their teachers brought it forward. a small chance to celebrate, amongst so much upheaval. judith moritz, bbc news, greater manchester. this is bbc news. the headlines: in the uk, the government has announced unprecedented measures to tackle the economic impact of the coronavirus — as the prime minister says restaurants and pubs must close.

with empty streets from new york to california — president trump says he doesn't expect to impose a national lockdown in the us. now the term "social distancing" is certainly becoming known worldwide in the fight against the coronavirus, but are people listening and observing it? well, it seems not everyone is. in the uk, the pubs and restaurants have now been told to close to avoid people spreading the virus. and the world health organization has warned that young people must avoid socialising as they are not immune from it. so, why do some people stick to social distancing and others don't? well, we can speak now to doctor peter slattery who is a research fellow at behaviour change research unit behaviourworks australia. doctor, in general, how are people reacting to the government advice in australia? well. i think that people are responding quite well. one

consideration we have here is because the claimant is so good a lot of australians have a habit of going outside and socialising —— climate. a lot of them haven't felt that habit, a lot of the beaches have been quite full. how would you say different people are reacting to the advice you've got, older people, younger people, people from different backgrounds are different cultures, how do they reacted to government or a spokesperson saying you must do this? yeah. there are a lot of challenges there with that kind of general broadcast information. people have different personal situations, different social situations, different social situations, they work in different structures. so different structures. so different people will respond to the message in different ways and i think one of the challenges we are facing is that younger people are perhaps less turned in, they are perhaps less risk averse and they are in social settings where it is a very good lord get you a status of approval to say i'm worried about this

virus and i'm going to stay home —— is not very cool. so a lot of the information we are broadcasting is reaching people who are receptive to it, but those people who are convinced they want to do the things they want, it is harder to reach them. and what other psychological factors that might get people to listen to that message for? what do people need to hear? to follow that advice. i think we need to make sure younger people are receiving the messages. it would be interesting to see if there is research being done on that, what information sources are they consuming? and then if we think about what they are consuming and paying attention to, what are the best sources that they would listen to and ca re that they would listen to and care about? people are very influenced by what other people do and perhaps disproportionately by influences in their lives. in many cases, celebrities or sports stars and so on. perhaps

we could try and reach young people through those assuming we could convince those to help. and we are seeing more and more celebrities coming out and more celebrities coming out and trying to promote that. you are involved in something called stand against corona, tell us about that. that is a website that volunteers came together to create from the behavioural science community and a few other communities. we know we need behaviour change to address this problem. it is a significant part. we know small changes in behaviour like social distancing can have a huge impact on the number of infections and deaths in the future. we know people making commitments makes it more likely they will follow through with our behaviour. we know in particular that people seeing other people making commitments makes it more likely that they will also change their behaviour, people are very, very influenced basing what other people do. so if you can imagine the impact that is a really quite significant for somebody socially distancing a ready, imagine that but

multiplied because millions of people, that could be very, very significant. so it's very simple. i was going to say. really interesting to hear about the different types of messaging that i needed to get through to different types of communities and age groups. i'm afraid that all we've got time for. doctor peter slattery in sydney, thank you very much for joining us. thank you very much for having me. as millions of people stay at home because of the coronavirus, we're looking to the internet and to social media for advice. but there are concerns that misleading information is being posted and shared. the government says it's working with social media companies to clamp down on false claims. marianna spring reports. social media right now is a place to keep in touch with family and friends and to get the latest information. but social media sites and what subgroups are swimming with misinformation. everything from conspiracy theories to medical myths —— whatsapp groups. so how despite ms does make

misleading information online? you might see a post from a friend of a friend that is convincing, but it might not be all it seems. peter, 84, compiled information that went viral last month. this advice had been circulating online and since then has been copied and pasted across social media. he said this new virus is not yet resista nt said this new virus is not yet resistant and it hates the sun. and drinking warm water is effective for all viruses. there is currently no scientific evidence to back up these claims, and he has changed his post. everything posted i believe genuinely to be the truth and factual. i tried to be as factual as i can, and if i am corrected or ifi can, and if i am corrected or if i discover myself that i have said something incorrectly, i apologise and i amended. fact checkers are co nsta ntly amended. fact checkers are constantly scouring the web for misleading post. their advice is think before you share. think about how it makes you feel. it is something you insta ntly feel. it is something you instantly agree with or if you have a really strong reaction

to, whether you are really angry, happy or sad, to, whether you are really angry, happy orsad, often to, whether you are really angry, happy or sad, often that isa angry, happy or sad, often that is a tell—tale sign you to do a little more digging. facebook as well as the government say they work to remove harmful content. they work to remove harmful co nte nt. as they work to remove harmful content. as the first pandemic of the social media era takes hold, people are looking to public health bodies for advice they can really trust. marianna spring, bbc news. the coronavirus crisis is particularly poignant for the small derbyshire village of eyam. here, more than three centuries ago, residents infected with the black plague took the heroic decision to seal themselves off to prevent the disease spreading to other communities. hundreds died, but as fergal keane reports their legacy is inspiring eyam's response to the coronavirus. in a crisis that reaches everywhere, even the remotest places can have lessons for us all. in eyam, derbyshire, the memory of lives lost centuries ago is motivating a response in the present.

you might think that coming to eyam, a place so associated with plague and death, would heighten anxiety in these frightened times. 0r lead you to be pessimistic about our present. but, infact, it's quite the opposite. these are the names of long dead villagers, who, 350 years ago, became infected with plague. they sealed themselves off to stop the disease spreading. one of their descendants says that spirit of selflessness offers us a powerful example. you know, at the moment it's this, me and myself only. you've only got to watch the trolleys in the supermarket. that can't be right for everybody to be doing that, otherwise there isn't going to be anything left. we need to make sure that we're watching out for each other and doing as we're told. 260 villagers died. it was the rector, william mompesson, who inspired

his people to isolate and save others. today, the rector of eyam is himself in quarantine as his wife has symptoms of coronavirus. hi, mike. hi. how are you? i'm all right, thanks. we're standing back from you, as you can appreciate. yes... are you awed or inspired by the example of your predecessor centuries ago? often when i walk through church and seen his name on the rectors' board, i thought, i wonder what would happen if it happened today and how i would measure up? and i guess i'm finding that one out now. reverend gilbert relies on social media to direct the parish response. already we've had lovely acts of kindness, of people collecting things, of people supporting. that's it. next door, in the village school, the headmistress is preparing to send most children home. eyam's school will stay open for the children of key workers

in the health and emergency services. it is a time of painful choices. 0ona gilbertson's elderly father lived with her family, but she sent him back to his own home, fearful she might carry germs from school to him. i had to choose between him and my family and coming to work, and obviously there's a huge worry about where those germs are coming from. and i felt that he was safer somewhere else so that i could carry on coming into school. it is in the nature of this close—knit place that many children have grandparents who either live with them or nearby. the child's mind is only too well aware of what this crisis involves. they mean a lot to me. i love them so much, and if anything was to happen, i'd be so upset, you know? it's really weird. like, one minute —

one year it's fine, and then just this really random virusjust pops up. it's like it's made a really big impact on the whole world. a piece of paper for you, sheila. the village committee is now visiting the elderly, like 95—year—old widow sheila vipan. you can get in touch with us and we can ask somebody to help you. and we will be really careful, we won't come in your house. in world war ii, sheila was evacuated, away from her parents for four years. she's known this nation's darkest hours. that's right, i've got to be a bit careful at 95! try and do things that help one to smile, or to laugh, even. i've just fed the birds. yes, i must keep them happy. here, they're determined not just to endure this crisis, but with humanity to transcend it. fergal keane, bbc news, eyam. now the weather

with chris fawkes. hello there. there was a little bit more in the way of sunshine to go around on friday and it really turned out to be quite a glorious day across many areas. this was the scene in cockermouth in cumbria. thanks to trevor for sending that beautiful weather watch picture in. you can see the extent of the sunshine we had. further south, we had this weather front with us again and it continued to bring some dull and damp weather into the very far south of england and even into the early afternoon, there was some light rain reported in hastings in east sussex. 0vernight tonight, many of us will have dry conditions. the breeze keeping the frost at bay across many south—eastern areas but the further north you go with those lighter winds, we'll see temperatures dip well below freezing. that said, there are just a few showers dotted around as well across the hills of southern england, across the hills of north—east england too but for most of us it is a dry—looking picture. for the weekend, this

area of high—pressure, this area of low pressure not really changing very much. just a shuffling of positions a little bit more and that means the winds are going to switch from a easterly to more or a south—easterly direction. but that is still a cold wind that will be blowing and making it feel pretty chilly out and about, particularly in the morning. some patchy cloud around as well, cloudy to start the day across western areas, quite high cloud and a nice sunrise for some of you. the winds will make it feel cold and those winds will be at the strongest across the hills and western coasts of wales and across the moors and coast of south—west england. gusts of 40, perhaps even 50 mph in one or two areas, which will make it feel quite chilly — certainly knocking the edge of the temperatures. i suspect we will have some areas of cloud in the north sea affecting eastern areas of scotland in particular. we might have some of that both in the morning and the afternoon. it won't be nice and sunny everywhere. 0n into the night—time, saturday night: we could see some patchy cloud coming in from that north sea but when winds do manage to drop out, we could well see a slightly more widespread frost. a colder start to the day

on sunday but then that said, the winds will be blowing a little bit less strongly on sunday so probably won't feel quite as chilly. there will be quite a lot of dry weather and sunshine to around. perhaps some slightly thicker cloud edging into the scottish highlands and threatening an odd light shower but for most of us another fine looking day. temperatures between eight and 12 degrees. a little bit cool with onshore winds on the eastern coasts of scotland and england. into next week: the area of high—pressure still holding on but we see this weather front starting to slip in across the far north—west. monday looks like being another dry day with sunshine. then we will start to see some rain approach the far north—west as we go from tuesday and wednesday. that is your latest weather, bye for now.

this is bbc news, the headlines: in the uk, the government has announced unprecedented measures to tackle the economic impact of the coronavirus, with the state paying 80% of the wages of all those not able