this is bbc news. the headlines. "be responsible when you shop." an appeal by a senior british government minister, who estimates that £1 billion worth of extra food has been stockpiled. it is making life more difficult for those front—line workers such as our doctors and nurses and nhs support stuff who are working so hard in such difficult circumstances. uk departmentment store — john lewis — is to temporarily close all of its 50 shops on monday — the first time in its 155—year history — that's happened. more beds, ventilators and thousands of extra staff will be made available from next week — after a deal between nhs england and the nation's independent hospitals.

the uk adjusts to a new way of life after the prime minister ordered the closure of pubs, cafes and restaurants — for an indefinite period — to help slow the spread of coronavirus. a british government minister admits it's operationally difficult to help the self—employed through the coronavirus epidemic. in spain, more than 300 people have died in the last 2a hours from coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths there to 1,326. america orders people in more states to stay home. anyone flouting the restrictions in new york faces fines. country music legend, kenny rogers, has died at the age of 81.

good afternoon — you're watching bbc news broadcasting in the uk and around the world. we'll have the latest on the coronavirus pandemic in europe and elsewhere in a moment. but we start in london where in the past couple of hours , the government have given their latest briefing on coronavirus, this time focussed on supermarkets and the food supply chain. let's remind ourselves of those main points. the environment secretary george eustice urged people to "be responsible when you shop", saying that there is more than enough food to go around. the british retail consortium chief executive helen dickinson stressed that supplies were holding up, adding that there is "plenty of food in the supply chain". and nhs england national medical director stephen powis asked people not to stockpile food, and said panic buyers are depriving nhs staff of the supplies they need. we'll hearfrom him in a bit. but first, here's the

environment secretary. we recognise that this is a challenging time and that there are many things that the government is asking the nation to do differently asking the nation to do differently as we work together to bright this pandemic. however, there is one meshes i want to start with cloud and clear this afternoon which is be responsible when you sharp and think of others. buying more than you need means that others may be left without. and it is making life more difficult for those front line workers such as our doctors and nurses and nhs support stuff who are working so hard in such difficult circumstances. so, as you sharp, think of those who are their late shifts and need to pop to the local sharp at the end of a long day. today, the prime minister and i have spoken to the retail sector. there is more than enough food to go round and our food supply chain

is more than enough food to go round and ourfood supply chain is is more than enough food to go round and our food supply chain is able to expand production to cope with increased demand. in the last week, sales of some foods have increased significantly and manufacturers have produced around 50% more food than they usually would. there is no shortage of food available and more is arriving at shops every day. but the challenge that all of our retailers have faced is keeping showers stocked throughout the day in the face of increased purchasing behaviour. we all have a role to play and ensuring that we come through this together so the government has taken steps to set aside rules governing deliveries to stores so that more goods can be delivered to every store every day. and we have also set aside competition laws so that supermarkets can coordinate their effo rts supermarkets can coordinate their efforts locally, sharing stuff, showing delivery vehicles and coordinating their store opening times to ensure that food reaches every pa rt times to ensure that food reaches

every part of the country. we have also waived the plastic bag charge and offer online purchases to speed up and offer online purchases to speed up deliveries. our retailers and food producers who supply them are working around the clock to keep showers stocked in the nation fed. supermarkets are recruiting more stuff, protecting shopping time for older and vulnerable people and limiting shopping hours so they have more time to restock. and i want to ta ke more time to restock. and i want to take this opportunity to thank all those stuff working in our supermarkets and food businesses up and down the country today. you are doing so much to deliver such a crucial service to us all. but as the prime minister has said, many times, we need every citizen of this country to play their part, too. some supermarkets are putting in place to purchase their mitts on some items to ensure that there is fairtrading and some items to ensure that there is fair trading and shells remain stocked for longer. everyone must respect such measures and respect the stuff are working in the shops

who are doing their best to ensure that both you and your neighbours get the food supplies that you need. and here's the medical director of england's national hospital service issuing a plea for people to keep medical staff in mind when going down to the shops. it is incredibly important that they do have access to food, to those essential supplies that they need. i am sure many of you will have seen a video posted on social media yesterday by a critical care nurse who was in tears at the end of a long shift because she could not get access to the supplies that she needed. and frankly, we should all be ashamed that has to happen. it is unacceptable. these are the very people that we will all need to look after perhaps us or our loved ones in the weeks ahead. it is critical that by not stockpiling or selfishly shopping, by leaving those supplies for others, too, that our health

workers are able to get access to what they need, too. these are the people that we will all be relying on more than we ever have done in the weeks ahead. that was the medical director of nhs england. some breaking news to bring you from italy, from the worst affected area in italy which has said that the death toll has risen by5a6 said that the death toll has risen by 546 in the past 24—hour centre now stands at 3095 so italy, of course, have borne the brunt of this virus outbreak in europe and the death toll has gone up quite dramatically in the last 24 hours. now standing at somewhat over 3000. iamjoined now standing at somewhat over 3000. i am joined now by our political correspondent. 0ur political correspondent helen catt is here.

we had from the environment secretary from supermarkets, what the government can do to help supplies getting onto our showers. is there been any critical reaction to what has been said? in the last few minutes lu ka to what has been said? in the last few minutes luka pollard, labour's shadow environment secretary has come forward to talk about what george eustis has said there. labour is saying that the government's the action on this have been too slow and too quiet on reassuring people about the security of food supplies and why they say they are working constructively with the government, honest communication on this issue, they don't think it has been good enough and what they would like to see instead is a large—scale advertising campaign to counter misinformation and to quell those fears, basically. what we got on those press conferences where native messaging about not going out and panic buying but there were not any new measures to dry and restrict that so i think it is looking at

that so i think it is looking at that balance. there have been other announcements this afternoon and most notably that from the nhs talking about more stuff, more beds. yes. a major announcement. it seems that the private sector, private hospitals have agreed to turn over nearly their entire capacity, around 8000 beds to the nhs at gusts so they won't be making a profit. under they won't be making a profit. under the feel, nhs england said this is the feel, nhs england said this is the first of its kind, this feel. it says under this it will also provide an extra 20,000 stuff, nearly, which includes 10,000 nurses, 700 doctors and 8000 other clinical stuff and 1200 intel eight is and we know there has been a big push by the government to dry and massively increase the numbers of ventilators. they have been speaking to manufacturers in the uk about switching production to dry to make them. this is another strand of the government's strategy. as well as trying to suppress the spread of the virus that they may have been doing at the same time is to dry to of the nhs because the big fear is about

the nhs being swamped with the demand. we have seen other measures happen this week already, like the cancelling of nonurgent operations to free up i think 30,000 beds within the nhs. we have seen a dry to get retired nurses and doctors and other clinical stuff to come back into the nhs. about 55,000, they were looking at. there are these efforts alongside the social distancing on things that we are all very aware of their impacting us. they are all to dry to slow the spread of the virus and the efforts to dry to boost the nhs and this feel it has been announced this afternoon will bring extra capacity. we have got to leave it at the moment. many thanks. many thanks. john lewis is to temporarily close its 50 stores on monday, due to the coronavirus. it's the first time in its 155—year history that the business will not open its doors. its chairperson, sharon white explained that the company's priority was ‘the welfare of customers, communities and partners.‘

we have also just hearing that hobbs is temporarily closing its doors from tonight. the uk is adjusting to a changed way of life, as radical new measures aimed at reducing the spread of coronavirus come into force from today — as has already happened in much of europe. yesterday , the prime minister announced that all public venues — including pubs, restaurants, gyms, theatres and cinemas — must close, with the decision set to be reviewed on a monthly basis. here's our business correspondent katy austin. huge chunks of the economy have already felt the rain as customers stay away. jobs have been lost in industries like hospitality and tourism and now all restaurants, pubs and other leisure venues are having to close their doors. measures were announced yesterday aimed at preventing mass lay—offs. through a grant scheme the government will front 80% of wages

for employees who now able to work. up for employees who now able to work. up to £2000 a month, initially for up up to £2000 a month, initially for up to three months. vat payments will also be deferred but self—employed people are not covered by the wage subsidy programme. however, benefits are being increased. things things look very bleak for this industry at the moment. yesterday the db essay e—mailed hundreds of thousands of learner drivers time then there are cancelling their driving tests and there will be no more driving test between month because it is not possible for a driving test examiner to brightness social distancing in a car. but also they said it was ok to go out on driving lessons with their instructors so, basically, driving instructors so, basically, driving instructors don't know what we should be doing. the organisation which represents the uk's 5 million self—employed people and freelancers said their incomes have fallen off a cliff and they need the same help as everyone else. most of it was geared towards protecting the jobs and incomes of

employees and that is of course incredibly important but what we're saying is that self—employed people are just as important. we were very disappointed that package that was geared towards them was nowhere near as generous as it was for employees. the chief secretary to the treasury said the government was looking at ways to protect the income of self—employed people affected by the coronavirus. there are various other things we have been doing. a touch on a few of those. it also, strengthening the safety net as well because that is one of the fundamental issues concern. in making that safety net stronger. the chancellor has said he will do anything it takes to keep the economy going and has shown willing to put that much morning and burrowing into that effort. businesses have welcomed that but say speed is now essential for cash flow crunch filling many retail and leisure firms in the new wages scheme unlikely to be ready for a few weeks yet. let's talk now to brandon stephens

the founder of the mexican restaurant chain tortilla. he joins me now on webcam. how are you coping? it was a very tough week. a lot of downs and then ups but we really welcomed the package that was delivered yesterday. i would say it exceeded the expectations that we had. we had gone from looking at a number of, a large number of lay—offs to being able to furlough these employees and that was our number one concern at this time. we still have quite a ways to go. the government has asked for as to put these businesses in hibernation to prioritise the health and safety of citizens and we get that. it needs to be the priority. we still have businesses that we need to run and we need to make sure that those businesses are around when things ramp up and we are able to be employers again. when you look at things like the labour effect, thatis at things like the labour effect, that is great. we now have some

challenges with what we're going to do about fixed gusts like our of rain and are quarter of rain is due infor rain and are quarter of rain is due in forfive rain and are quarter of rain is due in for five days away to feel with that quickly. with regards to your chain you have got 42 restaurants in the uk. they will shut now. are you doing ta ke they will shut now. are you doing take a ways? yes. 0nly five or six of them are shut. the west of the memo to take away. do not do sit down or anything like that. to the well—being of our customers but the best of them are in takeaway for the time being. and you are using what percentage of your stuff, then? where using a small fraction so we only have about five or six people in each store who are servicing because our sales have dropped by about 85%. that is a huge drop, isn't it? you appreciate what the government has done and you understand why they have done it. they have essentially, as you said, put your business and others into hibernation. i suppose part of the problem is how long for? and that is the challenge. having these negotiations, what trying to assess is if it was a

two—week thing that is one set of decisions but when you have this much uncertainty in this much potential longevity, we are not quite sure what to do in turns of, you know, our gusts and planning everything else. the most practical thing is to play for the long term and that means we need to have some relief. we need the government to step in with regard to vent, quickly. and then at that point we have a discussion with landlords over the coming months about how do we settle these all that because we understand that landlords also need to pay builds. and finally, as a business owner what is this time like for you? what is it like to help to feel with your stuff and employees in this troubled time? richard morris, yesterday was, well, on thursday was having this conversation with stuff and i just can't imagine, you know, the challenges. there were many conversations about this and they are ourfamily and have been us for yea rs are ourfamily and have been us for years and it is horrifying to be not

knowing what is going to become of them. and with that many people that we re them. and with that many people that were going out of onto the street really without any prospects for... without any prospects for livelihood and forfurther without any prospects for livelihood and for further employment it was worrisome but then you see the relief that comes on friday and that was a swing the other way so it was quite an emotional week for the entire industry. we will have to leave it there. thank you so much for talking to us. that is the founder of tokyo, —— chain of restaurants. the headlines on bbc news. a senior british government minister has appealed for people to be responsible when shopping — it's estimated £1 billion worth of extra food has been stockpiled. the uk department store — john lewis — is to temporarily close all of its 50 shops on monday — the first time in its 155—year history — that's happened. more beds, ventilators and thousands

of extra staff will be made available from next week — after a deal between nhs england and the nation's independent hospitals. and in sport, usa track and field have called for the olympics to be postponed. they say moving forward with the games would not be in the best interests of the athletes. portsmouth players have tested positive for coronavirus. they are all self isolating. the ligue one cloud has notified public health england. in both manchester united and manchester city have joined together to donate £100,000 to help food banks in greater manchester. more another stories in the next hour. more another stories in the next hour. let's take a look at the some of the developments across europe. the death toll in spain continues to rise, with over 1300 deaths. bavaria state in germany has imposed severe restrictions on movement as cases continue to rise,

but italy remains the worse—hit country in europe, with nearly 50,000 cases and over 4,000 deaths freya cole reports on the latest picture in europe. green, white and red, the italian tricolour has been projected proudly onto the roman town hall in the nation's capital. it shines bright as a patriotic symbol as the country battles one of its darkest periods in modern history. italy has again recorded its largest, daily increase in its death toll since the outbreak began. in the northern town of bergamo the army is being called upon to transport bodies from local hospitals to crematoriums in nearby towns. across the country more than 4000 people have succumbed to the virus. hospitals and funeral homes are being overrun. take one look at what is happening in some health systems around the world.

look at the intensive care units completely overwhelmed and doctors and nurses utterly exhausted. this is not normal, this isn't just a bad flu season. these are health systems that are collapsing under the pressure of too many cases. italian authorities are extending the nationwide lockdown. all parks will close and from next week anyone driving in rome will be questioned by police. the rest of europe is also scrambling to beat the rapid spread of disease. more than a thousand people have died in spain, authorities are in a race to construct field hospitals, fearing beds will soon run out in major cities. a two—week lockdown is now under way in the german state of bavaria. people have been told to stay at home as the number of confirmed cases spirals out of control.

more than 20,000 people have now caught the virus. every night in many european cities and towns residents are taking to their balconies to applaud health care workers who are on the front line of this fight which, sadly, is farfrom over. freya cole, bbc news. let's take a look at the impact of coronavirus elsewhere in the world. nigeria has closed all of its airports to international flights. that's after 10 new cases of the virus were confirmed there on saturday morning, bringing the total number to 22. south korea has warned that it might have to order the closure of religious, sports and entertainment centres if citizens ignore government advice on group gatherings. it has reported a jump in new daily cases of more than a hundred for the second time in a week. 400 british tourists are now at serious risk of being stranded indefinitely in peru after the government said its borders would be definitively sealed tomorrow — with no more planes

allowed in or out. well, in china, officials say there have been no locally transmitted cases of covid—19 in the country for three consecutive days. there is a feeling there that the coronavirus emergency appears to be under control. people in beijing are finally heading outdoors, as our china correspondent stephen mcdonell reports. a

countries around the world are going through a coronavirus emergency but in china, people have been living it for months. now, with the weather turning good and a feeling the situation is pretty much under control, more and more of them are busting

when you talk to people here, one thing that strikes you is that for many of them, despite the early bungles, despite the early cover—ups, there seems to be a belief that once the national government got involved, that the authorities would find a way through the crisis.

as the uk gets use to the new way of life due to the coronavirus police in london have tried to brighten the mood. that's a police boat going down the river thames in london — playing the monty python song — always look on the bright side of life. and you can find out more about the symptoms of coronavirus and how to protect yourself against it on the bbc news app and on our website — just search for bbc news

we will have more in the coronavirus in the next hours to come. pakistan has announced that it's suspending all incoming international flights until the 4th april, in an effort to stop the spread of coronavirus. the suspension comes as the number of infections in the country passed 600, with three deaths. 0ur pakistan correspondent secunder kermani gives more details aviation authorities have today said that all incoming international flights will be suspended for the next few weeks. that is a ruling thatis next few weeks. that is a ruling that is due to come into force on the next few minutes, really. they have not specifically said anything about outgoing flights with the expectation is that most airlines will not be flying out a pakistani there. in pakistan there have been more than 600 confirmed coronavirus

cases and three deaths. a lot of them have been linked to people who had travelled abroad but most of them in fact, people who were travelling back from iran which has been particularly badly hit by the coronavirus, crossing the land border into pakistan. many have a bright contracted coronavirus, it seems, in these terribly unhygienic overcrowded quarantine camps that we re overcrowded quarantine camps that were set up at the border between pakistan and iran and these coronavirus cases were only detected when they were taken from these quarantine camps to secondary quarantine camps to secondary quarantine facilities. now, schools and universities have been closed in pakistan in an effort to prevent the spread of coronavirus butjust yesterday the prime minister was saying he is quite reluctant to order a full lockdown in the country because of the impact it could have on people from deprived backgrounds who he said simply might die of hunger, really, because of their inability to work and earn a wage to

provide food for their families. of course, though, there is real concern about what impact coronavirus could have in pakistan if there were to be a major outbreak. the health care system here is weak and particularly in major cities lift in cramped, overcrowded conditions. some baking needs to be new. a further two people died in wales after contracting coronavirus, bringing the total number of deaths 35. that is the latest from wales. that is the latest from wales. who has died aged 81. during six decades in the music business the texas born singer had a string of hits including the gambler, lucille and his duet with dolly parton islands in the stream. his family released

a statement saying he had died peacefully at home. best known for hits such as coward of the county and the gambler, he had 20 number ones in the us country charts. good afternoon. a dry spell of weather likely to continue for three orfour weather likely to continue for three or four days yet for many parts of the uk. you without cloud, though. they are more across north—east scotland. more cloud close northern ireland as well. the weather should keep of a no—show but the other notable keep of a no—show but the other nota ble features keep of a no—show but the other notable features that really brisk easterly wind making it feel chilly out and about ten that will continue through the night. we'll pick out the cloud for the east coast. a week where the front close to the west also will alleviate any frost issues for the north and western isles. for most of us it is a cold and a frosty night so he really rather chilly

start to our sunday morning. but almost two seasons in one day. it is chilly and we have got this mister low cloud but that should left hand with slightly less wind tomorrow and again an abundance of sunshine, should actually feel a little less chilly than today with temperatures realising the average for this time of