the prime minister announces the toughest restrictions on our way of life in living memory. he tells us all we can only leave our homes for a number of specific and very limited reasons, and the police will enforce it. without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope. because there won't be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors and nurses. from a desk in downing street to every living room in the land, the prime minister's message, close the doors. it comes as the uk death toll has risen to 335, that's a six—fold increase on this time last week. the health secretary admits

challenges in supplying enough protective equipment for nhs staff. a new type of schooling begins, as children try to follow lessons from home. and the former first minister of scotland alex salmond is cleared of all sexual assault charges. and coming up on sport on bbc news. the coronavirus fallout postpones may's champions league and europa league finals, with uefa not giving any new dates for the moment. good evening. the prime minister has announced the most drastic limits to our lives that the uk has ever seen. the aim, he says, is to save lives in this time of national emergency. without a huge national effort, mrjohnson has made it clear there will come a moment when the nhs will not be able to cope and more people will die.

from tonight, you can only leave your home for very specific reasons. they are... to shop for basic neccessities such as food and medicine. you can go outside for only one form of exercise a day, alone or with members of your household. all gatherings of more than two people are banned, excluding your family. you can leave home for any medical need, or to care for a vulnerable person. and finally, you can travel to and from work, but only where absolutely necessary and if you cannot work from home. these new restrictions can be enforced by the police, including using fines. today, 335 people are confirmed to have died from the coronavirus. that's six times more than this time last week. our political editor, laura kuenssberg, joins us live from westminster now. we are all taking these huge changes

m, we are all taking these huge changes in, but the prime minister clearly felt he had no other option thatis that is right, none of us have heard a message like it and no politician alive could have imagined delivering it, because the coronavirus is a situation the country has never faced anything like in living memory and that is why borisjohnson tonight described this as a moment of national emergency. the coronavirus crisis is hitting home. the clock starts on a new phase, big ben keeping time on any rat none of us ben keeping time on any rat none of us could have imagined. inside, at a desk in downing street, and admission to every of us outside. without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope because there won't be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors and nurses. and as we have seen elsewhere in other

countries that also have fantastic health care systems, that is the moment of real danger. to put it simply, if too many people become seriously unwell at one time, the nhs will be unable to handle it. meaning more people are likely to die notjust from coronavirus, but from other illnesses as well. so it is vital to slow the spread of the disease. no longerjust advice on how to battle the virus, but a demand from number 10. how to battle the virus, but a demand from number10. from how to battle the virus, but a demand from number 10. from this evening, i must give the british people a very simple instruction. you must stay at home. because the critical thing we must do to stop the disease spreading between households, that is why people will only be allowed to leave their home for the following very limited purposes. shopping, for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible. one form of exercise a day. for example, a run, a walk ora

cycle, alone or with members of your household. any medical need to provide care or to help a vulnerable person. and travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home. that's all. these are the only reasons you should leave your home. if you don't follow the rules, the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispensing gatherings. this is not only an emergency for oui’ gatherings. this is not only an emergency for our hospital wards, but for the country, so all shops must shut unless they sell necessities. or gatherings of more than two people are banned. measures will be reviewed in three weeks, but... know prime minister wants to enact measures like this but, at present, there are just easy options. the way ahead is hard and it is still true that many lives

will sadly be lost —— there are just no easy options. yet it is also true that there is a clear way through. in this fight, we can beat you no doubt that each and every one of us is directly enlisted. each and every one of us is now obliged to join together to halt the spread of this disease, to protect our nhs is to save many, many thousands of lives. and i know that as they have in the past, so many times, the people of this country will rise to that challenge and we will come through it stronger than ever. we will be the coronavirus and we will be it together. —— beat. and therefore, i urge you together. —— beat. and therefore, i urge you at this moment of national career “— urge you at this moment of national career —— urgency, to stay at home, protect our nhs and save lives.

labour had been calling from today for a firm labour had been calling from today forafirm hand. labour had been calling from today for a firm hand. we do need to understand how they will be enforced, we do need to understand the details of who can travel to work and who can't. people are frightened, people are concerned, people just want certainty and clarity. so we welcome what the prime minister has said tonight, it is what we were calling for, but we hope the government can quickly follow it up with the details that families tonight deserve to hear. the demand in every corner of the uk tonight, close the doors. let me be blunt, the stringent restrictions on out blunt, the stringent restrictions on our normal... they are difficult and they are unprecedented. they amount, effectively, to what has been described as a lockdown. i know how difficult all of that is and i am not going to sugar coat it in any way. but these measures are essential for the protection of all

of us. our politicians can't hide from the scale of this. now neither can we. after effort and pain, this will pass, but the country may look different on the other side. laura, for people hearing this for the first time, this will be pretty shocking. could there be more restrictions yet to come? fiona, first, it will take all of some time to absorb the scale of what the government has announced. but it is also fair to say is the government has always tried to say throughout this crisis, that nothing is off the table if the advice they receive from their scientists takes them there. ministers have been at pains to say that since the start, whatever the data tells them, the scientists tell them, they will try to make the best decisions at the best time to do so. but it is also true that rather than a step—by—step approach, this feels now like the government is sprinting to try and keep up with this, in what is obviously an extremely serious

situation. and the approach has moved very quickly as the numbers of cases have really begun to rise. but in terms of these measures alone, it is very clear that borisjohnson and his advisers got to the point where they felt they had no choice but to move to a much more drastic approach and this much clearer, very crystal clear message to the country, stay at home, close the doors. now, it is worth remembering other countries are still taking a much more draconian approach, we're not talking about anything like a curfew oi’ talking about anything like a curfew ora talking about anything like a curfew or a travel ban, some of the things we have seen in other countries. and rememberfor the we have seen in other countries. and remember for the majority of people that contract coronavirus, it is a mild illness and most people recover. but because it is not for those people who are unlucky enough to fall very seriously ill, and there are very many vulnerable people at risk, this as a result of the decisions the government have taken is an extremely serious moment for the country, in a very precarious position. laura, at

westminster, thank you. so, these new measures come in tonight, we are all trying to understand what they mean, how they will change our lives. they will remain in place for at least three weeks. here's our home editor, mark easton. a fortnight ago, london was a throbbing global city. tonight, it is reduced to providing life support. the empty streets echo to the wail of silence. food stores, petrol stations and pharmacies now operate as emergency services, with a plea to shut only once a week. operate as emergency services, with a plea to shut only once a weeklj have a kid at home and he gets hungry, but i have told him we have to live on only what we need. once a week, can you manage that?” to live on only what we need. once a week, can you manage that? i think you can week, can you manage that? i think you can manage once a week week, can you manage that? i think you can manage once a week if you shop carefully. i think he has made the right decision, we have to flatten the curve and prevent as many deaths as possible. and ease the pressure on the nhs. once a week shopping, is that too difficult?m

is. will you be trying to go out more often? yes, please. it was last orders at this chicken shop. whatever is good for the people and good for the country, it has to be. the shops are closed, the theatres are dark, the bars are shut. the vitality and enterprise that built london has been banished. please patrol a city where the rules of law abiding life changing radically. —— police. for the most part, offices will use encouragement rather than enforcement, but that may change people won't do what they are told. what are you doing here tonight?l youtube channel. i have got my youtube channel. i have got my youtube channel. i have got my youtube channel. do you think you should really be out? yes, because this is updating. temples and monuments to human endeavour remain, but the crowds are not welcome now. a city whose purpose is to bring people together is tonight focused on keeping people apart. will it work, can the people of london and

indeed britain hold their collective breath, give the health workers the time they need? that is the test, perhaps, upon which history will judge this country. mark easton, bbc news, london. well, as we heard, the police will be enforcing the new restrictions. our home affairs correspondent, daniel sandford, is outside new scotland yard. how is this enforcement going to work? well, i think a lot of the details are still quite sketchy, it is not quite clear what hours the police will use, but officials insisted tonight powers the police will have, the necessary powers. and that is going to be something we will hear more about in the next day or two. certainly, senior officers i have spoken to are hoping they will be able to do more by persuasion rather than enforcement and they are hoping if they were to find a shop open that wasn't supposed to be open, they would be able to go and say, you are they would be able to go and say, you a re really they would be able to go and say, you are really not supposed to be open, maybe go with council officials and persuade them to close

and say we are not leaving until you shut. maybe if they find a group of people gathering who are clearly breaching the rules about public gatherings, they might be able to persuade them to disperse. but the government insist it is giving police powers to enforce these new rules if necessary. daniel sandford, outside new scotland yard, thank you. let's get more now on the implications for all of us of tonight's announcement. in a moment, we'll speak tojon kay in bristol, and emma simpson is at london's king's cross railway station. but first, our consumer affairs correspondent, sarah corker, is at a shopping centre in manchester. sarah, just clarify for us exactly what shops we can now go to and which we can't. well, these stricter rules will force people to social distance and the message from the government is shopping centres like this one here in manchester and across the uk are now off—limits. all nonessential retailers must shut. that includes

many high street trains, clothing stores, health and beauty salons, hotels, essentially anywhere that doesn't sell food or vital supplies. to ease the financial strain on businesses, the government has already said it will pay 80% of wages for those affected by these closures. as for those stores deemed as vital and that will be allowed to stay open, they include supermarkets, petrol stations, funeral homes, pharmacies and also online retailers. but i think the challenge going forward will be for stores like supermarkets to try and cope with demand from shoppers, we could see them limiting the number of customers or putting markers on the floor to try and keep customers apart. and the message from the british retail consortium tonight to the public is be considerate to retail staff working in very difficult conditions.

he would have thought that something as simple as a trip to the park would change so fundamentally and so suddenly. but it has. the last few days, parks like this one in bristol, right across the uk, people have been out enjoying the spring sunshine. in this afternoon, kids who cannot go to school at the moment, were on the climbing frames and swings. not any more. although the prime minister says we can come toa the prime minister says we can come to a party to exercise with somebody from our own household once a day, thatis from our own household once a day, that is it. so this play equipment will be cordoned off, out of bounds. another example here, the little coffee shop where people might grab a coffee or a cup of tea when they watch their kids, that will shut down. beyond it, the bowling green, the tennis court will be shut down. basically, all the places where we might be tempted to congregate. we have seen the pictures over the weekend are people gathering together. all of those people will be shut to try to remove the

temptation people —— keeping people together. on a cold march night, it may be ok but the clocks go forward this weekend so imagine when the days get longer and the weather improves. hard to get your head around. it is the start of the working week but things are so far removed from normality. i am at one of london's busiest stations and tonight i could count the amount of people on the platforms at my fingertips. measures have been put in place for public transport. the trains are still running but it is a reduced service. key routes are open to ensure essential workers can travel to and from theirjobs. there is a reduced service on the london underground but today we saw pictures of packed, overcrowded carriages at certain

stops. the exact opposite of social distancing. clearly they hope this will not continue tomorrow. the authorities think that there are more people on this network than they want. so the message playing out from the tannoy tonight, only go on public transport if you are a key worker or if it is absolutely essential. emma simpson, sarah caulker and jon kay, thank you very much. tonight's announcement comes amid fears that the uk risks going down the same path as italy, which has recorded more coronavirus deaths than any other country. our medical correspondent, fergus walsh, is here. let's get this into context, where are we in relation to italy now? each country will have its own unique epidemic but there are some striking similarities between the uk and italy in their early stages. if we bring on the graph showing the deaths in italy, you can see that

italy reached 233 deaths on the 7th of march. 15 days after their first death and the uk reached the same total on the 21st of march. 16 days after its first death. that would suggest that we may be 1a days behind them. italy has had over 6000 deaths. the uk 235. so it is a stark warning. these very strict social distancing measures now boris johnson has introduced, what difference can they make? they can have a dramatic difference. on average, each infected person will infect, on average 2.5 others and the chain of transmission repeats every five days. if there is no curbs at all, after 30 days you were to have 406 people infected from that one original source. that is huge? it is absolutely huge. if you

can cut exposure by 50% and instead of one person infecting 2.5, they infect one and a quarter people. after 30 days you have 15 people infected. it is a 95% reduction from 406 down to 50. it shows you that social distancing, household isolation, staying at home and avoiding all unnecessary contact, it works, it it will save lives. thank you very much, fergus. the health secretary has acknowledged there have been "challenges" with the supply of personal protective equipment to nhs staff in england, but added he is determined to rise to them. last week, nhs staff said the lack of protective gear was putting them at risk during the coronavirus outbreak. matt hancock said a million face masks had been bought over the weekend and he was taking the issue "very seriously". here's our health editor, hugh pym. so, this is the device that we... the nhs prepares — this hospital in newcastle setting up more intensive care beds

with ventilators, as doctors across the health service are already under pressure, with coronavirus cases increasing. we don't want to sow panic, but we are afraid. and i would say that there is a lot of hope. the things that i've seen my colleagues achieve in the past week have been extraordinary. we're feeling really apprehensive, but have faith that we'll be ready if, and when, it gets worse. and following the government guidance on social isolation, you will really be helping your nhs to deal with the pressures that are going to face us. some doctors have told us their concerns about the lack of personal protective equipment, known as ppe. now the health secretary's keen that things are seen to be happening, with more boxes of clothing and masks going out to the nhs front line, though he admitted there had been problems with distribution. i'm determined to ensure that the right kit gets to the right hospital,

the right ambulance service, the right doctor's surgery right across the country. there have been challenges, and i can see that, and we're on it and trying to solve all the problems. at this vast warehouse on merseyside, boxes are stored and then sent to hospitals, gp surgeries and other areas where staff may come into contact with infected patients. some doctors and nurses, though, are still concerned that the right equipment isn't available. at another large and sprawling site, the nhs is looking at creating a giant field hospital — the excel conference centre in london's docklands. it's an option being discussed, with military planners advising health chiefs. we're currently trying to organise remote working... some gps, like dr lucy andries, are having to adapt to self—isolation measures. she's working at home, speaking to patients by video link or phone. she's facing up to some challenging times ahead. we are at the edges

of a calm before a storm. there is no doubt this is escalating at quite some speed. i think the next six weeks are potentially quite daunting. sam? i'mjust coming in... for now, she can't leave the house because her 14—year—old son, sam, had coronavirus symptoms including fever. her husband, also a doctor, has had to move out to a hotel. at this nursing home in hove, more than half the 20 residents, and seven staff, have developed symptoms — another illustration of how rapidly the virus can spread. hugh pym, bbc news. headteachers say parents have heeded calls not to send their children to school unless it's a last resort. schools, colleges and nurseries across the uk closed their door on friday until further notice, in an effort to halt the spread of the virus. so, how have parents and pupils been coping with homeschooling? frankie mccamley reports. so, i'm a man on a mission.

i've been doing this for four years now, visiting schools all over the uk, trying to inspire young people to exercise... and that, he did, with more than 800,000 households across the uk taking part this morning — including eight—year—old safina and five—year—old may. after their new daily work—out... the new way of learning begins, with mum anita bush as teacher. i think at the minute, the girls are in a stage of novelty so, for them, it's fun to be at home. as time goes on, i'm not quite so sure where that's going to leave me! for those key workers dropping children off today, it wasn't an easy decision. i'm really, really conflicted. i'd quite like to keep ollie at home but, also, i need to go to work. i feel like, oh, we shouldn't be doing this, to be honest, we should all stay home. but then again, we have no choice. it's only day one of this new teaching regime and this primary school is already

feeling the effects. the head teacher has gone into self—isolation. but the school day must continue, so the teachers are inside right now, making a new plan for the day ahead. the staff are quite stressed about how it's all supposed to run. some parents have definitely wanted to use the childcare. we've had to turn them away, explaining that all children that can be safely looked after at home need to be at home. lesson today, we've been focusing on... at the local secondary school, only eight of the 760 pupils are here today, taking part in creative activities. vulnerable pupils, and the children of key workers under the age of 14, are being prioritised. a 15 year old was turned away today. but despite the empty classrooms, new challenges are arising hourly. i've had some more staff who've self—isolated, but i do know that some stuff today have gone to try and log onto our online learning platform and i think the system

has really crashed. so, leave your work on the tables to dry... some teaching unions say information is still not clear enough and want virus tests made available for all staff in schools. for those at home, parents are the new teachers, living rooms are the new classrooms. this is what education will look like in the days and weeks to come. frankie mccamley, bbc news. over 1.8 million people across all four uk nations, most at risk of needing hospital treatment if they catch coronavirus, are being asked to stay at home for at least 12 weeks. the strategy is called "shielding" and the aim is to protect lives. so how will people know if they fall into this catagory and how will they be helped ? danny savage has more. the order has been given. from today, more than 1.5 million people who are most at risk should they catch the virus have been told to stay at home for at least 12 weeks.

we, as a society, must shield them from the pandemic. that is my morning and evening tablets every day, for a week. simone is one of them. she has cystic fibrosis and primary immune deficiency, meaning that she needs regular treatment. it is scary. it is isolating. and it isjust tearing me up inside. i'm anxious all the time. i'm not eating very well. i'm not sleeping very well. and i'm very tired. there is quite a list of those who must stay at home. it includes solid organ transplant recipients. many cancer patients. people with severe respiratory conditions, including all cystic fibrosis, severe asthma, and severe copd. and people on immunosuppression therapies, sufficient to significantly increase the risk of infection. many of the people who are in this group will already know that, from now on, they have

to stay at home. the government is pledging to deliver food and medicine to them for as long as it takes if they need it, but that operation is onlyjust gearing up, and it's still not clear when exactly it will begin. here in north yorkshire, the county council is part of the plan. this is a massive logistical operation. the scale of making sure that we hit everybody, and understand their needs, and there will be all sorts of follow—ups in terms of issues that we didn't get quite right first time round, so, sourcing the food, understanding demand, matching demand with supply, so lots of moving parts to try and get right. this is the text message that some of the most vulnerable got today, telling them to open a window, but not to leave home, and to keep away from others, indoors. so, that makes it vital that friends, family, neighbours and communities look out for and look after those who are housebound.

it is a state of affairs that will be part of our everyday lives for months. danny savage, bbc news, north yorkshire. countries across europe continue to be engulfed by the coronavirus pandemic, despite restrictions being ramped up. thousands of army reservists have been called up in switzerland to relieve hospitals under pressure as the number of people testing positive for coronavirus jumped by 15% in 24 hours — it is now more than 8,500. spain has again registered its highest daily death toll of people from the virus, 462 have died in the past day. the deputy prime minister, carmen calvo, is being tested in hospital. in italy, there is some good news, the rate of infection has dropped for the second day in a row but it's still europe's worst affected country. 6,078 people have now died, with 602 deaths in the last day.

in a moment we'll hear from mark lowen in italy, but first damian grammaticas reports from the spanish capital madrid. coughing listen to the coughing from virus patients sprawled in the corridors of a madrid hospital. this is a health service starting to be swamped. inside another hospital. spain's capital is the epicentre of this country's outbreak. medical staff say this isjust the beginning. cases are expected to keep rising for days yet. so they're making desperate appeals. translation: we don't have beds, ventilators, staff, protective equipment. i am just finishing a ten hour shift. look at me. look at my tears. please, stay at home. we watched today a constant

flow of new arrivals. ambulance after ambulance. every time, it means hospital staff are being exposed themselves. and healthcare professionals really are making extraordinary sacrifices here. more than one in ten of all confirmed infections in spain are amongst doctors, nurses and other health workers. maria is an anaesthetist in isolation after testing positive. her symptoms have been mild, but also infected have been her boyfriend and baby. things are so dire, maria is waiting for a new test and the all clear — her hospital needs her. if i'm negative, i will want to work, yeah. so, straight back into the hospital? straight back to the war, because now, things are dramatic here in madrid. so dramatic, she says, doctors are now having to prioritise. the young get ventilators before the old. first you need to take care of the young people, of course.