help at last for britain's self—employed workers as the chancellor unveils unprecedented financial support to help them get through the coronavirus crisis. from hairdressers to taxi drivers and plumbers, millions of self—employed workers will now be able to claim 80% of their average monthly profits — up to £2,500 a month. hairdressers and childminders and many others, through no fault of their own, risk losing their livelihoods. to you, i say this. you have not been forgotten. vast tanks of oxygen installed at this conference centre in london being turned into a temporary hospital — as the capital's intensive care units deal with wave after wave of sick patients. in some places, they are really struggling.

they're just about keeping their head above water, but in three or four places, it's clear that they will run out of critical care capacity probably by the weekend. tough new powers for the police in england — from today they can fine people who break the stay at home rules and even arrest people who repeatedly ignore them. more than 8,000 people have now died in italy and thousands more have become infected amid fears the epidemic could be taking hold in southern italy. thanking nhs staff — a teenager in lancashire films this tribute with his neighbours as we are all urged to open our windows at 8 o'clock tonight to take part in a national round of applause. and in sport, the task force set up by the tokyo 2020 organisers has met for the first time today to try and finalise a new schedule for the postponed games.

good evening and welcome to the bbc news at six. millions of britain's self—employed workers will be able to apply for a grant of up to £2,500 a month to help them cope with the financial impact of coronavirus. the chancellor said it would provide unprecedented support for self—employed people. the government has come under intense pressure to provide help — after announcing last week that it would cover most of the wages of salaried staff. the money will be paid in a single lump sum, but will not begin to arrive until the start of june at the earliest. if you're self—employed, you will get a taxable grant worth 80% of your average monthly profits over the last three years, worth up to a maximum of £2,500. the scheme will be open for an initial three months to people with annual profits of up to £50,000 and only for those who

earn the majority of their income from being self—employed. here's our political editor laura kuenssberg. happy editor laura kuenssberg. days like this are on hold vicky's happy days like this are on hold, so vicky's wedding business and income has gone. i only have savings for about a month for my family. it would be heartbreaking for so many of us in the industry to close over something we have no control over. sam isa something we have no control over. sam is a gardener. he reckons he can hold on for a few months. we are scared like everyone else and we need reassurance from the government that we are going to have some sort of income. but eva has lost all her income from tutoring and running a flat. she says she can only last a few weeks. because i am not employed bya few weeks. because i am not employed by a company, i don't get any support from the government, so i am not sure how i am going to feed my kids or myself. all three parts of britain's army of the self—employed, desperate to know from him what help is coming and when. you have not

been forgotten. we will not leave you behind. we all stand together. the government will pay self—employed people who have been adversely affected by the coronavirus a taxable grant worth 80% of their average monthly profits over the last three years up to £2500 a month. this scheme will be open to people across the uk for at least three months, and i will extend it for longer if necessary. so the treasury will in the coming months be paying much of the nation's wages, but changes could come after this crisis for the self—employed. come after this crisis for the self-employed. what we have done well, i believe, stand as one of the most significant economic interventions at any point in the history of the british state. we will not be able to protect every single job, will not be able to protect every singlejob, or save every will not be able to protect every single job, or save every single business. but i am confident that the measures we have put in place will support millions of families,

businesses and self—employed people to get through this. you said you hoped to cover nearly all of the self—employed, but what about people who this scheme does not cover, and when do you hope the money will start coming through? this scheme will cover 95% of them. of the people that it does not cover, the last 5%, those above the income threshold that we have set, their average incomes are about £200,000. so we think what we have done is reasonable, proportionate and fair. 0ur expectation is that this will be up 0ur expectation is that this will be up and running by the beginning of june. we will look to try and do it faster, but i don't want to promise something we can't deliver today. as i have said before, this is operationally complicated. for those who have just gone freelance and haven't paid tax yet will not be covered, leaving them to apply for loa ns covered, leaving them to apply for loans or benefits instead. the state is stepping into a huge vacuum, but there are gaps. there are already

many people in hardship, not because of the illness itself, but because of the illness itself, but because of this shutdown has shut off their source of income. and although the government is frantically stitching a wider safety net, there are still holes and there are questions about the decisions they are making. the government was too slow to recognise how serious the crisis was. but above all, too slow to recognise that our economy and our society has radically changed. large numbers of people are self—employed, do lead insecure lives and the people who are most vulnerable are the ones who are most vulnerable are the ones who are now getting police help. when the need is in every corner of the country and every walk of life, the question for the government is not if to help, but how and when. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. the coronavirus crisis has had a devastating impact for so many self—employed workers whose income has suddenly stopped, but whose bills continue to come in. coming with a rescue package for them that is both fair and delieverable

has been complicated, as our business editor simon jack reports. closed for business, just opening up to check the mail and right now, there is little good news in the post. danielle and the other five self—employed massage therapists who work here are not expecting to see anybody any time soon. it has been a bit of a shock. we just don't know whether future is at the moment. bit of a shock. we just don't know whetherfuture is at the moment. i have been lucky that my landlord has given us a couple of months' rent freeze, but i am not sure we will be backin freeze, but i am not sure we will be back ina freeze, but i am not sure we will be back in a couple of months, due to the nature of what we do. husband and wife terri and lisa are doubly exposed. you don't get holiday or sick pay, so something like this is a bit ofa sick pay, so something like this is a bit of a crisis. both are self—employed. he is a painter/ decorator, she is a mobile hairdresser. both make their living is another people's homes and personal spaces. both have seen businesses dry up. since monday, everyone has cancelled because they wa nt everyone has cancelled because they want to keep safe. we want to keep

safe, so no money has come in whatsoever. we just want to get a bit of comfort from the government like everyone who is employed. it is not fair. we are not a different species, being self—employed. we have struggled as much as everybody else. salaried workers have had 80% of their income is guaranteed up to £30,000, but the self—employed have proved a difficult target to hit full support. how come? there are roughly 5 million self—employed people in the uk. 0f roughly 5 million self—employed people in the uk. of those, abouti million live in dan and out of self employment from year to year. some are rich — football players, actors, people who do self—employed work on the side of salaried work, and their earnings are intermittent, can be lumpy and they report them long after they have been earned to the taxman, a tax man who often doesn't have their bank details. that is what it is so hard and why any programme including this one will not, rightly or wrongly, programme including this one will not, rightly orwrongly, hit everyone. tonight we learned that the money will not be arriving until

june and the government is saying, don't call us, we will call you if you are eligible. there are also complained that existing measures like government guaranteed bank loa ns a re like government guaranteed bank loans are failing to hit the target. some banks are charging over 15% interest, albeit with a year—long holiday. banking groups insist that they are their bit. mortgage holidays, overdraft fees are being waived. repossession moratoria, work and credit card holidays are taking place at the moment and a commitment to the coronavirus business interruption loan scheme and normal lending to extend as much credit to businesses that are capable of repaying their loans after this crisis is over as is possible. the support is coming for the self—employed, but not untiljune. many may not survive until then. simonjack, bbc many may not survive until then. simon jack, bbc news. it has just been announced in the last few minutes that 115 people have died in the uk in the past 2a hours, bringing the death toll to

578. it comes as hospitals in london are having to deal with a tsunami of patients and critical care beds at some sites in the capital could be full by the end of the week. that is the one in from the chief of nhs providers. he said the nhs is also having to deal with unprecedented levels of staff sickness. some intensive care units are already full. patients will be transferred from next week to london's new temporary hospital — a vast conference centre in east london — that will have room for up to 4,000 people. here's our health editor, hugh pym. the army comes to the aid of the nhs, helping shift urgently needed supplies of protective equipment like gloves and masks to hospitals, gp surgeries and other health staff to help them deal with coronavirus cases, with some areas already seeing large numbers. london, for example. the representative of major hospital says in parts of the capital, they are struggling. the scale of the demand and the pace with which it is coming and the fact

that they haven't got enough staff to meet it means it feels like a tsunami. in some places, they are really struggling. they are just about keeping their head above water, but in three or four places, it is clear that they will run out of critical care capacity probably by the weekend. patients will be found beds in other hospitals or in some stayed here at a conference centre in london's docklands, with temporary wards for up to 4000 patients. 0nce temporary wards for up to 4000 patients. once again, the army is helping the health service with the preparations. in the east midlands, priya is getting ready. she is a doctor who has been shifted from her normal work to care for covid—19 patients. it's like we are preparing for another war. it is scary because we have never had this. i have worked in multiple health systems before and we have never faced anything of this sort. at least, i have never faced it. anything of this sort. at least, i have neverfaced it. and most of the doctors haven't, so we are very anxious on the inside, but we don't let that coming our way. 10 is a

vicar who is now looking after her sick parents. she fell ill and stayed at home, was tested, but didn't get the results for two weeks. she had the virus. she is frustrated that she couldn't warn people she had met, some of whom are in hospital. it is really heartbreaking. so please, stay away. assume everybody has got it. call it a plague, nota assume everybody has got it. call it a plague, not a virus. everybody gets viruses. everybody thinks, it is another virus. this is not another virus, this is a plague. stay away from everybody. and mark, who has spoken before about his condition, today said he was on the mend. i want to thank all the staff in the ulster hospital who are looking not just after me, in the ulster hospital who are looking notjust after me, but in the ulster hospital who are looking not just after me, but so many other coronavirus patients. i also want to thank all the nhs staff across the uk. for now, most

hospitals are preparing specialist wards and hoping they can safely ca re wards and hoping they can safely care for the coronavirus patients. hugh pym, bbc news. there have been more urgent calls for nhs staff to be tested to see if they have the virus or not. with sickness rates currently running very high, trust leaders said it was needed so that staff who are self—isolating could return to work sooner. but how likely is this and when could other tests be available to the wider public? our medical correspondent fergus walsh has more. this is how the test for active coronavirus infection is done all over the world. a nasal and throat swab. at the start of the outbreak in the uk, anyone who had been referred by nhs111 could turn up at a drive—through centre like this. now, testing is mostly limited to sick patients in hospital. huge

numbers of nhs staff are being forced to isolate at home because they can't find out if they or their family members are infected. now basingstoke and north hampshire hospital is among the first to offer swa b tests hospital is among the first to offer swab tests to its nhs staff, and it can produce the results in as little as two hours. the brilliant thing for our front line staff is that they know they can get a rapid test. if they are unwell, we can screen them through our screening programme on day three of their illness and we can get them back to work more rapidly. the coronavirus tests are produced by a hampshire biotech firm which is aiming to turn out 2 million a month to satisfy a global demand. rapid testing of nhs staff, patients, indeed, anyone with covid—19 symptoms will transform the fight against coronavirus. currently around 7000 tests are being done

every day in the uk. the ambition is to get that up to 25,000 tests a day before the end of april. a finger prick blood test to see if you have already had coronavirus and have built up antibodies would be incredibly useful. such tests already work for other viruses. this isa already work for other viruses. this is a test for dengue fever, another viral infection. the way you use thatis viral infection. the way you use that is that you take a finger prick and you take the blood of your finger and put it into this little hole and then after a couple of minutes you get the two lines or one line that we are familiar with from a pregnancy test. the uk has bought 3.5 million antibody tests and there has been talk of them being sold via pharmacies or online. the trouble is, we don't know yet if they actually work. so don't expect them to be widely available for some time

yet. fergus walsh, bbc news. 0ur health editor hugh pym is here. london is a couple of weeks ahead of the uk in terms of virus cases and you get the sense that the hospitals here are already on the brink. that's right, sophie. some of them clearly are and nhs leaders say there will be beds found elsewhere if patients need them, but doctors at these hospitals are clearly very apprehensive and still very worried about a lack of protective equipment. 0ne about a lack of protective equipment. one of them has been in touch to say it still wasn't possible to get proper eye protection, there was no hand gel and a nurse was in touch with me a short time ago to say there weren't enough masks and they should have been wearing face masks from the outset of this. it happened very late in the day. the government line is we are addressing this and trying to get the equipment out there, but clearly there is still a problem here and there. another issue is the testing of nhs workers as we heard from fergus, the government line again is that we want to do this as again is that we want to do this as a matter of urgency and they are

about to unveil something that it hasn't quite happened yet although it is in the pipeline. we should remember the london problem is very much a problem for the london hospitals. elsewhere, hospitals are ready for patients but there have been fewer numbers and there are preparations for conference facilities to be used in birmingham, manchester and glasgow. that is being looked at. as for ventilators for sick patients, downing street said today another 8000 had been ordered and were coming on top of the 8000 already there but it does not include the ones from dyson, the vacuum cleaner maker, but no timeline on when the ventilators will arrive. thank you. police in england have been given tough new powers to fine people who gather in public places or refuse to go home. other parts of the uk are expected to follow. repeat offenders could face penalties of almost £1,000. danny savage has more. the centre of one of britain's most popular tourist cities this afternoon — police spot checks on motorists to make sure they are only making essentialjourneys.

if they aren't out for good reason, they are ordered to go home. but police also now have the powers to fine people for not heeding advice. the vast majority of the public are listening and i thank them because we are all in this together. we've all got to do what we can to protect the nhs and save lives. but those who don't listen and those who do break the restrictions, we will deal with them accordingly. in derbyshire, police released this footage of the peak district, annotated to show what people shouldn't be travelling to the national park for. they say driving miles from home to walk the dog or go for a stroll is not essential, even if there is no—one else around. we have policing by consent in this country. the police will be out and about engaging the public in the right kind of responsible way in which they do, exercising their professionaljudgment. but the fact of the matter is, the police now have powers to enforce fines if people do not comply with the social distancing measures that were announced by the prime minister earlier on this week.

because of the glorious weather, police say there are still too many people heading for a day out, rather than staying at home. and on top of today's crackdown, it is now a criminal offence to use coronavirus to threaten somebody. that's because, believe it or not, over the last few days, police and other key workers have been coughed at by people claiming to have the virus. dispersing young people is another issue that is causing police concern. too many youngsters who live in different households are getting too close to each other. so neighbourhood patrols will be out dispersing them and sending them home. danny savage, bbc news. europe is now the epicentre for the global pandemic, and restrictions on people's lives continue to be ramped up. spain has extended its coronavirus lockdown until at least april 12th the number of cases has reached more than 56,000 and the death toll

in the country has has risen to 4,145 people. in italy, the death toll has climbed sharply again. the number of confirmed cases has now reached more than 80,000 and the death toll stands at 8,215 people. there are fears that southern italy could be facing a similar outbreak to that experienced in the north of the country. mark lowen is in rome for us. sophie, early evening each day, the nation holds its breath as the latest figures are announced. tonight, afterfour days latest figures are announced. tonight, after four days of the infection rate slowing, it is up although the curve is still flattening and deaths have risen as well. we are now well over two weeks into the lockdown here in two weeks ahead of britain in terms of the progression of the outbreak, so people in the uk are looking to how this country is coping. in today's italy... in today's italy, the essentials are food and solidarity. local associations buy

the basics for those in need. dozens are taking part, doing their bit to get the country through this crisis. it's the first time in italy we live something so hard and difficult, so powerful and difficult situation. this is only way for me to help people, something very basic. they deliver to the elderly and the isolated, acts of kindness to ease the social and economic emergency. for this virus is grinding italy to a halt. 0nce—buzzing factories forced to close to stop the flow of people. this one of bathroom fittings shuts today. the last of the 130 employees are being sent home. the ovens slowly cooling. the lockdown is containing the outbreak, but it is crushing the economy with it. translation: closing the factory has an awful impact. in the current situation, we understand we have to do it to send the message of hope

and to slow the spread of the virus, but we can't shut for too long. the economy can't be stopped. if this continues for months, it would be hard to sustain our business. it is a sacrifice being made for cities like bergamo, the epicentre, where they blessed the urns of 113 victims, grouping together the fallen. wearing a sash of the italian flag is the mayor, who we reached. with the uk finally emulating the italian lockdown, a warning. translation: britain had the advantage of being two weeks behind italy with the outbreak. they should have used it better. i'm afraid borisjohnson lost precious time. there is a risk it could cost many lives. losing those days could turn out to be a serious mistake. the containment measures may have started to work in northern italy, although there is again today an increase in new infections.

but concern in the poorer south and here in the capital where cases are rising. in rome, this hospital has opened a new coronavirus wing and is already under pressure. the peak hasn't yet been reached here. with crematoria bursting, the army is clearing coffins away. it's that word again they are more used to, war. man versus virus, and the latter is still winning. mark lowen, bbc news, rome. in the united states, new york has recorded it's biggest daily rise in deaths. 100 people died in the past 24 hours bringing the death toll in new york state alone to 385. across the united states more than 1000 people have died. the virus is also taking a heavy toll on the economy almost 3.3 million people filed for unemployment benefits last week, which — as this graph shows — is by far the highest number on record. coronovirus causes the illness known as covid—19, and scientists say for most people

who get it, the effects are mild. it's a new virus, so how much do we actually about it now? why it affects some far more severely than others. and if you get it, do you become immune? 0ur science editor david shukman investigates. in the race to understand this new virus, we've learned a great deal from a massive international research effort. but some critically important questions still need to be answered. the first of these is a real mystery, but something that's vital to get a handle on. we know that people with symptoms can pass on the virus, but what about people without symptoms? the question is, who really is spreading the virus right now? this is crucialfor working out the future of the outbreak. many adults may not even realise they are carrying the virus. and children often don't show many symptoms at all, but may have a role in passing it on. the scientists are struggling to work this out. most individuals who are infected with novel coronavirus will have very mild symptoms or no symptoms at all, and yet their potential

to spread the virus is real. we have to get an understanding ofjust how much virus these people are transmitting, particularly if we're going to get a lid on this outbreak. next, there's something that's far from understood. can you become immune? in other words, if you catch the virus, can you get it again? it is well known that the virus has the ability to invade different kinds of cells, and early studies have shown that antibodies can respond. but does that create immunity, and how long would that last? no one is sure. we know from other human coronaviruses that immunity can be fairly short—lived. that is why they re—infect us. but hopefully, it will last at least months if not several years, but these are important things to address. then there's a question that has been puzzling many experts — why does it seem that more men than women have been dying of the virus so far? a major study in china found that for infected men the death rate was 2.8%,

while for women, it was 1.7%. and in italy, of everyone who has died of covid—19, about 70% were male, based on recent figures. one theory is that smoking is a key factor. a big proportion of chinese men are smokers. another explanation is that women have more effective immune systems than men, but the research has only just started. so amid all the pressures of trying to cope with the virus, there's a rush to work out the full scale of its impact. david shukman, bbc news. and if you want to find out more about the virus and the steps you should be taking to protect yourself and others including handwashing and using a tissue go to the bbc news website at bbc.co.uk? news and the bbc news app. more than 660,000 people have signed up

to be an nhs volunteers. they will help to look after more than 1 million of britain's most vulnerable people — many of whom can't leave home for the next 3 months. today the government's outlined details about how you can get that help and be put in touch with the volunteers if you are one of those in need. from manchester, judith moritz reports. more than half a million volunteers are ready to help, but although they have answered the call to action, there are still lots of questions. as a family member of someone who is vulnerable and self—isolating, how can i access their support for that person? i would like to know if the volunteers will be given some kind of id so that if we were to be questioned by authorities whilst we're out and about, then we can assure them that we are travelling for good reason. i would like to know how it's going to work in practice. robin hollins has offered to help with medical transportation, but he is uncertain that his car insurance will allow it. the forms when you sign up say you need to tell your insurers. i did contact my insurer

is the next day. they actually don't know. the advice is that volunteers should tell their insurers they're driving for voluntary purposes and although there won't be id cards, those taking part can show the app when they're on duty to confirm who they are. people have asked questions about how to stay safe whilst volunteering. social distancing rules still apply, according to those who are coordinating this huge project. lots of people are saying they want to volunteer, but they want reassurance that they can stay safe while doing it. at any point that we feel that any role has a potential risk of dealing with a patient who has got covid—19, it will be in our training that it is absolutely essential that you are given protective equipment. at the moment, we envisage all of our roles to be around patients who didn't have covid—19. but as we go forward, we know that things are going to change and we're going to have to make sure we put the right training in place. the service is designed to help

families like anna bennett's. her daughterjemima has cystic fibrosis and she is amongst 1.5 million people currently being shielded at home. it's really reassuring to me to know that there is going to be a service available to do things like deliver our shopping or even if it comes to it, pick up my daughter's medicines. anyone who has volunteered to help the nhs, we are so grateful for those people and it's an extremely selfless act. and i think it's going to make all the difference to families like us who are shielding someone who is extremely vulnerable. those eligible for help like the bennetts will either be referred by their gp or they can access it themselves by calling a dedicated phone line from next week. it won't be long before they're matched with the volunteers who are raring to start work. judith moritz, bbc news. tonight at 8 o'clock, people across the uk are being asked to open their windows,

go to their front door or stand clapping for the carers today in lincolnshire. indeed, across the world, it has become the way of saying thank you. even in the house of commons. and, here in india, and tonight the uk willjoin in with an event that began with a single post on social media by a dutch yoga teacher living in london. this was just an idea of yours and it took off really quickly, didn't it? yes, it went really fast. the next day, even before lunch, my friends were showing me that victoria beckham had posted it on her page and the sussex royals did it on their instagram stories, and it was