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tv   BBC News  BBC News  March 27, 2020 8:00pm-9:01pm GMT

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the death toll has also leapt
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in new york state alone by more than 500. spain also sees a sharp rise in the number of deaths, but officials there say the rate of new infections is stabilising. hello and welcome to bbc news. we'll be covering all the latest developments in the coronavirus pandemic, both in britain and across the planet. here in the uk, the prime minister boris johnson has tested positive for the virus. he says he has ‘mild symptoms‘ and is self—isolating at downing street, but will continue to lead the government via video conference. the health secretary, matt hancock, has also tested positive and is also in isolation. they were among nearly 3000 new confirmed
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cases in the uk today, bringing the total to fourteen—and—a half thousand. and a further 181 people with the virus have died in the last 2a hours. that means there have now been 759 coronavirus deaths in the uk. italy has reported a record surge in the number of deaths, with more than 900 people dying in a single day — bringing the total there to more than 9,000. and in the us, now the epicentre of the pandemic, there've been a record 18,000 new confirmed cases today. more on all these stories later — first, let's get an update on events here in london with our chief political correspondent vicky young. keeping their distance. like many neighbours, the prime minister and chancellor stepped outside to pay tribute to nhs staff last night but four hours later, boris johnson tested positive for coronavirus. i've taken a test, that's come out positive.
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so i am working from home, i am self isolating and that's entirely the right thing to do. but, be in no doubt that i can continue, thanks to the wizardry of modern technology, to communicate with all my top team to lead the national fight back against coronavirus. that top team has been spending less time in the same room this week. cabinet was held remotely. the chief medical and scientific advisers where keeping further apart at online press conferences, but today chris whitty said he had symptoms and was self isolating. mrjohnson had his weekly audience with the queen on the phone. in the commons on wednesday there were fewer mps at prime minister's questions, but ministers sat together on the front bench, including the health secretary. he developed coronavirus symptoms that night and is also in self isolation. i will be continuing to do everything i can to get our carers the support they need and i will be doing that from here,
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but with no less gusto. with the prime minister unavailable, it fell to michael gove to take questions at the daily press conference. the prime minister has coronavirus, the health secretary does as well, the chief medical officer is in isolation. people will be looking at this and may be wondering whether you haven't been taking your own advice, or you may have acted too slowly when it came to stopping the spread of the coronavirus? the virus does not discriminate. we are all at risk and that is why it is so important that we practice social distancing measures. those are in place in government. ministers are working remotely and from home using video conferencing in order to make sure that we can follow the strict advice that all of us should be following in order to help to protect the nhs. like any other workplace, downing street has been affected by staff absence. the prime minister's chief adviser dominic cummings is still up and running. mrjohnson‘s girlfriend,
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who is pregnant, posted this photo of her and dog, dylan, saying self isolating wasn't so bad. as for the prime minister, he will stay in the office and flat in number 11 downing street for seven days. meals will be left outside the door. jonathan blake is in westminster for us. britain's politicians having to practice what they preach. yes, the coronavirus crisis has come to the very heart of government with boris johnson testing positive for coronavirus and the health secretary matt hancock also doing so, the two leading figures here at westminster who are in charge of the government's response are finding themselves having to self—isolate. for all the technology and cooperation that is available to them, this will nevertheless be a challenge for the government and
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there are a difficult few days ahead, notjust there are a difficult few days ahead, not just for the there are a difficult few days ahead, notjust for the prime minister and the health secretary, but for those in the wider whitehall operation who are tasked with dealing with coronavirus. the chief medical officer, chris whitty, showing symptoms so he will be self isolating as well. it is perhaps not a huge surprise that it is found its way into government and that senior figures have tested positive because, as we know, the spread of this virus is very broad. there was little detail about how the government is going about making sure that more people don't find themselves contracting this disease beyond putting in place the social distancing measures that the government has urged the public at large to do, but we heard at the briefing earlier on from michael gove, the cabinet office minister, saying that any senior figure in government who are central to the effort to stopping the spread of
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coronavirus would be tested if they we re coronavirus would be tested if they were showing symptoms, which is obviously a different setup and protocol to you and i if we were to show symptoms, having to self—isolate and leave it at that. it is still a shock though, isn't it? the leader of the country is diagnosed with coronavirus. he will have been in contact with a number of people over the last few weeks. yes it is, it is a very visible reminder that the virus is indiscriminate as michael gove said himself at the press briefing earlier on. it doesn't discriminate and we are all at risk and the prime minister contracting the virus is a potent reminder of that. as you suggest, there will be people asking questions about who has been in contact with the prime minister and when, if you're shaking their hands oi’ when, if you're shaking their hands or stood relatively close in the
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last few days and i am sure we will see reminders of those social distancing measures going around westminster and going around government departments where many people are, it has to be said, working from home and following the guidance put out to the country as a whole. extraordinary though, to have the prime minister confined to the flat above number 11 downing st, running the country, leading the government's response to coronavirus but not coming into direct contact with anyone and doing everything remotely. as you said, the prime ministers had the test, there is controversy ministers had the test, there is c0 ntrove i’sy over ministers had the test, there is controversy over prince charles managing to get a test when he was showing symptoms as well when, as you say, so many others don't when they have symptoms. speaking of tests, after a lot of criticism, health workers on the front line are going to start being tested and some will say it is not a moment too soon. we learned that to date from
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the chief executive officer of nhs england at the downing street press conference earlier, he said nhs staff would now begin to be tested as of next week. he identified certain groups that would begin to be tested routinely, intensive care unit staff, gps, critical care nurses and doctors and also ambulance crews as well. as you suggest, that is something that nhs staff and others have been calling forfor some time now, with no routine testing in the uk, beyond those in hospital with symptoms who are potentially the most severely at risk, that will come as welcome news for people working in the nhs and it is something that the labour party and other opposition politicians have been calling for for some time now. exactly how they will be administered or how many people the nhs hopes to test on a daily or
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weekly basis, we don't know yet, but as of next week, nhs staff will be tested. thank you very much jonathan. italy has recorded another enormous surge in deaths from coronavirus, with the highest daily increase since the epidemic emerged. released just a short time ago, it went up by 919 to 9,000100 and 34. the previous largest single toll was registered six days ago, when 793 people died. the total number of confirmed cases has gone up to 86,498 from 80,539, taking italy's total past that of china. and 6% of those currently diagnosed with the disease — almost 4000 people — are in intensive care. here's mark lowen in 959 deaths in the last 2a hours which is absolutely shocking. it's very hard for italians to take in these cases, hundreds dying everyday,
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but the chink of light is that the infection rate is down a bit and the curve is flattening. so, the national restrictions are working in that respect. but progress in this lockdown which has lasted well over two weeks here, is slow, it is uneven, and the awful news just keeps on coming. 46 doctors have now died here since the outbreak began. the united states now has more confirmed cases of coronavirus than any other country in the world — with more than 90,000 positive tests. the death toll has leapt to more than 500 in new york state alone — by far the highest number of deaths in the country. today the state governor announced plans to build four more temporary hospitals around new york city. from there, nick bryant reports. new york, new york, the worst infected city in what is now the worst infected country. there was always a sense this planetary pandemic would end up
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ravaging this global hub and, although there is a deceptive calm on its now quiet streets, it's behind the doors of its inundated hospitals that the crisis is playing out. emergency calls have hit their highest levels since the attacks of september the 11th. hospital staff are describing a tsunami of patients flooding emergency rooms. they are thought to be three weeks away from the peak here but already they are exhausted. new york is paying a price for being such a vibrant and international city. we are so dense, so together, which is what makes us special, gives us that new york energy, gives us that new york mojo, but that density becomes the enemy in a situation like this. in midtown manhattan something we haven't seen since 9/11, refrigerated trucks ready to store the corpses of the dead, each one capable of holding up to 44 bodies.
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these workmen were constructing a makeshift morgue. america is paying the price for not being prepared, for not taking the coronavirus seriously enough when it was ripping through china, for not ramping up testing quickly enough when it first came to these shores. for losing precious time. like the rest of the world, america is notjust facing a public health crisis but an economic emergency and congress has now passed a $2 trillion stimulus package, a lifeline to an economy that this week saw its biggest spike in unemployment in its history. america's businessman president is itching to lift the lockdown. the sooner we get back to work, every day we stay out it gets harder to bring it back quickly. our people do not want to stay out. america is on a war footing, led by a commander—in—chief desperate for the conflict to come to a speedy end.
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some breaking news from los angeles, oui’ some breaking news from los angeles, our correspondent has been to a briefing and we are told that officials in america's second largest city will close all of its beaches. that is also the iconic surfers paradise of malibu. the state of california is identified as one of the principal centres for the outbreak and officials in la have announced the immediate closure of all public parks, bike parks, public parking spaces as well as beaches and that will be in place in the next three weeks. the la county supervisor said it was essential that access to public places was now limited. last weekend saw lots of people flocking to hiking trails and beaches after the first week of an
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order to stay at home. 26 people are now said to have died of coronavirus in los angeles county, so a closure of all those public places then in the la region with immediate effect. in spain, the number of coronavirus cases continues to increase, with 769 deaths in 2a hours. with so many critically ill patients, it has meant that more and more are dying alone, because their families aren't allowed in. it's putting an enormous emotional strain on families and medical staff, as our correspondent damian grammaticas reports from madrid. cheering and applause. from his bed he waves, a moment of triumph in a spanish hospital. he is their first patient well enough to leave intensive care, but the medical staff are the only people there to see it. that is because every new virus patient brought in is immediately isolated from the outside world.
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not even families are allowed to enter hospitals here, and spain registered another 8500 cases today. it is the awful reality esther garcia is facing. she has covid—i9 and is trying to isolate herself, but she thinks she may have infected both her parents, mariapaz and constantino, both now positive, both in hospital and beyond her reach. you cannot hug, you cannot kiss, you cannot see the other, and it's the situation of so many old people here. esther‘s parents are being treated here in this hospital. it is one of the cruellest aspects of this outbreak, the rigorous separation that has to be enforced between the sick and everyone else, because it is so contagious. this is where her parents were admitted. many hospitals are at double their capacity. staff don't have time to answer phones or update families. it is what happens when the health service is swamped.
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spain did not bring in its lockdown quickly enough and test enough people to track the virus's progress. so now people are dying in spain's hospitals, hundreds and hundreds every day, not surrounded by loved ones, isolated and alone. to be so isolated, people get sick alone and they die alone and they are buried alone. you cannot do anything, you cannot be with them. esther has found a way to reach her parents. a nurse has got a phone in. herfather is improving, but her mother's condition is serious. and night and day as the virus advances, more families are being separated. silvia, who works in one of the hospitals worst affected, posted this notice this week, saying she will pass messages to those inside. these are the ones she is delivering tonight. the family tell me, "say i love you so much, i'm here with you,
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we can't see you but i'm here." something like this. silvia is a nurse assistant, just 2a years old, delivering comfort to the dying. spain's medics now shouldering the emotional burden of this crisis too. damian grammaticas, bbc news, madrid. here in the uk, there is growing concern that some nhs hospitals may be overwhelmed by coronavirus patients as early as this weekend. there's particular pressure on hospitals on the outskirts of london, where some health bosses have warned that intensive care units face a tsunami of demand in the coming days. our medical correspondent fergus walsh has the latest. i have got what they call locally advanced prostate cancer. chris was due to have his prostate removed on monday, but his cancer surgery has been cancelled. the operating theatre has been turned into a makeshift intensive care unit. i think it is morally and ethically wrong to sacrifice cancer patients
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in favour of covid—i9 patients. it is important cancer patients don't become the forgotten victims of this chaos that is taking place. the hospital in derby issued a statement saying... it is far from an isolated example. indeed, all nhs nonurgent surgery is being suspended for three months to free up beds for the outbreak. cancer specialists should have the opportunity, with their patients, to decide whether it is more risky for somebody to embark on treatment at this particular time, giving you a more vulnerable to infection. this conference centre in east london will have 500 beds available for coronavirus patients from next week. which will rise to 4000. it is being built with the help of the army.
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as is an even biggerfield hospital at the nec in birmingham, which will have up to 5000 beds. a third has been earmarked for the g meck centre in manchester. more personal protective equipment is being shipped out from this distribution centre near glasgow, but many medical staff are saying they are still being left at rest, among them, gps. people are really, really scared for themselves, for their teams and their patients. theyjust don't know when they go into see a patient, whether or not, even though they are not displaying symptoms, they may still have the virus. nhs staff and family members with coronavirus symptoms, will be able to turn up at drive—through centres like this as testing for the disease is ramped up. fergus walsh, bbc news. the uk government has urged people not to move house to try to limit the spread of coronavirus across the country. the move comes amid reports that
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banks are pressing for a full suspension of the uk housing market. we can speak now to the chief executive of uk finance, formerly known as the british bankers' association, stephenjones. he joins us via webcam from isle of wight. stephen thank you. moving house is stressful at the best of times, so in light of the recent advice, what will lenders do to help buyers and renters 7 will lenders do to help buyers and renters? the industry is seeking to suspend the operation of the housing market, but that is not the truth, as the government guidance has made clear, they have to be... and in scotla nd clear, they have to be... and in scotland and northern ireland for example, the land registries...” scotland and northern ireland for example, the land registries... i am so sorry, we are breaking up very
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badly, we can only hear about a third of what you are saying, there isa third of what you are saying, there is a problem with a connection, we will see what we can do. bear with us will see what we can do. bear with us for a moment. seven hundred and fifteen thousand people have signed up to help the nhs in england by delivering medicines and supporting the vulnerable. but there are many more who want to help. northern ireland, wales and scotland aren't included in that scheme. some charities say they're also desperate for more volunteers as judith moritz reports the nhs called and thousands rushed to respond and the volunteer workforce continues to multiply. from her kitchen in huddersfield, vicki selebi is one of those who logged on to offer her help. vicki selebi is one of those who logged on to offer her helplj offered to move patients around, i haven't heard anything back as of yet but i am raring to go, i have nothing left to do at the moment so anything helps. those applying receive this e—mail, warning them that it receive this e—mail, warning them thatitis receive this e—mail, warning them that it is taking a little time to
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get the scheme up and running. those coordinating the nhs project say they are staggered at the volume of volu nteers they are staggered at the volume of volunteers who have come forward. they are now going through all the applications to check everybody‘s id and those offering to transport patients will have extra safeguarding checks, but next week, they say they will begin starting to match volunteers with those needing help. the nhs scheme only covers england. in northern ireland, there are england. in northern ireland, there a re lots of england. in northern ireland, there are lots of grassroots efforts like this one, where volunteers are delivering food within the community. welsh and scottish conservatives are asking for the nhs project to be extended there. there is also a clamour for support from charities which won't benefit from nhs volunteering. fair share redistributes super supplies from the food industry to people who are vulnerable and living in poverty. they say they are crying out for help. we desperately need volunteers who are fit and well, those who are able to get in safely, not supporting vulnerable people, who
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are able to muck in and help with out are able to muck in and help with our operation, whether that be driving the vans, they may be helping in the warehouse, sorting stock out, making borders. 0h fantastic, this is my order. in devon, they have taken support down toa devon, they have taken support down to a local level. 150 volunteers are leafleti ng to a local level. 150 volunteers are leafleting the local community. every street will be covered by a volunteer, the idea is that nobody should be left without help during this crisis. scientists at imperial college london say that around the world as many as 40 million lives would have been lost to coronavirus, without the global response. but there's a warning that the poorest countries are still more likely to be hit hardest. 0ur science editor david shukman reports. all over the world, very different reactions to the virus. in africa, rwanda was the first to lock down, while in senegal the streets are still busy. and now new research points to a catastrophe unless there is an immediate global response.
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what this latest study shows is that if literally nothing is done to stop the virus, as many as 40 million people could die from it worldwide this year. now, that isn't likely to happen because so many governments are introducing public health measures. and if they all do, the death toll should fall to 9.3 million, still horrific of course. the key to this is timing. if those measures are adopted rapidly, the number dying could fall to 1.3 million. itjust shows the critical importance of governments acting urgently. bangladesh, a refugee camp for rohingya people. 0vercrowded and fearful. it is the poor who will be hit hardest according to the scientists studying the pandemic. even in the most optimistic scenarios in terms of the control that can be put in, it is still very likely that the health systems in the poorest countries will become overwhelmed. many of these countries have very few numbers, for example,
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of intensive care beds available, and indeed hospital beds are very much in demand for the other diseases that are prevalent in those settings. in india there is meant to be a national lockdown, but it is hard to manage. and, as in many developing countries, the health care system is fragile. if unchecked it is going to basically make our health care systems collapse, that's the prospect we are facing. and the other crisis we are facing is an economic crisis. if you take very strong, draconian measures, it is going to shut down our economy and sent it into some sort of cardiac arrest. many countries are now doing what they can, but to defeat the virus it will take action on a global scale. this is bbc news.
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hello, there have been some sunshine and england and wales but in scotla nd and england and wales but in scotland there has been this cold front, overnight... by this stage really just a band front, overnight... by this stage reallyjust a band of cloud. further south, clear skies but with the strength of the breeze it should keep any frost at bay and for most, a degree or so above freezing, maybe three or four in the centre of town. this is the weekend, on saturday we have this slow—moving cold front. a band of cloud by this stage but look at the squeeze in isobars. picking up the cold and north—easterly wind and the dividing line between the mild air we've had recently and something much colder sweeping across the uk. a real chill in the wind
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especially on sunday. saturday, variable cloud, some sunny spells. more cloud than we've had recently over england and wales. also some wintry showers, especially across eastern counties of scotland and england. temperatures 6—12 but with a strengthening wind it's going to feel colder. parts of scotland will struggle to get above 45. wind strengthening all the time tomorrow and that continues on sunday. in the early hours of sunday the clocks are going forward one hour. we start british summertime but on sunday it's going to feel colder. a lot of cloud, the best sunshine in northern ireland, western scotland, north—west and south—west england. a chance of wintry showers for eastern counties but the strength of the wind is going to be the feature on sunday. gusts of 30, 40 mph, 45 for some channel coasts. a thermometer might read 6—9, but adding on the strength
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of the wind is going to feel closer to freezing. a significant wind—chill on sunday and a bitterly cold day, especially compared to recently. moving into the early part of next week the wind is going to ease down. still a cold feel with some frosty nights. a chance of some wintry showers. that's all from me.
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a. time to look at the headlines here on the bbc news. as the uk death toll rises by 181 people since yesterday —
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the prime minister and the health secretary both test positive for coronavirus. i have developed mild symptoms of the coronavirus, a temperature and a persistent cough and on the advice of the chief medical officer i have taken a of the chief medical officer i have ta ken a test of the chief medical officer i have taken a test and that has come out positive. in italy almost 1,000 people have died in the past 24 hours — the biggest daily rise so far — in a country that's been locked down for almost two weeks. spain also sees a sharp rise in the number of deaths — but officials there say the rate of new infections is stabilising. the united states now has an estimated 100,000 cases of coronavirus, more than any other country in the world. the death toll has also leapt. in new york state alone, by more than 500. welcome to your questions answered —
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lots of you have been contacting us with your questions about the uk's response to the coronavirus pandemic. and to help answer some of them, i'm joined by dr alex george, who's a junior doctor in a&e at lewisham hospital. you are between shifts so thank you for extending your day. also with me is myra mcclure, professor of retrovirology at imperial college london — where one laboratory is being used by the nhs to test for covid 19 — and will handle around 1,500 samples per day. she joins us from south west london. thanks forjoining us. we always have lots of interesting questions. this is the first one, why are we not doing what b who recommends and testing everyone for the virus? —— what the. we will eventually commit it as what the. we will eventually commit itasa what the. we will eventually commit it as a big demand to test everyone and you need to make sure that the
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tests are accurate. we will set up these tests in double quick time, they are running out of tests, or they are running out of tests, or they did at stage, so it takes time to get organised. with lots of new ideas and innovations in testing coming up, that will be the goal and that will be achieved quite shortly, in fact. alex, why is the recovery rate in the uk salomao and the death rate in the uk salomao and the death rate so high, asks daniel? —— so low. because we are not testing may be as many patients as other countries around europe and the world, what we are seeing is the portion makes it look that way, a large numberof portion makes it look that way, a large number of patients who are managing the symptoms at home and they are not been tested and we are only testing the patience that are coming into the hospital and who we believe require admission, so that probably is skewing the picture.
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thank you. pamela asks this question, if i self—isolate for two weeks and show no signs of the virus and then continue to self—isolate, is it still possible to still become infected? the question here is that if you are exposed to the coronavirus in the first place, after 14 days and you haven't had any symptoms, and then you have somehow tested positive, i guess, from a community test, then you hope to have some immunity and we hope people will therefore not be able to be infected again. self—isolate for two we e ks be infected again. self—isolate for two weeks and then display no symptoms but then become exposed to the virus and then become infected, so the virus and then become infected, so what we are trying to do is reduced in number of social contacts we are having to slow the spread of the community and therefore reduce the community and therefore reduce the pressure on the front line. he
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enacts on i'm on my break and we are seeing increasing number of patients coming into the department with the coronavirus —— here in a&e i'm on my break. we can cope but we can't cope with vast numbers of patients all at once and that is why we are asking people to follow these measures. another question, what are the mild symptoms of coronavirus? the prime minister and we have sector we have said they have this. i'm a scientist and not a clinician but my knowledge is as deep as yours. i understand the prime minister and prince charles and the others who have got this, have had a persistent dry cough with more phlegm, sometimes they have a fever and sometimes not, and sometimes they have aches and pains like having the flu. more than that, the clinician will be able to a nswer that, the clinician will be able to answer better. has she covered it,
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alex? the primary symptoms we are looking for is a persistent cough, so we are looking for is a persistent cough, so we are talking about not a splutter after a drink of liquid, we are talking about a cough that goes on for many hours and days that is not explainable for an obvious reason. and obviously a temperature of 37.8 and above which is around 100 degrees, those are the main symptoms but also we have patients coming in with subtle signs like a lack of taste or smell and also aches and pains. although this virus mainly affects the lungs it also causes other symptoms through the body, as well. you have answered my next question. 0ne body, as well. you have answered my next question. one person has asked, isa next question. one person has asked, is a loss of sense of smell and taste, could they be the symptoms of covid-19? what is interesting about
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the coronavirus and what makes it tricky in that sense is that there isa tricky in that sense is that there is a percentage of the population that will have no symptoms at all and we don't know what that is at the moment, but there is a significant number. if people have symptoms, it is not always the classic dry cough and fever and it can be something subtle like the loss of smell and the loss of taste and a sore throat. what makes it difficult is that those symptoms can be caused by a common cold and other common viruses and that is why we are focusing on those key symptoms, the self isolation any risk of having coronavirus, because they are much more likely to indicate that infection. but you could have those other symptoms you have talked about but not have the fever and not have the bad cough and it still have coronavirus? that is absolutely correct. that is why it is so key
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that we follow social distancing measures and reduce the number of social contacts we are having because you could easily have the coronavirus display no symptoms and then be passing that on to other people, and that is why it frightens me in some ways, seeing groups of young people still going out for a barbecue, i've seen pictures online, and it is important to realise this isa and it is important to realise this is a serious issue. the other point, although the vast majority of young people will have mild illness, that is not a given, and i have seen young patients with no underlying illness being unwell with the coronavirus. it is very small and i'm not scaremongering but it is important to realise anyone can be susceptible to this. why did you feel it was so important to use your break to come on the bbc news and a nswer break to come on the bbc news and answer these questions? we have a role as doctors to inform the public and i'm passionate that we take this
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seriously. in the hospital i mean that we are seeing a lot of cases of very u nwell that we are seeing a lot of cases of very unwell patients with coronavirus —— i'm in. the sooner we can get the message out to the public, everyone can follow the guidance we are giving, and the sooner we can get over this, make progress, because we will get through this, the nhs is incredibly resilient and we will get over this battle we we re resilient and we will get over this battle we were in at the moment, but it is all about cooperation and everyone needs to follow our advice. thank you. chris asks the questions about other symptoms but i think we have answered that. it can be confusing, but as you have clearly explained, there can be a number of other symptoms which are associated with covid-19. other symptoms which are associated with covid—19. jamie says, what happens to people after they have beenin happens to people after they have been in hospital with the virus? for those in the hospital and they make a good recovery from the owners,
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they are discharged back to the community, and if they need, because of timings, they may need to continue that strict self isolation to make sure they will not be at risk, passing that on to other people, and we are seeing people making a good recovery, and i make that point, the vast majority of people will have moderate illness and will make a good recovery. even those that require intervention, they are recovering and going on to make a good recovery, so we are recognising those signs and symptoms, self isolating, but also recognising that if they are not getting better article 111 and get good advice over what to do next. —— if they are not getting better then to call 111. claire says, does the coronavirus live on a paper and for how long? lots of different reports over the different kinds of surfaces
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it can survive on and for how long. it can be quite confusing for people. yes, it is, but i don't think coronavirus last very long on paper, and i don't know the exact time but i think if you leave a paper bag lying around for a couple of minutes, i don't think, i think you are a very low risk picking up an infection from a paper that has been handled by somebody infected with coronavirus. there are other risks if someone sneezes on your face, you are likely to get the infection, but i wouldn't worry about handling paper being passed from one to the other. take ordinary precautions, if someone is handing you a paper, and wear gloves and leave it for a couple of minutes, half an hour, just to be on the safe side, but it is not a major risk. you have converted a lab so you can
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carry out these tests? 1500 a day. why did you feel it was important to do that? it was a diagnostic lab anyway, accredited diagnostic lab, and we do hiv tests, this sort of thing, for the hospital anyway, so we we re thing, for the hospital anyway, so we were well set up. it was clear that the targets that the government we re that the targets that the government were demanding for covid—19 testing we re were demanding for covid—19 testing were going to be a huge challenge for the nhs laboratories so we offered to convert our lab and set up. we have done in —— it in a couple of weeks and we are ready to 90, couple of weeks and we are ready to go, thanks to the enormous work put in over the last two weeks. 0ur target of 1500 will be met and maybe even exceeded and that will be, well, we are lucky, i'm not trying to do well, we are lucky, i'm not trying todoa well, we are lucky, i'm not trying to do a prps, but there are lots of
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very clever people who approach us and say, with this be useful for a coronavirus diagnosis? —— not trying to do coronavirus diagnosis? —— not trying todoa coronavirus diagnosis? —— not trying to doa pr coronavirus diagnosis? —— not trying to do a pr piece. there was a robot that could extract the guts of a virus very quickly from many specimens in about an hour, 100 specimens in about an hour, 100 specimens an hour, so that speeds up our productivity. there is a new innovation, for example, the professor of engineering approached us and said, i have this technology which is sold to measure food fats and sugars, and it has been converted now to diagnose and attacked coronavirus, they said, would you like to look at this in ourlab? we would you like to look at this in our lab? we have done so this week and it is looking very promising. the beauty of this is that he can give you an accurate test with this
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technology, an accurate result within one hour and 20 minutes, so that will revolutionise testing. you said, why isn't everyone tested? it is very hard, when it takes 4—5 hours to get results in the lab but if you have something you can do a quick nasal swab and put it into this gadget, and then get a result injust over an this gadget, and then get a result in just over an hour, this gadget, and then get a result injust over an hour, that is going to bea injust over an hour, that is going to be a game changerfor testing injust over an hour, that is going to be a game changer for testing the population. some immensely clever people in the country and around the world working hard on this and we are very grateful to everyone. alex, christine says what happened to the idea of herd immunity now that we are being told to isolate and avoid social contact? some people thought, let me catch this and hopefully it will be mild and i will have the immunity. good question. ifi can answer it in this way, essentially,
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what we want is like a gradual immunity to develop, the idea of herd immunity is correct, but what we don't want to happen is a huge numberof we don't want to happen is a huge number of people to have this all at once because if we have tens of thousands of patients sick at once that puts a huge amounts of pressure on the nhs and the health care system. if we have a gradual effect in the community this allows us to manage the number of patients we are seeing. we are going to be looking at herd immunity but what we are having is a rapid number of increases of cases and we are trying to slow this rapid ascent because if we continue that trajectory we will be really struggling in the nhs to cope with it so that is why we are trying to flatten it and slow it down. excellent questions as usual in this particular section on bbc news and we are very grateful to you both forjoining us. to both of you,
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thanks forjoining us. thank you also for everything you are doing to keep us safe and healthy. well, as we've been reporting, both the prime minister and the health secretary have tested positive for coronavirus — a development that michael gove described as proof that the illness doesn't discriminate. mr gove was pressed at the daily news briefing on whether the ministers and officials had been following their own advice on social distancing. this is how the bbc‘s chief political correspondent, vicki young began the questioning. the prime minister has coronavirus in the health sector as well, the chief medical officer is in isolation —— and the health secretary, as well. have you maybe not been taking your own advice or
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you may be acted to study when it came to stopping the spread of coronavirus? —— acted too slowly. another question for simon stephens, cancer patients are very worried about the cancellation or postponement of their treatment and operations and many of them are worried their lives are at risk. and another question, can you be precise about the peak of the outbreak?” will turn to simon and jenny in a second, but the fact that both the prime minister and the health secretary had contracted the virus isa secretary had contracted the virus is a reminder that the virus doesn't discriminate. we are all at risk and thatis discriminate. we are all at risk and that is why it is important we practice social distancing measures, they are in place in government and ministers are working remotely and from home using video conferencing in order to make sure that we can follow the strict advice that all of us they should be following in order
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to help protect the nhs. simon. regarding cancer care we have been clear that we want essential and urgent cancer treatments to continue but that cancer specialists should have the opportunity with their patients to decide whether it is more risky for somebody to embark on treatment at this particular time given that you are more vulnerable to infection if you begin a course of treatment, like chemotherapy, so those are clinical decisions that will need to be taken. we have also agreed a landmark deal with the independent hospitals across the country which has given us the ability to look after patients away from the busy hospitals that are treating coronavirus. in london for example the royal marsden is coordinating cancer care across the capital so that even if patients are not being looked after at their local hospital they will be getting the care they need, but these are
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very difficult and sensitive judgments that need to be made with the involvement of cancer clinicians as well as patients. jenny. i'm going to be a bit repetitive, the same question was asked yesterday from a different media colleague, and it would be foolish of me to predict precisely when we expect the peak to be, not least because we have but in social distancing interventions and we are looking to see how well they work. there is early indication that the public are really now heeding the advice and we thank them for that. it is important they continue to do that and we do not expect to see a significant change in our numbers for 2—3 weeks, until we really need people to stick with us for those social distancing measures. when we have more data we
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will be happy to share it with you. now to the itv reporter. it is good news that we heard that the prime minister is only experiencing mild symptoms but i would like to know, what is the plan should the prime minister not be able to continue with his work? given that there seems to be a limit to the number of tests that can be done, what is the syste m tests that can be done, what is the system for testing people like yourself at the top of government who are dealing with this crisis? the prime minister has only mild symptoms and he took part, he aired a video conference earlier today, and he was able to marshal the resources of the nhs and different government departments and the private sector in order to bring forward the testing initiative we have announced today. i will hand over tojenny to have announced today. i will hand over to jenny to say have announced today. i will hand over tojenny to say a bit more about the testing protocols that guide the way in which people are
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tested and then i would turn to simon to say a bit more about our ambitions to support front line nhs staff with the extension of testing. asi staff with the extension of testing. as i stated before, the primary objective of our testing is to make sure that we manage clinical cases safely so those patients who are admitted to intensive care with acute respiratory disease syndrome or pneumonia, we are focusing on them, and again for other admissions into hospitals with those conditions, we test routinely in some other specific areas, care homes for example, where we know there are critical patients at risk, high risk, and webex a higher risk of disease spread. —— a higher risk. you must have clinical symptoms, the default position is you would not be tested otherwise, and the only other criteria is the centrality of your
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role to the covid—19 response, and in this particular case i'm sure your viewers will understand that the prime minister plays a very critical role in that and that is the basis for our testing. simon. from an nhs perspective we think it is urgently important that we are able to test front line staff who are able to test front line staff who a re off able to test front line staff who are off sick or otherwise isolating and that is why the work that public health england has been leading is so important because it means we are going to be able to double by this time next week the number of tests compared to the number we have been doing this week. i can say that today we are announcing that we will be rolling out staff testing across the nhs beginning next week, starting with the critical care nurses and other staff and emergency departments, and ambulance services, gps, and is the testing volumes continue to increase we want to expand that to a wider range of
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essential public service workers including our social care services as well as continuing with the patient testing which is so vital. we will now turn to beth rigby from sky. just a couple of questions, please. you say the prime minister and the health secretary getting the virus shows it doesn't discriminate and fortunately they only have mild symptoms but you can't guarantee that they won't become more poorly at the very moment that the country needs them to lead, lots of people watching will be asking why the prime minister and the health secretary and now the chief medical officer were not better protected, is induced at best careless and at worst negligent? —— isn't this at bestjealous. simon
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worst negligent? —— isn't this at best jealous. simon stephens, worst negligent? —— isn't this at bestjealous. simon stephens, the new london hospital has 500 intensive care beds by next week how much spare opacity is there at the moment and how do you expect that to change over the weekend and do you anticipate that you will be ove rca pacity anticipate that you will be overcapacity by next week? great news that you are going to roll out testing for nhs staff but how many staff are currently unable to work because they are either unwell or self isolating? thank you. the fact that the virus has no respect in terms of individuals who ever they are is one of the reasons why we do need to have strict social distancing measures so that we can reduce the rate of infection and reduce the rate of infection and reduce the rate of infection and reduce the pressure on the nhs. various estimates have been made about the number of people in any country who may become infected over time and we aim as the prime
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minister has pointed out we want to flatten the curve and reduce the rate of reinfection in order to make sure that the nhs can be protected. many people will reflect on the fact that the prime minister succumbing to the virus is a reminder of how seriously we all need to take the advice that the nhs has been giving us. on the question of london hospital beds, as of yesterday the most recent figures we had, just under 3000 empty most recent figures we had, just under3000 empty and most recent figures we had, just under 3000 empty and available hospital beds across london, and we are bringing on additional beds next week at the new nhs nightingale hospital. that is being configured to be able to look after up to 500 patients but there is the physical capacity to potentially take that up to 4000 if it was required. there is an enormous effort going on notjust across london but across the
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midlands where we are seeing continued growth in cases and that is why as well as freeing up the 33,000 hospital beds across the current english nhs hospitals, we are also dealing with these unprecedented steps. hello, the weather is going for many of us this weekend. some warmth in the spring sunshine across england and wales in recent days. scotland and northern ireland, we've had this cold front which has been slow—moving, bringing some cloud and patchy rain and drizzle. overnight sinking further south. by this stage, really just a band of cloud, may be the odd patch of drizzle. to the north, clear skies and wintry showers in scotland leading to some icy stretches. further south, clear skies but with the strength of the breeze
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it should keep any frost at bay and for most, a degree or so above freezing, maybe three or four in the centre of town. this is the weekend, on saturday we have this slow—moving cold front. a band of cloud by this stage but look at the squeeze in isobars. picking up the colder, north—easterly wind and the dividing line between the mild air we've had recently and something much colder sweeping across the uk. a real chill in the wind, especially on sunday. for saturday, variable cloud, some sunny spells. more cloud than we've had recently over england and wales. also, some wintry showers, especially across eastern counties of scotland and england. temperatures range from 6—12 but with a strengthening wind it's going to feel colder. parts of scotland will struggle to get above 4—5c. wind strengthening all the time tomorrow and that continues on sunday. in the early hours of sunday the clocks are going forward one hour. we start british summertime but on sunday it's going to feel colder. a lot of cloud, the best sunshine in northern ireland, western scotland, north—west and south—west england. a chance of wintry showers
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for eastern counties but the strength of the wind is going to be the feature on sunday. gusts of 30, 40 mph, 45 for some channel coasts. the thermometer might read 6—9, but adding on the strength of the wind it's going to feel closer to freezing. a significant wind—chill on sunday and a bitterly cold day, especially compared to recently. moving into the early part of next week the wind is going to ease down. still a cold feel with some frosty nights. a chance of some wintry showers. that's all from me.
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this is bbc world news america. reporting from new york, i'm nada tawfik. president trump has signed congress' $2.2 trillion deal to combat the coronavirus. it is the single largest relief package in american history. this comes as the united states now has more cases of coronavirus than any other country. hospitals across the nation are preparing for the worst. plus, aid agencies warn of a potentially catastrophic coronavirus outbreak in war ravaged north western syria. for all of you watching on pbs and to our viewers in the uk

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