the number of deaths in the uk coronavirus outbreak passes the 1,000 mark, after the biggest daily increase seen so far. improvised centres are being set up across the uk and testing is now under way forfront line nhs staff, welcome news for those self—isolating. i know my colleagues need me, and it's quite frustrating, being sat here at home when i know i could be at work and i need to be at work. as the death toll passes 10,000 in italy, critically ill patients are airlifted to germany for treatment. here, councils across the uk are having to scale back local services as they focus on the virus. and as britain's lockdown continues, why staying indoors doesn't meant

why staying indoors doesn't mean you can't still have fun. good afternoon. the number of people to have died with coronavirus in the uk now stands at more than 1,000. at today's daily government press conference, the nhs england's medical director warned that "every one of us has a part to play" if the uk is to keep the death toll under 20,000. in the past 2a hours, a further 260 patients have died. the total number of deaths now stands at 1,019. 246 of the deaths were in england, where the victims were aged between 33 and 100 years old. it comes as testing for front line hospital staff who have symptoms in england and scotland gets under

way from today. with our first report this evening, here's our health correspondent dominic hughes. the logistics of setting up a new medical facility from scratch, a race against time to prepare the newly named nightingale hospital east london ahead of the coming surge of those who fall seriously ill with covid—19. the sharp rise in today's death toll shows why these facilities are needed. the pressure on staff in the coming weeks, especially in intensive care units, is going to be extreme. when the nhs is under increased amounts, as we expect, and is already happening in london, is that we're not going to be able to maintain the normal levels of staffing that we currently do. and so we're going to have to dramatically change the way that we work. so rather than one intensive care nurse looking after one patient, were going to have to work more as a team. new figures published today give an insight into

who is being admitted to critical care units. the data covers 775 patients in england, wales and northern ireland. more than half of them are being looked after by hospitals in london. most are aged over the age of 50, and the number of male patients outnumbers those who are female. and in virus hotspots like london, the pressure is already building. how full are intensive care units in london and around the uk at the moment? work is going on all over the country because as you are also aware, the infection has spread a bit quicker in london. so we are not at capacity yet within london but beds are being opened all the time to produce that extra surge capacity. and a reminder that in order to get the death toll down, this is no time for complacency. if we do reduce the deaths to a level which is below what we initially thought, i want to be absolutely clear, that won't be because

we are somehow lucky. it won't be because somehow the virus is acting in this country differently from any other country. it will be because every citizen of this country, the british public, have complied with the instructions that the government has given based on the best scientific evidence to reduce the transmission of the disease. if the nhs is going to avoid the crisis, it will require all hands on deck. that's why the introduction of testing staff across the uk who are currently having to self—isolate, as they've already been doing in wales, is a big step forward. this doctor is keen to work but a rough cough means he has to stay away at least until he's tested. has it been a bit frustrating, then, waiting to find out whether you've got it or not? yes, really frustrating, because i know the hospital is busy, even at this early, relatively early point, things are really heating up. i know my colleagues need me and it's quite frustrating, being sat here at home

when i know i could be at work and i need to be at work. new hospitals, more testing, an immense effort is now under way to try and shore up the health service for what lies ahead. news that 260 people lost their lives in 24—hour steady coronavirus is shocking but it is not out of line with predictions that the deaths will double every two or three days. unfortunately, this is the kind of news we are going to have to steel ourselves to hear in the next couple of weeks. however, it has to be said, and it is worth reminding people that four out of five people who get this virus, who fall ill with it, the vast majority will only have a very mild form of the illness. it is only a very small proportion who for seriously ill. 0f course, one of the people who has got those mild symptoms is the prime minister borisjohnson. got those mild symptoms is the prime minister boris johnson. he got those mild symptoms is the prime minister borisjohnson. he is self isolating in his flat in downing street and today, a cabinet minister

has told the bbc that the prime minister is still leading the response from the front. he assured the bbc there are no gaps in government and all of the cabinet are working very hard, led by the prime minister. dominic, thank you. meanwhille, the government has announced some more measures aimed at protecting businesses. katie prescott, our business correspondent, joins me. what's being offered 7 there are two major announcement, and the announcement said red tape about producing the product is going to be relaxed, in order that businesses can make them more easily, the safety standards will be fast tracked and they will be able to get them to market, the business secretary said, in a couple of days. the second announcement was around the uk's insolvency regime, so really looking at the companies that are struggling, particularly because of the coronavirus pandemic. the

business secretary said there is going to be a suspension of what he called wrongful trading laws, so these are rules which at the moment allow com pa ny these are rules which at the moment allow company directors to be prosecuted if they keep a business going when it really shouldn't. so the idea is businesses can keep trading through the crisis without company directors worrying about being prosecuted. some people say this could leave the system really open to abuse but what it will do is stop the spike that everyone is worried about if a company colla pses. worried about if a company collapses. as the business secretary said, hopefully it will allow business to bounce back when this is all over. thank you. in italy, the death toll has passed 10,000. another 898 people have died in the past 2a hours. it comes as a german air force plane flew six critically ill coronavirus patients to germany for treatment. here'sjean mackenzie from rome. a lifeline landing in lombardy. converted into a mobile hospital, this morning, the german military flew critically ill patients from italy's worst hit region to

hospitals around germany. italy's outbreak has been so concentrated in the north that hospitals are struggling to cope. dr consentini's was one of the first to be overwhelmed. in my town, the situation is a bit improving. i think we are a couple of weeks ahead of the rest of lombardy. so we know our at the plateau of the curve of new covid infections. to begin with, it was beds and ventilators in short supply. but now it's people. nurses and doctors. because we had some free beds inside our hospital, we couldn't use for patients, because we don't have any more nurses 01’ doctors. today, italy has reached a sobering milestone. more than 10,000 people dead, after nearly 900 more deaths were recorded since yesterday. there is some hope here.

the rate of new infections has slowed over the past week, an indication that this lockdown which began nearly three weeks ago is starting to work. but italians are wary of being too hopefuljust yet, with the number of deaths still coming so fast. but the government's medical researchers say these recent deaths don't mean italy isn't making progress. these people got the infection two or three weeks ago, so this is the image of italy some weeks ago. how many days away from the peak do you think that we are? we are expecting that the peak will be... in the next days. the days ahead will be critical in finding whether italy can hit its peak and turn the page. in spain, the death toll from the virus has risen by more than 800 overnight. it brings the total of those infected to more than 5,600

people. the increase of 832 deaths exceeds yesterday's record breaking one—day figure for fatalities. spain has now more than 72,000 people infected with the virus. in the fight against coronavirus. it means that in some areas, people won't be able to visit their recycling centre, local library or physically visit relatives in a care home. it comes as some councils say their workers have been attacked as they try to do theirjobs. here's our correspondent judith moritz. shut until further notice, this recycling centre in harrogate is one of many run by councils to have locked the gates. people are being asked to hold onto their large household waste for now and not put it out for bin collection. play areas like this one are closed, too, along with a whole range of other services. it is to encourage social distancing

and county councils say it is so their efforts can be redirected towards social care. there's been a real important onus on intensifying our efforts to get patients out of hospitals, either back to their homes or into secure settings, such as care homes. there is a real imperative to free up hospital beds, and so we are doing everything we can to get those patients out of hospital when it is safe to do so. many services are continuing. but there are reports that council workers, from bin collectors to highway crews, are experiencing increased attacks and abuse as tensions and emotions run high during this crisis. the local government association is calling on the public to respect the tireless efforts of council staff. i mean, frankly, it is disappointing and ridiculous that people are, you know, being aggressive towards binmen. you know, they are being aggressive

towards people at tidy tips, when we did have them open. they are spitting at them, swearing at them. these are people who are going above and beyond their normal duties. they are working seven days a week. they are working longer shifts to try and deliver services to our residents, and the last thing they need is abuse. they actually should be receiving praise. many libraries are closed and councils have said that library loans will be extended. they are also encouraging people to go online instead and use digital archives and services. judith moritz, bbc news. the foreign secretary dominic raab says he spoken to his indian counterpart about ways to bring back british citizens stranded in india. it's thought that thousands of british travellers and holiday makers remain stuck there. the say they feel abandoned by the government. 0ur south asia xorrespondent rajini vaidya nathan reports. 0ur south asia correspondent rajini vaidya nathan reports. 0nce crowded beaches, now under curfew. for many british tourists in india, dream holidays have turned into misery. we're not hearing anything

and we have no idea how we're going to get out of here, and the worst thing is, when we're going to next get some food. as india suspended flights until mid—april and embarked on the largest lockdown in living memory, brits have been left in limbo. esther from leeds is on a round the world trip. she says most locals have been friendly to her, but as fear around the virus grows, so does suspicion. i've been kicked out of two places of accommodation in the last two days. that's because i'm foreign and they believe automatically that foreigners have the virus. the last place that we moved from was an apartment. we were asked to stay away from windows, to not go out on the balcony, we had to leave our money in a separate room, in order to be collected so that there was no face—to—face contact. and it's notjust tourists. many brits visiting family in india are also in a desperate situation. i'm trying to get hold

of my medication at the moment. i can't get hold of it. i'm diabetic, i'm asthmatic, i have chronic migraines and i can have seizures. i'm not getting hold of anything at moment. i'm still lucky in where i am, but the hotel is supposed to be closing down. we're literallyjust stuck. in some parts of the country, basic supplies are running low, with police cracking down heavily on anyone who breaks the curfew. britain's acting high commissioner to india has promised to help those who have been stranded. this is an absolute priority for us and we are working around the clock to put arrangements in place. but there is frustration at a lack of information. miss england, bhasha mukherjee, travelled to kolkata for charity work. a junior doctor in lincolnshire, she just wants to get back to the hospital. i took the hippocratic 0ath to save lives and, you know, do what it takes. and it's a team feeling, you know, when you're part of the nhs.

tens of thousands have signed an online petition calling on the government to bring people home. with other countries such as germany, japan and israel evacuating citizens from india, many are asking, why isn't the uk doing the same? in russia, a partial shutdown has come into effect today with bars, restaurants, parks and entertainment venues shut across the country in an effort to contain the spread of the coronavirus. according to government statistics, russia has a relatively low number of infections so far, although many believe the official figures don't tell the full story. from moscow, steve rosenberg reports. at times, it felt like just another saturday in moscow. but today was anything but normal. the park by the kremlin, usually packed, was empty. the iconic red square department store shut. all cafes a nd restau ra nts

in russia, too. to slow the spread of coronavirus, russians are being asked to stay off the streets, but not everybody is listening. "they've exaggerated the danger," he says. "i'm not scared of anything." moscow says everyone over 65 must stay at home. hard to enforce, but the restrictions have reduced the crowds. until very recently, the kremlin were saying that everything here is under control and in fact, there is no coronavirus epidemic in russia. now, shops are closing, flights in and out of the country are suspended, and people are being urged to stay at home. it's a mixed message which is causing confusion. so is some of the coverage on russian tv. a deadly virus risks becoming a source of entertainment.

but the illness is spreading here. we were allowed to film this moscow medical facility, re—purposed for coronavirus cases. hospitals across the city are preparing for a flood of patients. this week, moscow's mayor told president putin the situation in the capital was serious, and he admitted there were far more cases of coronavirus here than official figures had been suggesting. choral singing. and yet, despite the danger of infection, the churches remain open. no social distancing here. they want to be close to god. it's impossible to get infected in a church because it is a holy place, she says. she's a doctor. more restrictions are expected, possibly a full lockdown, to protect russia.

now, staying in doesn't mean that you can't still have fun. over the past week, millions of people have been taking part in virtual parties, online quiz nights and stay—at—home concerts, as rianna croxfrod's as rianna croxford's been finding out. bbc news theme. not your average night out. these people on the app tiktok are not letting the news get them down. it's the first weekend since we were all told to stay indoors. 0ur usual events and hobbies might be out the window, but that's not stopping people from finding new ways to socialise. good evening, everybody. cheers to you. welcome to tonight's quiz. 0nce hosted at your local, the battle of wits are now finding a new lease of life online. question two. what is the name of the third instalment

of the harry potter books? quizzes seem to be the go—to game for those stuck indoors. comedians like mo gilligan and munya chawawa are drawing in big audiences on instagram. welcome, everyone, to toilet roll trivia episode 7. it's my third week in self—isolation. ijumped at the chance to get involved. hi. where are you playing from? from my bedroom in north west london. not all prizes are that glamorous. you have done extremely well, rianna. i can tell you this, you're going to get a signed piece of this, right? this is worth more than a signature from the queen at the moment. and it's not all fun and games. others are using their time to stay fit and healthy. i think it's a great thing to be working out during this isolation because for one, it makes you feel good, it really steps up the endorphins. and i'm so happy i get to do it with all my friends around the world right here in my living room with all the things that i need, because all you really need

is your body, that's all you need. they might not be heading out, but it's not stopping them from having a good time. djs are streaming their sets online with people trading the dance floor for the kitchen floor. rianna croxford, bbc news, london. that's all from us for now. goodbye. hello. you're watching the bbc news with me, kate silverton, broadcasting in the uk and around the world. new york governor andrew cuomo has announced that he's postponing the state's presidential primary as the number of coronavirus cases in the state continue to climb. the election was due to be held on april 28th but will now take place nearly two months later, on june 23rd. latest figures show the number of covid—19 cases has surpassed 52,000 people. here's governor cuomo at his daily briefing. the worst news, the news

that is most depressing to me and i am sure every new yorker, the number of deaths is 728 and of that, what is happening people are on ventilators longer, so the average length of stay on a ventilator, the longer you are on a ventilator, the less chance you are coming off the ventilator. that has always been true. it is more dramatic in this situation. since this has been going on a period of time, you are having more and more people now on ventilators for a longer period of time. and those are the people we are losing. the royal mint is to manufacture up to 4,000 medical visors per day to help protect nhs staff from coronavirus. engineers — who are used to working on coins and related machinery — developed a successful prototype

in 48 hours and the first visors are already in use at a hospital in wales. production is now moving to 2a hours a day, seven days a week at the royal mint‘s south wales site and the team is aiming to increase this to 4,000 per day from tuesday. my colleague rachel schofield spoke a short while ago to leightonjohn, director of operations at the royal mint, from their base in wales. i think, like everyone in the country, we all want to help. we have been racking our brains on how to do this, we registered for the ventilator scheme, but obviously that is not close enough to our core competence. there are people better place to do that. so i was talking to my sister on tuesday, we know there's a big pressure on personal protective equipment, we mentioned visors. so on wednesday morning we came into work, got 15 engineers together, i gave them a challenge of 24 hours to come up with a prototype. in seven, they created one, which is absolutely fantastic.

and 50% of them were in their house. congratulations. in terms of the kind of kit you have that makes it possible, many people will be surprised that what you've got to do with coins and so on apply so easily to something that seems so different. what we have done is utilise our engineering talent to create the designs, we then brought our partners in. our expertise is really in the assembly of products. so our partners are delivering to us. we have converted our tourist attraction, the royal mint experience, from this morning into a visor manufacturing facility. we have now ramped up to a rate which is around 2000 visors a day after about five hours. we delivered masks the first 150 masks to a hospital in cardiff. —— we delivered the first 150 masks

at about one o'clock to the university hospital in cardiff. we are seeing pictures of the visors in question, which look brilliant. what kind of mood did it create in the workplace, seeing that you could have this new role and play a vital role in the effort? it's just been phenomenal. we've had people turning up today who weren't supposed to be working, just wanting to get involved. we've got one of our ex employees who came in today, he does a great job on the production line, designing lines, he helped us with that. it's absolutely fantastic for us to do this in this difficult time for the nation. and how easy do you think it is for engineers of all different kinds, working in different places, to turn their hands to what seem to be totally new ideas? i think great britain is full of fantastic engineers. we've got opportunities to add value. i was on the phone today with another company where we were trying to create a kind of consortium now where they can start producing as well, down in kent, which would be fantastic. we will be open sourcing this design at the end of the week so anyone can kind of design it, we're just refining that, sorry, manufacture it. i think we've got fantastic opportunities and everyone needs to kind of step up and see

what we can do. a man who'd been due to take part in the london marathon next month has run the 26.2 miles in his back garden. the event has been cancelled because of the coronavirus pandemic, but that hasn't put off 36—year—old james page. he completed 873 laps of his lawn in sidcup in kent, before crossing a finish line made by his son from toilet roll. much more on our website, including this look at how a cruise ship near panama is trying to transfer healthy passengers to another vessel — after an outbreak on board. just log on to our bbc news website or download the bbc app. you're watching bbc news. time for a look at the weather with ben rich.

good evening. it certainly started to feel colder this weekend, we take that chilly feel with us into sunday. not only will it be cold, but also windy, a significant wind chill, one or two wintry showers around as well but also a lot of dry weather thanks to this area of high pressure, quite a strong high pressure, quite a strong high pressure area , pressure, quite a strong high pressure area, which will stick with us pressure area, which will stick with us through the next few days. with winds around, high flowing in a clockwise direction, that's bringing cold air down from the north and the strength of that wind really accentuates the chilly feel. so temperatures dip away through the evening and night. clear spells around, large areas of cloud as well, and one or two showers, wintry ofa high well, and one or two showers, wintry of a high ground but even to low levels with a bit of wintriness mixing in at times. temperatures generally hovering at around freezing, i think will drop below freezing, i think will drop below freezing for some spots in the countryside. the other thing happening through the small areas as the clocks springing forward an

hour, these are the sun is and sunset times, since that crucial, of course, some not setting until after eight o'clock in parts of northern ireland. so you will see the extra daylight tomorrow morning. but as far as the weather concerned, large amounts of cloud and sunny spells in between, again, some showers, some of which will be wintry and you will notice the strength of that wind. the windiest conditions across england and wales, gusts of 40 mph or more, 50 mph or more across eastern and southern coastal districts. that will really feel chilly. 0n the thermometer, most places in single digits but when we factor in the strength of the wind this it what it will feel like and in many spots, it will not feel much better than freezing. as we move into monday, a similar sort of weather, winds a little bit lighter, you will still notice the strength the breeze, lots of dry weather around, large patches of cloud, sunny spells and one or two showers. asign of sunny spells and one or two showers. a sign of things might be a bit less

chilly by this stage, 9—10. heading deeper into the week, high—pressure release stays with us so that will provide a lot of dry weather through the middle part of the week. front is trying to edge into the north, bringing outbreaks of rain and eventually something colder. so temperatures will dip away to the end of the week in the north of the uk. something a bit less chilly further south, and plenty of dry weather.

hello this is bbc news. the headlines. the number of deaths in the uk from the coronavirus rises to 1,019, with another 260 people dying in a single day, officials warn that social distancing restrictions must be kept in place. if we can keep deaths below 20,000, we will have done very well in this epidemic. the uk business secretary announces new economic measures, including changes to the insolvency rules and improvements to the nhs supply system. we are also introducing a range of measures to boost the supply of personal protective equipment such as face masks to protect front line nhs staff. tests for front line health service staff begin in england this weekend — 10 days after wales started theirs — following heavy criticism over a lack of testing for health workers. the english cities of birmingham and manchester join london with plans to open more temporary hospitals to help cope with the outbreak in the uk.

the total death toll in italy as a result of the coronavirus has now risen to over 10,000. that brings the total number of people across europe killed by covid—19 to more than 20,000. sport and for a full round up, from the bbc sport centre. good evening. with most football leagues around the world on hold because of the coronavirus pandemic, questions are now being asked as to when they'll be completed. the english premier league's considering restarting on the 30th of april though that looks increasingly unlikely. meanwhile the bbc understands the fa's determined to finish the current women's super league season, but they've told clubs they want all matches played by early august. here's our reporter tom garry.

we understand that the fa spoke with representatives of clubs across the women's super league and the women's championship and they outlined all the various options that are in front of them, one of which was to void the season from here onwards, to cancel the season as we have seen in the lower levels of the women's game but it emerged that that was not the option that the fa or the majority of clubs preferred and the women's super league are determined to try to complete the season. they also admit that the decision may be taken out of their hands depending on the severity of the virus and how this pandemic progresses over the coming weeks. they know that if they are to finish it, if it is safe and the conditions are safe to do so, they need to do so by early august, that will be the final possible end date for season, so in order to do that, between six and nine matches left, they will need to resume the season really beforejuly

left, they will need to resume the season really before july at the absolute latest and ideally injune at some stage otherwise they will run out of time to play the remaining matches. manchester city have handed over the use of their etihad stadium to the nhs during the current coronavirus pandemic. it's understood the stadium conference rooms and executive boxes will be used to train doctors and nurses. a temporary hospital is already being built at the manchester central convention centre in the city centre. england rugby union head coach eddiejones took a 25% pay cut earlier this week as the sport looks to save money during the pandemic. but he's still scouting for talent he says — and encouraging young players to keep training at home. you can still improve your game at this time, you can set up a gym at home, you can do some training in the back garden, you can practice your skills, get your parents to help you and to the parents, i know it isa help you and to the parents, i know it is a hard time for you, i was

down in horsham last week and a father were saying that he had to tell his son that rugby training was no longer on, it is a difficult time but stay positive because we will get out of it, we will beat this virus and rugby will commence, keep your spirits up. england women's cricket captain heather knight has signed up for the national health service volunteer scheme to help fight the coronavirus pandemic. knight returned to england from australia ten days ago, after the t20 world cup. she's nowjoined over 700,000 people who've signed up following an appeal by the uk government for volunteers to help with tasks like driving patients to and from hospital and phoning people that are self—isolating. that's all the sport for now. the number of people to have died with coronavirus in the uk has reached 1019. there have been a further 260 deaths since figures were released yesterday. in downing street's daily news briefing, the business secretary, alok sharma, announced changes to insolvency rules to allow firms

"greater flexibility" as they face the current crisis. he was joined by the medical director of nhs england professor stephen powis who said the figures of those likely to die from coronavirus will continue to rise but restrictions will help to limit numbers. mr powis was also asked about testing for nhs staff and how full intensive care beds around the uk currently are. as you know the nhs has been working very hard to increase the capacity beyond the 4000 or so that we typically have and that has been pursued firstly in london, although work is going on all over the country because, as you are also aware, the infection has spread a bit quicker in london. so, we are not at capacity yet within london, but beds are being opened all the time to produce that extra capacity. so in the first instance,

we are using theatres and recovery areas, those are areas in hospitals where anaesthetic machines, ventilators are already used for surgery and can be readily adapted to take critically ill patients, and that has already occurred, you may have seen some of that in london hospitals. that is almost doubling the capacity that we have already, we are not using it at the moment but clearly the number of patients is increasing each day and so we are expanding that capacity and advance. you will have also seen the plans at nhs nightingale in east london to initially bring on another 500 beds if they are needed and we aim to get that up and ready for patients next week. so, at the moment, i am confident the capacity is there, we have not reached capacity and i am confident that capacity is expanding, particularly in london so that we keep ahead of increased patient numbers.

0n the testing, as the chief executive of the nhs said yesterday, it is absolutely critical that we now begin to introduce testing for staff, and i said before, it is very important for two reasons. firstly because if we have staff at home, either self isolating or in quarantine because a member of their family has symptoms, if it turns out that it is not because of coronavirus we can bring that staff member back, that is very important for the workforce, particularly in critical areas such as critical care clinicians or emergency department clinicians, and those are the groups, paramedics as well i should say, that we will be focusing on first. secondly, because of a positive, when they come back, they can be confident they have some immunity and that will be very important going forward as we understand which parts of the workforce have had this virus and are therefore likely to be immune. so, as simon stephens said yesterday, as we ramp up testing as we are doing all the time, to use that extra capacity, over and above that which we need to use for patients, to test nhs staff, we are

working with nhs organisations as i speak to ensure that that testing will be available over the next few days for their critical staff. as well as announcing changes to insolvency rules to allow firms "greater flexibility" as they face the current crisis, the business secretary, alok sharma, also said steps were being taken to get more supplies to health care workers. 0r whilst our companies have requested financial support, they have also asked us to ease the burden of regulation at this time. we have responded to that request. yesterday, we brought forward legislation to temporarily suspend some competition rules in the supermarket sector and in the operation of isle of wight ferries. from retailers, sharing delivery va ns from retailers, sharing delivery va ns to from retailers, sharing delivery vans to ferry operators, coordinating staff, these measures

will allow firms to work together to deliver vital services to the public more effectively at this time. we have also introduced measures to ensure that workers who have not taken all of their statutory annual leave due to the coronavirus will now be able to carry that entitlement over into the next two yea rs. entitlement over into the next two years. this will protect staff from losing out whilst providing businesses with flexibility when they need it most. earlier this week, together with. .. they need it most. earlier this week, together with... we announced that over 4 million businesses will be granted a three month extension to the filing of their accounts through a fast track online process. 0ver10,000 businesses have already successfully applied for this extension. we will continue to monitor companies of abilities to meet other filing obligations they have. we will provide further extensions if needed. i recognise

just how hard employees, business owners and directors are working to keep their companies going. it is crucial that when the crisis passes, as it will, we are ready to bounce back. and so today, i want to announce more measures, which are designed to give businesses greater flexibility as they face the current crisis. to help them emerge intact, the other side of the coronavirus pandemic. we will introduce measures to improve the insolvency system, which provides the legal options for companies running into major difficulties. 0ur overriding objective is to help uk companies which need to undergo a financial rescue or restructuring process to keep trading. these measures will give those firms extra time and space to weather the storm and be ready when the crisis ends. whilst

ensuring that creditors get the best return possible in the circumstances. the changes to the insolvency regime will include new rules to make sure companies undergoing restructuring can continue to get hold of supplies and raw materials. and, there will be a temporary suspension of wrongful trading provisions for company directors, to remove the threat of personal liability during the pandemic. this provision will have retrospective effect from the 1st of march. however, to be clear, all of the other checks and balances that help to ensure directors fulfil their duties properly will remain in force. we will bring forward legislation in these areas at the earliest opportunity. we will also put in place measures to ensure that companies required to hold annual general meetings can do so flexibly, ina manner general meetings can do so flexibly, in a manner which is compatible with

the best public health guidance. this might include postponing or holding the agm online or by phone, using only proxy voting. in addition, we are also introducing a range of measures to boost the supply of personal protective equipment, such as face masks, to protect front line nhs staff. and, we are removing administrative barriers to the production of hand sanitiser. by reducing the amount of red tape, businesses that produce ingredients for safe and sanitiser will be able to bring their product to market in a matter of days. let's take a look at how coronavirus is affecting communities around the world now. the american president, donald trump, says he's considering imposing a quarantine on new york to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus. he said similar measures could be introduced in newjersey and some parts of connecticut. new york has recorded more than fifty—two—thousand cases

around half of the total in the us and more than seven hundred deaths. mr trump also said he held a phone conversation with borisjohnson, who's self—isolating after testing positive for coronavirus. the prime minister of the uk yesterday, borisjohnson, he tested, as you know, positive. and before i even was able to get a word out of him, he said... i said, "how are you doing?" he said, "we need ventilators, the uk needs ventilators." a lot of countries need ventilators badly. it's a tough thing to make, its a very complicated and expensive piece of equipment. 0ur correspondent in berlin, damien mcguinness, has this update from germany where, there too, health authorities have witnessed a sharp rise in the number of infections. germany has one of the highest rate of infections in the world. it is now thought to be more than 50,000. interestingly, though, the death toll, the death rate, is still relatively low. if you compare that with other countries, 9,000 as you are saying earlier, in italy. a catastrophic death toll there.

in germany, the death toll is thought to be very low because testing is so widespread here. every week local authorities say it is thought around half a million tests are being carried out. that number is going to increase. the reason why this means a lower death toll is because lots of people who don't show many signs of infections are being tested. so that means, that indicates, that the actual real infection rate in other countries is a lot higher. now, german ministers have said, though, that the situation in germany is really the calm before the storm, those are the words they have used. so far we have had an excess supply of intensive care beds. some patients from italy and france are being flown into german hospitals to help those other countries. the difficulty for germany is that once the infection rate rises still further, it is thought of the death toll will rise. what we have here really

is a feeling of an eerie sense of calm. everyone is looking at the figures every day to see if the death toll rises. angela merkel has said the current quite strict restrictions on social contact and going out are going to be extended until at least the 20th of april, likely to be further. during that period, the economy is effectively in shut down. lots of questions and debates here in germany about how to keep the economy going and how to keep the health care system going when that death toll possibly does rise. millions of homeless people and migrant labourers have been left in the lurch after india announced a 21—day lockdown in a bid to contain the spread of coronavirus in the country. with factories and construction sites closing down, many have expressed fears that they would starve to death. state governments have announced that they will open centres to feed these people, but have been overwhelmed. many have opted to walk hundreds of miles to their villages as public

transport has been suspended. 0ur correspondent faisal ali gave us this update from delhi. it's happening everywhere, after the prime minister announced a complete lockdown on the 24th evening, and the next day, all trains were cancelled from everywhere. then, about two days, the flights also got cancelled. from a lot of states, especially in the eastern region, like bihar, uttar pradesh, there are a lot of migrant labourers who were working in other northern states or southern states, like kerala or punjab, they all are trying to get back. there are no vacancies available. they arejust trudging on foot with their families and since hotels and all eateries are closed, cities are locked, so they don't have anything to eat, they're in a very bad condition, at the moment. injapan, the number of cases

appears to be rising again — with more than 50 new infections in a single day in tokyo. the governor of the city urged people to stay indoors and said the capital was now on the brink of an emergency. tokyo was due to host the olympic and paralympic games this year, but they have been postponed because of the outbreak. in the chinese city of wuhan — where the global coronavirus emergency began — some transport services are resuming as hubei province gradually lifts its lockdown with the coronavirus crisis apparently stabilizing there for the time being. james ra nsley reports. wu han's train station, once an empty hub, is now busy with people with places to be. the city is slowly and steadily coming back to life. translation: i think this is the result of the hard work of all chinese people who came together as one and defeated the epidemic. for us, the news about lifting the lockdown is like the biggest recognition for us staying at home for more than two months.

wuhan, a major engine of the chinese economy, got its freight train service back up and running. it's carrying medical supplies and electronics to europe. the city's banks opened earlier this week for business and buses are back on the roads. but residents are still being advised against unnecessary travel, and those over 65 told to avoid taking public transport altogether. people are allowed to enter wuhan, but restrictions on those wishing to leave will not be lifted until april 8th. translation: it has been a long time since we last saw wuhan. people from hubei who travelled out of the province faced some discrimination. i hope people will not treat hubei people as a virus. the city in hubei province was placed under lockdown back injanuary. its 11 million people have faced some of the harshest restrictions on daily life. in hubei, more than 50,000 people have been infected with the disease. more than 3,000 have died.

but the partial reopening of wuhan signals a turning point in china's fight against the virus. translation: yesterday, china's mainland reported 54 new confirmed cases, all of which are imported cases. there are three fatalities reported, all of them in hubei. after months of enduring total lockdown, life for the people of wuhan is beginning to get back on track. james ransley, bbc news. we are all having to adapt to a very different style of living, due to coronavirus lockdowns. one of the innovations for socialising during the new restrictions, is clubbing over the cloud! for music lovers, it's a way to cure their boredom — while for djs, faced with the cancellation of gigs, festivals and events, it's a way to keep connected to theirfans. electronic music plays

so it is saturday night and normally i would be out and about. however due to the coronavirus situation, we are a bit restricted. i hope you are all indoors and i hope that your families are safe and just enjoy tonight, i hope we can take your mind off things. i am just doing my make—up. maybe do some selfies to get myself in the mood, take some pictures. you can still enjoy the feeling of putting out the live stream and enjoying some nice music in the background.

people should still feel like it is the weekend and have a way to relax and take their mind off the meltdown that is happening at the moment. it is not the same kind of vibe but it is at least something. we should definitely stay strong during times of crisis and support each other. a lot of us in the music industry are obviously freelance. i don't think in the short term live stream will be the thing that puts money on the table. i view this as a really important tool to just stay connected to my fans, to not take away the impact of the music and the powers it can have. maybe use this as a way to build up more of an audience.

italy has been on a nationwide lockdown for nearly three weeks and remains the hardest—hit country in europe by the pandemic. even so, italians have shown their support and solidarity from their windows and balconies with music. like trumpeter alberto anguzza from sicily — whose performance ofjohn lennon's ‘imagine' — went viral online. take a look. trumpet plays imagine byjohn lennon. well alberto anguzza joined

rachel schofield from sicily earlier and told me why he took his trumpet out to play for his neighbours. it's so difficult time now, in whole the world. we stay at home for 15 days now, i don't know how many days we have to stay, because our government told us about all would be finished next, three april. but i don't think so. and we have just to respect the rules, stay at home, and we have like, summer, now, day... in trapani city, in the west coast of sicily, it's a beautiful day, but we can't go outside. we have just to respect the rules. stay at home, pray, day by day, and enjoy with power of music. and just this.

what made you choose that song? 0n the 13th of march there was a flash mob by italian artists to play on the balcony, the italian national anthem and afterwards, i wanted to play something. i decided to play imagined byjohn lennon because this song is very famous. it does help humanity in the past with a big big problem, to enjoy life and think about it can all be ok in the future but, i don't know now when this

future will be, will it come early or late. as a musician you are not able to work at this time, how difficult is that for you? it is very difficult because my music life is playing concerts and in discos, pubs, restaurants. now, i have to stay at home. i playjust for myself and for my family, for my daughter and for my family, for my daughter and my wife and now i have a new life mission, that is to play at home for people to enjoy themselves, to make art in all the houses and homes of the world.

why don't you play some music for us as we move towards our next programme, the week in parliament? yeah. i have my trumpet with me. enjoy, people. he plays. kiss for everybody, god bless you, people. good evening. it certainly started to feel colder this weekend, and we take that chilly feel with us into sunday. not only will it be cold, but also windy, quite a significant wind chill, one or two wintry showers around as well but also a lot of dry weather thanks to this

area of high pressure, quite a strong high pressure area, which will stick with us through the next few days. with winds around the high pressure flowing in a clockwise direction, that's bringing cold air down from the north and the strength of that wind really accentuates the chilly feel. so temperatures dip away through the evening and night. clear spells around, large areas of cloud as well, and one or two showers, wintry over high ground but even to low levels with a bit of wintriness mixing in at times. temperatures generally hovering at around freezing, i think will drop below freezing for some spots in the countryside. the other thing happening through the small hours is the clocks springing forward an hour, these are the sunrise and sunset times, sunset crucial, of course, sun not setting until after eight o'clock in parts of northern ireland. so you will notice the extra daylight tomorrow morning. but as far as the weather's concerned, large amounts of cloud and sunny spells in between, again, some showers, some of which will be wintry

and you will notice the strength of that wind. the windiest conditions across england and wales, gusts of 40 mph or more, 50 mph or more across eastern and southern coastal districts. that will really feel chilly. 0n the thermometer, most places in single digits but when we factor in the strength of the wind this is what it will feel like and in many spots, it will not feel much better than freezing. as we move into monday, similar sort of weather, winds a little bit lighter, you will still notice the strength of the breeze, lots of dry weather around, large patches of cloud, some sunny spells and one or two showers. signs that things might be a bit less chilly by this stage, 9—11. heading deeper into the week, high—pressure really stays with us so that will provide a lot of dry weather through the middle part of the week. frontal systems trying to edge into the north, bringing some outbreaks of rain and eventually something colder. so temperatures will dip away to the end of the week in the north of the uk.

something a bit less chilly further south, and plenty of dry weather.

this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the number of deaths in the uk from the coronavirus rises to more than a thousand. with another 260 people dying in a single day, officials warn that social distancing restrictions must be kept in place. if we can keep deaths below 20,000, we will have done very well in this epidemic. us president trump says he's considering imposing a quarantine on new york to try to slow the spread of the coronavirus this would be an enforceable quarantine, and i'd rather not do it but we may need it. tests for frontline health service staff begin in england this weekend — 10 days after wales started theirs — following heavy criticism over a lack of testing

for health workers.