welcome to bbc news. i'm simon pusey. our top stories: the uk records its highest number of deaths from coronavirus bringing the total to more than a thousand, as officials warn that social distancing restrictions must be kept in place. if we can keep down to below 20,000, we will have done very well in this epidemic. as the death toll doubles in the us, president trump decides against imposing a quarantine on new york. in italy, more than 10,000 people have now died from covid—19 — more than any other country. russia imposes a partial shutdown in an effort to contain the spread of coronavirus. and millions of people tune in as spain's biggest stars from the world of music and football hold a virtual festival to raise

money and spirits. hello and welcome to audiences in the uk and around the world. we're covering all the latest coronavirus developments in britain and globally. the uk has recorded its highest number of deaths linked to the coronavirus in a single day. 260 people have died in the past 2a hours — bringing the total to more than 1,000. in the us, president trump has been considering putting some of the worst hit areas under quarantine to slow the spread of coronavirus. new york state has recorded more than 53,000 confirmed cases and nearly 900 deaths. but donald trump has now tweeted that "a quarantine will not be necessary". in italy, nearly 900 people with the virus have died in the past 2a hours — bringing the total there to more than 10,000.

hospitals in the north of the country are in desperate need of protective equipment for health workers, as well as more staff. we'll have more on all of that in a moment, but first here's dominic hughes on the uk's response. the logistics of setting up a new medicalfacility from scratch. a race against time to prepare the newly named nightingale hospital in 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 over the coming weeks is going to be extreme. when the nhs is under increased demand, as we expect, and is already happening in london, is that we are 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, we're going to have to work more as a team. new figures published today

give an insight into who's 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 men falling seriously ill was well over twice the number of women. and in virus hot spots 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 keep 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 in 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 a 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. doctor arash salah 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, very frustrating, because i know — i know the hospital is busy, even at this relatively early point, things are really hotting up. i know that my colleagues

need me and it is quite frustrating being sat here at home when i know i could be at work and i need to be at work. and from the prime minister in isolation, while he recovers from his own covid—19 infection, a letter to every uk household this week, urging people to observe the guidelines to stay at home and protect the nhs. new hospitals, more testing, an immense effort is now under way to try and shore up the health service for what lies ahead. so as we've said in the last few minutes president trump has said he will not be imposing a quarantine on new york to try to slow the spread of the virus. he confirmed the change in plans on twitter saying he'd consulted with the white house coronavirus taskforce and the governor's of new york, new jersey and connecticut. he said a strong travel advisory would be issued by the centers for disease control & prevention and administered by the governors along with federal authorities. new york has recorded

more than 52,000 cases and over 700 deaths. we can speak now to jesse mckinley, the new york times albany bureau chief — hejoins me now from albany in new york. jesse, why this apparent u—turn from donald trump on quarantining new york? well, think that the action by the president came after a number of angry remarks from the governor of the state of new york, as well as other governors concerned about exactly what this quarantine would look like that. the president made this remark kind of casually this afternoon, but it set up a great deal of alarm against not only are residents of new york city, but environments around the city, which is suffering a pretty high toll right now from coronavirus stop the newest numbers out of the city this evening were that 222 people have died injust evening were that 222 people have died in just the last 2a hours. that's leading to

concern not only about the virus itself, but about possible restrictions. and after the president made these remarks, people were even more upset. so i think the president heard that and then backtracked quite quickly. you know the area well, do you think such a quarantine would have been impossible? think it would have been very difficult. anyone who has been to new york city as it isa has been to new york city as it is a sprawling metropolis. it has 9 million people in the city proper, upper —— upwards of 20 many people in the metropolitan area. numerous bridges, numerous tunnels, a massive subway system. to try to kind of rain in people's travel inside that region would have been very, very challenging. and also i think politically it would have been almost untenable given that new york city is the financial capital of the united states. the stock market obviously is based there. i think governor cuomo, the governor of new york state, was very straightforward saying if you try to quarantine new york the markets are going

to plummet. people are going to panic stop and i think, donald trump, who cares quite a bit about which way the market is headed, that was a solid argument. absolutely. what do new yorkers think of the response so far? is there really a fractured response between the federal and the state ? between the federal and the state? fractured is one way of putting it. ithink state? fractured is one way of putting it. i think sometimes discordant is a better word. 0fte nti mes discordant is a better word. 0ftentimes they are trying to do the same thing, but the messaging on this is not necessarily consistent. the feds have tried to ramp up testing, new york itself is mmp testing, new york itself is ramp up testing. states like california are a little bit behind. at this point we are kind of moving from the testing stage of this to really the mitigation stage of that. and in new york state in new york city particularly, the federal government has been building temporary hospitals, they have been trying to take up some of the financial burden, things like that that local officials obviously grateful for, like that that local officials obviously gratefulfor, but then again on the kind of

public relations and of this, on the public announcements coming out of washington, oftentimes those have been at odds with the state and today's issue about the quarantine is a classic example. that ate up a lot of oxygen, a loss of time, a lot of energy at a time in which public health officials and government officials are trying to grapple with a huge crisis. briefly, if you would mind, how seriously do you think new yorkers are taking advice that is being given to them? think it is a mixed bag. i think some people are taking it quite seriously, but then again there are reports of people kind of in the parks, in the playground, the governor wa nt the playground, the governor want again this morning that he would shut down city playgrounds of people didn't stop congregating in places like that. at the same time, the images coming out of our hospitals here, as i'm sure they are in britain as well, are scary. there are people dying in droves, by the dozens and by the scores here. and i think as those numbers begin to

mount the message that we need to stop hanging out and potentially spreading this disease will start to settle into people. jesse, thank you very much indeed. that isjesse mckinley, bureau chief of albany for the new york times in new york. let's get some of the day's other coronavirus news. the stormont executive in northern ireland has agreed tough new measures to limit people's movements during the pandemic. the regulations give the authorities the power to close business premises and ban people from leaving their homes without a reasonable excuse. fines of up to £5,000 or over $6,000 will be issued to those found to be breaching the rules. people living in ghana's two biggest cities are being ordered to stay at home for two weeks. residents in the capital, accra, as well as kumasi will only be allowed out to buy food or medicine. portugal has announced that it will approve all applications for legal residence by migrants, because of a backlog of cases made worse by the virus. all asylum seekers who've begun their applications will now be eligible

for resident status. more than 10,000 people have now died in italy, with 898 people dying in the past 2a hours alone. hospitals in the north of the country are in desperate need for protective equipment, as well as more staff. gene mackenzie reports from rome. a lifeline lands 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. doctor constantinez 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 now

are on the plateau of the curve of the new covid infections. at first, it was beds and ventilators in short supply but now, it's people. nurses and doctors. because we have some free beds inside our hospitals, we could use for patients because we don't have any more nurses or 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 an 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. these days will now be critical in determining whether italy has managed to change the course of this cruel epidemic. jean mckenzie, bbc news, rome. the number of people killed by the coronavirus in spain has risen sharply — to nearly 5,700. the country's prime minister has ordered all non—essential workers to stay at home for two weeks from monday. spain currently has the second highest number of fatalities in the world, after italy. the husband of british—iranian charity worker nazanin —— stay with us on bbc news. still to come: russian's are told to stay at home as the government announces

a partial shutdown, but not everyone is prepared to listen. the accident that happened here was of the sort that can at worst produce a meltdown. in this case the precautions worked, but they didn't work quite well enough to prevent some old fears about the safety features of these stations from resurfacing. the republic of ireland has become the first country in the world to ban smoking in the workplace. from today, anyone lighting up in offices, businesses, pubs and restaurants will face a heavy fine. the president was on his way out of the washington hilton hotel, where he had been addressing a trade union conference. the small crowd outside included his assailant. it has become a symbol of paris. 100 years ago, many parisians wished it had never been built. the eiffel tower's birthday is being marked by a re—enactment of the first ascent by gustave eiffel.

this is bbc news. the latest headlines: the number of deaths in the uk from the coronavirus rises to more than 1,000. and in the us, president trump has ruled out imposing a quarantine on new york and two other states to slow the spread of the virus. a partial shutdown has come into effect in russia 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.

steve rosenberg, bbc news, moscow. in a u—turn, the panama government says it will now allow a cruise ship that has been stranded for weeks off its coast to travel through the canal after four people died and two tested positive for coronavirus. the ship is one of many stranded at sea as ports refuse to accept them amidst the covid—19 pandemic. reged ahmad reports. stuck on board for two weeks, passengers on the zaandam cruise ship have been in self—isolation as the number of people showing flu—like symptoms has grown. in increasingly difficult circumstances, vacationers have sent desperate messages of help, waiting for news and coronavirus test kits. translation: they have zero contact with the outside world. everyone is confined

to their cabins and the only contact they might have is with their lunch tray, which is served to them at different times, but they do not see anyone at all. the ship, which has passengers from several nations, including britain, the us and parts of europe, have been trying to get to florida. the dutch—owned operators came up with a plan to transfer hundreds of the healthy passengers to its sister ship, the rotterdam. now, in an about—face, panama is allowing the zaandam passage through the canal, but it still remains unclear what will happen to either ship after that. even if cruise ships manage to reach their destination, some are struggling to find a port that would take any vessel, as the pandemic spreads. the coral princess has no cases on board but is now heading to fort lauderdale after being denied entry several times. princess are looking after us very well, but when it gets to fort lauderdale,

we are uncertain what is going to happen there, and that's what is bothering people most. the crew on board the princess have been fantastic, really looking after us, but, obviously, we just want to get home. the solution that we're told is that fort lauderdale, we just do not know what the solution is, and that's where the uncertainty lies, and that's what's bothering people most. as the situation has grown increasingly desperate, some have been allowed to dock because of medical emergencies among sick crew and passengers, including respiratory illnesses. reged ahmad, bbc news. with the uk lockdown restrictions still in place, police forces across the country have the power to issue fines if people are flouting the rules. it seems that people are broadly complying with them. both humberside and lincolnshire police have thanked the public for only making essentialjourneys. phillip norton reports. bridlington seafront on a saturday afternoon. silence...

..even seals. the message to stay at home here looks to be getting through. the same in skegness, which reported bank holiday—like conditions last weekend. more deserted streets and beaches. further afield, a sign of the times in the peak district, but one the public are taking on board. last weekend, lincolnshire's police and crime commissioner made an urgent appeal for day—trippers to stop. today, he's glad tighter restrictions appear to be working. it's really good to see the beaches being so empty in contrast to last weekend. what we need now are people to heed the guidance, notjust now but into the future, and i appreciate that's going to get harder as the weather warms up, when easter comes, but people are doing the right thing today to keep themselves and their families safe. and we just need them to keep doing that for the longer term good of the society and

community around them. here in hull, like everywhere, the streets are quiet on what would have been a busy shopping day, but here, the police have also issued a warning to members of the public to be on their guard against scams after two men posing as police officers at a fake checkpoint tried to stop a motorist and charge them an on—the—spot fine for non—essential travel near beverley. the force said it's currently not stopping people at checkpoints under the coronavirus legislation and is urging the public to check police identification. officers are out patrolling and say social distancing measures are improving. now is not the time to go and spend time with your family at the beaches. now is the time to observe social isolation and think of others. but i have to say, overwhelmingly, we are starting to see people comply with these rules. this is the new normal, for now, as the country battles to stop the spread of coronavirus. philip norton, bbc

look north, hull. 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. football and live music are two essential parts of life in spain, and the coronavirus has put them both on hold. to lift spirits, the country's football league la liga, has held a live virtual music festival which has so far raised more than us$700,000 for hospitals. freya cole takes a look at some of the highlights. streamed into homes in spain and around the world, some of

the country's biggest stars in music... .. and on the football field. included barcelona star pk and willow who tested positive for coronavirus last week. but the goal of the show was to escape the pandemic, just for a short while. i am here at home like everyone else. fighting against the virus. those days, we can enjoy a real bit more about the family. sings. from an acoustic set by a puerto rican singer louis fonzie by something more traditional... sings 0pera. the four hour live concert has so far raised hundreds of

thousands of dollars to buy medical supplies which are running low across spain. it also gave everybody stuck in quarantine a reason to smile, including tennis superstar rafael nadal. translation: it isa rafael nadal. translation: it is a pleasure to be here. i am in majorca. me and my family, we are all very happy to see the concert. i have the television on. i cannot wait. sings. coronavirus may have pressed pause on my football games and live music. sings. but thanks to modern technology, it can still be enjoyed from the safety of home. freya cole, bbc news. that is just about it from me for now. you can reach me on twitter. i'm @sipusey. but for now, thanks for

watching and to stay tuned right here on bbc news. —— do. hello there. as far as the clocks are concerned, sunday is the first day of british summer time. not so for the weather. in fact, it's going to feel more like winter. it'll be cold, particularly when we factor in the strength of the wind, and there will be a few wintry showers around as well. now, having said that, high pressure is not too far away, sitting just to the north—west of the british isles. quite a strong area of high pressure, actually, so there will be a lot of dry weather around. but the flow of air around high pressure, in a clockwise direction, means we are bringing the winds down from the north or north—east. a brisk wind at that, bringing some very cold air our way. now, as we go through the day, there will be some showers around. wintry showers in the north and the east over high ground,

mainly rain at low levels, and some of those showers will continue through the day but there will be a lot of dry weather around. some spells of sunshine, large amounts of cloud as well. but the wind will be noticeable in england and wales with gusts of a0 miles an hour for some spots, up to 50 miles an hour for some eastern and southern coasts. not as windy for northern ireland and scotland, but still quite breezy. temperatures on the thermometer between five and 10 degrees. and 10 degrees. factoring in the wind, this is what it will feel like. for some of us, it will feel not much better than freezing. now, as we go through sunday night, we will continue to see a lot of cloud working its way down from the north. i think the increasing chance of seeing showers into northern and eastern areas, some of these wintry over high ground. but at low levels, i think mostly rain showers because by this stage, it might not be quite as chilly. yes, still a frost for some of us on monday morning but, generally speaking, monday should feel a little less cold, partly because the winds will be a little later. —— lighter. yes, it will still be breezy, but not as windy. some showers in northern

and eastern scotland, northern england, maybe as well throughout the day. but temperatures up just a touch, between nine and 11. as the high pressure slides away slightly westwards into tuesday, we start to bring the air from a different place, the air coming more from the atlantic, so not quite as cold on tuesday. large amounts of cloud bubbling up through the day. there will be one or two showers. those temperatures, again, between nine and 11 degrees. now, as we look deeper into the coming week, our area of high pressure still not too far away, but it looks like later in the week, pressure will develop to the north. that will work its way into the north—east of the uk and that will bring another plunge of cold air into northernmost areas. and perhaps some rain, perhaps sleet and snow the hills areas, but it will turn milder and will stay mostly dry.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the uk has recorded its highest number of deaths linked to the coronavirus in a single day. 260 people have died in the past 2a hours, bringing the total to more than 1,000. this as officials warn that social distancing restrictions must be kept in place. the number of coronavirus—related deaths in the us has surged past 2,000, doubling within just two days. a quarter of the deaths are in new york state. president trump has said he is no longer considering a quarantine on new york state, newjersey and parts of connecticut. italy has become the first country in which more than 10,000 people have died of the coronavirus. the country's economy minister says europe will need a great marshall plan to relaunch its economy after the pandemic similar to the scheme that funded rebuilding after the second world war.