this is bbc news. the headlines: the uk government insists it's ramping up testing for nhs workers — as doctors‘ leaders warn the shortage of tests has caused serious problems for the health service. we do need this extended to all staff. and certainly in general practice at the moment we are still waiting for testing, so i have lots of doctors contacting me every day saying they want to get back to work. formula one developers join scientists to develop new breathing equipment which can help keep patients out of intensive care. i sincerely think it may actually save many lives, by preventing patients from needing to go onto a ventilator, and again saving that vital resource for the very, very severely ill. easyjet grounds all its planes, as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects

of the pandemic. in the us, president trump extends restrictions on movement till the end of april as the number of cases there continues to rise sharply. a minute's silence is held in madrid for victims of coronavirus, as spain's death tolljumps to 7,340 — a rise of 812 in 2a hours. two flights bringing british people home from peru arrive back in the uk. but the foreign office says there may be as many as a million other britons abroad. and we look at how farms are coping, as they respond to the increase in demand from supermarkets. the government has insisted

it is "ramping up" its capacity to test health and social care workers for the coronavirus, amid confusion over whether it has reached its target — set for yesterday — of 10,000 tests a day. doctors‘ leaders have warned the shortage of tests has caused serious problems for the health service. it comes as the prime minister announced 20,000 former nhs staff have returned to work, to help in the fight against the virus. a breathing aid that helps keep patients out of intensive care has been created in less than a week, by scientists working with mercedes‘ formula one team. one of europe's biggest airlines, easyjet, is grounding its entire fleet because of the pandemic and there's a warning that the entire airline sector may need a government bailout. across the uk there have now been 1,228 deaths. but an expert adviser to the government has said the rate of coronavirus infections appears to be slowing, suggesting

government restrictions could be having an impact. our first report is from our health correspondent, lauren moss. test, test, test. that is the global health advice to track, tackle and get on top of the coronavirus crisis. and it's what the uk government has promised to do. at the minute, public health england says capacity is at almost 11,000 a day. more than 40,000 tests were done in the past week, though, compared to germany, which is carrying out 500,000 tests a week. there are a handful of countries that have higher rates of testing than us, but actually we are amongst the highest testers in the world. as i said, the numbers are going up. and we recognise the importance of this. the importance of testing, the importance of the equipment. and also, i should say, the importance of having enough trained staff. 20,000 retired doctors and nurses have also answered the call to return, and final year medical students are being called up. instead of spending their final few months before graduation in australia, harriet and elizabeth are working on a&e at

oxford's john radcliffe hospital. when patients come in the front door, we will direct them to the correct part of the department. and that's reallyjust making sure that patients who might have covid—19 are not coming into contact with those who don't have any symptoms. what is it like for you both on a personal level? we've just been kind of thrown into doing it all. and we've all been handling it. and it's great to use the skills that we've developed over the past six years. getting personal protective equipment out is still a top priority for both medical staff and those in social care settings, like this care home in dorset. how are we supposed to keep the two metre rule? we can't. i mean, we're doing personal care, we are talking to people that need us to be close because they can't hear. testing for front line nhs staff with covid—19 symptoms also began over the weekend, so those self isolating as a precaution can get back to work.

in spain, 12,000 health workers have had the virus. we do need this extended to all staff. certainly in general practice at the moment, we are still waiting for testing. so i have lots of doctors contacting me every day, saying that they want to get back to work. surgeon amged el—hawrani became one of the first front line doctors in the uk to die at the weekend, after contracting coronavirus in leicester. doctors are calling for all medics to be eligible for full death in service if something happens to them during the outbreak. the welsh government has freed up £1 billion to spend on supporting businesses and public services. this fund will help businesses to survive the coronavirus challenge, so they are ready, when we come out on the other side of this, to go on providing jobs and futures here in wales. and this help is over and above the support schemes already announced by the chancellor of the exchequer.

there are nearly 20,000 cases of covid—19 in the uk. but today, the government advisor modelling them offered a glimmer of hope when he said hospital admissions are slowing down. but, we are warned, it will be many more months before we can even think of life getting back to normal. let's get more from our political correspondentjess parker. there correspondent jess parker. has there correspondentjess parker. has been some confusii government there has been some confusion from government over the testing figures, can you clear goes up? there has been some confusion and pa rt there has been some confusion and part of the reason for that as we are talking about a number of different measures. this began yesterday when michael gove and the health circa the matt hancock both spoke of 10,000 of initial target to see if people have the virus, has been reached. then the social care

minister this morning on radio said that was the capacity figure, the number of tests that were able to be carried out but the number of people actually tested was closer to 7000. both turned out to be kind of truth. the latest stats are around 7000 people were tested over a 24—hour period into saturday morning. the actual number of tests carried out was just over actual number of tests carried out wasjust over 9000 actual number of tests carried out was just over 9000 because some people had more than one swab and the capacity we have in the uk currently is just over 10,000, that's where the confusion has arisen. i suppose the issue if you are looking at those statistics as if there is any confusion and people start to not trust the numbers, that's an issue for the government so that's an issue for the government so they have been seeking to clarify exactly what's going on this morning and the government trying to push back on suggestions and criticisms

they have not taken testing seriously enough and not taken a sufficiently aggressive approach. thank you. it remains an issue for the government, with doctors‘ leaders are warning front line workers are still not getting the masks they want and also the tests that they desperately want to find out whether they have had the virus 01’ out whether they have had the virus or not and whether they should be self isolating. absolutely. the government is under considerable pressure on this issue. real concern there are people who are self isolating because perhaps they have not had a test and maybe they have not had a test and maybe they are an nhs worker or a key worker and the are not able to have a test. the government are saying they are absolutely prioritising those people as lauren mentioned, tests have been going on the front line staff essayed from the figures i spoke about, over the weekend. ——

aside from the figures i spoke about. there will be focused on getting front line staff back into work because they will be so crucial and also making sure the protective equipment doesn‘tjust reach nhs staff in hospitals, but also social ca re staff in hospitals, but also social care workers. the government insists it‘s moving fast and doing everything it can. thank you very much. the number of people who have died in wales after contracting coronavirus is 62, at rise of 1a. the doctor in charge, says 210 new cases have tested positive for covid—19 in wales, bringing the total number to 1451 although the true number is likely to be higher. that the latest situation in wales.

let‘s speak to our correspondent, jon donnison, at the new nightingale hospital in east london. as we know, that has been set up to eventually house or accommodate thousands of patients, patients who have got coronavirus. do we know when it is likely to be up and running? a lot of activity here today and over the weekend. at the moment we think it will be later this week, possibly as soon as wednesday. they are setting up a massive field hospital, in effect, initially it will cope with some 500 patients, 500 beds with ventilators and oxygen, but expanding potentially to as many as 4000 beds. there are similar facilities as many as 4000 beds. there are similarfacilities being as many as 4000 beds. there are similar facilities being set up as many as 4000 beds. there are similarfacilities being set up in other cities, manchester, birmingham, glasgow. and in cardiff. this one we think should be running later this week.

do we know what sort of numbers they will have initially? asi will have initially? as i say, 500 to start with. one interesting thing in terms of staffing because we have had some of the big airlines today writing to their staff, asking them to volunteer to work in places like here when it becomes the field hospital, easyjet has written to 9000 of its staff including 4000 cabin crew, easyjet announced it is grounding all its flights today. asking for staff to volunteer here. they would be doing work under supervision from experienced doctors and nurses, changing bedding and that sort of thing and they would get training. virgin atlantic

writing to its staff and asking them to volunteer as well. many thanks for that update. prince charles is out of self—isolation, a week after it was announced he tested positive for coronavirus. clarence house said the prince of wales is in good health, and is following government advice. his wife, the duchess of cornwall, tested negative for the virus but also spent the period in isolation. a breathing aid that can help keep coronavirus patients out of intensive care has been created in just a few days by engineers at university college london. they‘ve been working with clinicians, and the mercedes formula one team, to develop the device, which delivers oxygen to the lungs without the need for a ventilator. if trials are successful, it could go into mass production, relieving the pressure on intensive care units. fergus walsh reports. it‘s a small device that could make a big difference. known as continuous positive airway pressure, or cpap,

it pushes oxygen into the lungs, keeping them open, making it easier to breathe. there are already used in the nhs, but are in short supply, so a team modified and improved on existing design in less than a week, which has now been approved for use by health regulators. normally, medical device development would take years. in this instance, we‘ve been able to do it in days, because we‘ve cleverly thought about how we can go back to existing devices and models, reverse engineer them and then engage with our industry partners to manufacture them at scale. this demonstration was done at university college london hospital, which is now using the device to treat covid—19 patients. i sincerely think it may actually save many lives by preventing patients from needing to go on to a ventilator, and, again, saving that vital resource for the very, very severely ill. every second counts in motor racing.

here, mercedes formula 1 partnered with doctors and health care engineers on a medical device that could be mass produced. this is a great example of how the nhs, universities and industry are working together, at extraordinary pace, to meet the challenge posed by coronavirus. if the trials of this device go well, then mercedes formula 1 says it can produce up to 1000 of these a day. in italy, around half of covid—19 patients given cpap have avoided the need for intensive care. and, unlike mechanical ventilators, there is no need for them to be sedated. meanwhile, a consortium of companies, including airbus, bae systems, ford and rolls—royce, have joined forces to produce much needed ventilators for the nhs. they received orders for more than 10,000 ventilators, and are ready to start production, pending regulatory approval. fergus walsh, bbc news.

the headlines on bbc news: the uk government insists it‘s stepping up the testing of nhs workers in england, after calls from doctors‘ leaders for it to be increased. formula one developers join scientists to develop new breathing equipment which can help keep patients out of intensive care. easyjet grounds all its planes, as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects of the pandemic. the scottish regional airline loganair has said it will ask the government for emergency financial support. the company has warned it will be impossible for most british airlines to continue operating without a bailout. easyjet announced this morning that it has grounded its entire fleet. 0ur transport correspondent tom burridge reports. easyjet, the latest airline to park

up its entire fleet of aircraft. it can‘t say when commercial flights will run again. aviation has largely ground to a halt and airlines are fighting to survive. then you have a situation where, if you‘re not flying properly during the summer, you are missing a very profitable part of the flying schedule and you would go into the winter where airlines typically are loss—making in a position where you also have potentially much more debt than you expect to have. easyjet will seek government support via existing schemes but not an additional bailout. virgin atlantic is expected to apply for one of those in the coming days. and the uk‘s largest regionalairline, loganair, which links scottish islands to regional airports, has confirmed it will, too. i think really the magnitude

of what we‘re dealing with as an industry here is so significant, i would be very, very surprised if any airline is able to get through this without request for support in some form or other. but cabin crew staff from easyjet and virgin atlantic, who have been temporarily laid off, can now volunteer to work in support roles at three temporary hospitals being set up here in london and in birmingham and manchester. the airlines will continue to pay staff who sign up and they will provide valuable support to the nhs. tom burridge, bbc news. the travel industry is just one of a number of sectors threatened by the pandemic, with other well—known companies signalling they too are under great pressure. 0ur personal finance correspondent simon gompertz has the latest on companies threatened by the coronavirus. we are talking about bright house,

and the reason we are particularly worried about them is because it has just been confirmed they are going into administration and this is the terrible news 2400 staff have been waiting for and 240 shops that are threatened as well. what has happened is although thousands of people rely on them for their appliances like washing machines and televisions, they have been widely criticised for their charges and that they have faced a price cap and they were losing money after that, they were losing money after that, they are facing a mis—selling claims and the coronavirus and the blight that has brought to the high street has also hit them and it has been confirmed they are going into administration. it‘s not entirely clear what will happen to customers asa clear what will happen to customers as a result and we will wait to hear what the administrators have to say. the coronavirus pandemic is affecting businesses all across the uk, with many now reaching out for financial support. let‘s talk more on this now

with the enterprise editor of the times, james hurley. many thanks for joining many thanks forjoining us. 0ut lately sort of help that‘s available to businesses at the moment from the government and banks. the banking industry has worked with the government to come up with a scheme that is supposed to provide emergency loans to small and medium—sized companies, or property £5 million. the government is providing an 80% guarantee on individual loans, the idea being that will give banks confidence to lend. this hopes to help protect thousands of companies and also there is a wage furlough scheme designed to help companies keep employees on. if you have employees you are struggling to keep on because of the collapse in trade, you can apply to the government and they will underwrite 80% of the wage bill as long as they are not working at the moment. that sounds generous on the face of

it, when are the problems? the loan scheme has faced a myriad of problems. one is the directors are being asked to put up lots of security. for example if they have a second home or other personal assets, those are on the line if they took alone and you‘ve got to ask would you be willing to put personal assets on the line, into extreme circumstances of personal ba n kru ptcy extreme circumstances of personal bankruptcy when you have little visibility on trading prospects. 0ther visibility on trading prospects. other questions over whether banks have the capacity to get these loans out the door at the moment and small business owners are telling me they cannot get through to their bank at the moment. i think part of the reason is of course the banks themselves are not immune to coronavirus, they have lots of staff off at the moment and also call centres in india that have been shut down. there is finally the question

of viability, banks are supposed to assess the viability of these companies but how do you assess the viability at a time when everyone‘s trade has collapsed and we don‘t know how long this is going to go on for. what can businesses do to help themselves? the first thing is be willing to shop around for finance. it is not easy to get finance because lots of the non—bank lenders are retrenching from providing capital but there are still lenders out there and banks are still supporting some companies. i would say try different banks, look around, don‘t give up get dissuaded when you get turned down because you will have to keep trying because you will have to keep trying because it is very difficult circumstances at the moment. the other issue is with the government backed loans, many banks are only providing to existing customers. if you having trouble through to one bank you properly want people to go

to another bank because of the level of demand the only providing to existing customers. you will need lots of determination and look though it might be willing to look beyond existing customers. 0ne though it might be willing to look beyond existing customers. one thing we have seen in recent years as an explosion of credit availability from non—bank providers. you mentioned banks looking at the viability of businesses, what of sort contingency plan does a good business have? that‘s a very good question. 0ne business have? that‘s a very good question. one of the things of the crisis is exposing is lots of small and medium—sized companies unfortunately do live very hand to mouth got month—to—month and ina hand to mouth got month—to—month and in a crisis like this, that leaves you ina in a crisis like this, that leaves you in a very difficult position. banks will be looking at things like walk security you have available, what your cash position is like and u nfortu nately for what your cash position is like and unfortunately for new and growing companies whether you are profitable or not and of course new and growing

companies don‘t yet have profits, which leaves them in a difficult position when trying to get a loan. if you are looking for a silver lining, on the other side of this it might be companies see the value of having money put aside for a rainy day and maybe being willing more so to ta ke day and maybe being willing more so to take on equity finance which means you have participation from more than one stakeholder and you have money on your balance sheet for a rainy day. very interesting. thanks for speaking to us. thank you. president trump has said restrictions imposed because of coronavirus will be in place across the us until at least the end of april. he had previously said that he hoped to relax the measures at easter. the government‘s medical adviser, dr anthony fauci, has warned the virus could kill up to 200,000 americans. paul adams reports. cheering and applause. as this global pandemic spreads, waves of gratitude are quick to follow. other cities have already

thanked their health workers, but this is new york, a deafening chorus of appreciation echoing down the manhattan‘s misty canyons. but there is disquiet, too. nurses and doctors say they don‘t have enough protective equipment, told to wear masks notjust for one patient but for up to five days. it‘s putting all of us in danger because we are reusing masks that should never be reused, we are running out of so many things, other protective equipment. with america‘s city streets increasingly deserted, the prospects of a swift return to normality are fading. officials are now warning of as many as 200,000 american fatalities. if we can hold that down, as we're saying, to 100,000, it's a horrible number, maybe even less, but to 100,000, so we have between 100,000 and 200,000, we altogether have done a very good job. but with the virus and the lockdown

comes mounting economic hardship. new york‘s busy foodbanks now inundated with newcomers. people deprived in the blink of an eye of the ability to put food on their tables. in new orleans, before dawn, this emergency room doctor prepares for another long shift in a nearby hospital. he says he is not used to seeing so many people not recovering. instead, they have gotten worse while they've been in the hospital and in fact, many of them have passed away already, in a way that's... it's not normal. a vast hospital ship is now moored off los angeles, helping to relieve the pressure on california. the mercy has 1000 beds for non—coronavirus patients. america‘s most populous state is now bracing for difficulties.

earlier i spoke to cbs correspondent david begnaud on the latest on the situation in new york. it is arguably the hardest hit area in the country and hospitals are doing everything they can to answer the call of the governor to do more. you have a hospital known as mount sinai setting up tents in central park to treat people infected with coronavirus. i am speaking what i see you nurses who say they don‘t have the masks they need. i spoke with one woman who said she‘s been using one mask for the last four days. she says she reuses the mass every day. the disconnect seems to be with what we are hearing from front—line workers, from the governor and the mayor and the president. the president says supplies are arriving by the planeload and he does not understand how they don‘t have enough but front line workers are saying i am telling

you...i line workers are saying i am telling you... i had a icu nurse say that there were four people treating a patient died of coronavirus and not one had the mask they needed. they did not stop working, they did what was required but they are begging that they get those masks. the spanish government has told all nonessential workers to stay at home for the next 11 days, as part of a series of tighter restrictions. 0ver than 7,300 people in spain have died, more than in any country apart from italy. 0ur correspondent, guy hedgecoe, is in madrid and explained what the new measures were. spain has already been under lockdown for the last two weeks or so and under quite a strict lockdown whereby you are not allowed to leave your home without a specific reason to do so, whether it is buying food, going to work on buying medicine. as of today, nonessential workers are not allowed to travel to work, they

also have to stay home. that is the main novelty, the governments has done that because it says it wants to really make sure there is no resurgence or increase in the spread of the virus. it believes although the latest figures do make for a rather harrowing reading, we had over 800 people died over the past 24 hours because of the virus, despite those figures the government says the virus is coming to the end of its upward curve and the figures are flattening out what it wants to make sure of that with these new measures. it is up —— the big concern right now is the health service, it is under tremendous pressure and the government believes taking these measures will help relieve that pressure. universities in england could face limits on the number of students they recruit, amid turmoil in the sector. there are fears the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus could leave some universities with too few applicants to stay financially viable.

it is understood emergency controls are being considered to stop a free—for—all in student recruitment. two flights bringing british people home from peru have arrived back in the uk. but the foreign office says there may be as many as a million other britons abroad, and many want to get home. they‘re struggling with grounded airlines, restrictions on movement, and businesses closed in shutdowns. caroline hawley reports. this is one of the rescue planes sent to peru to bring stranded british tourists home. by the end of tomorrow, with specially chartered flights, the government hopes to have about 1000 people back on uk soil. last week some of the most vulnerable of the british travellers in peru were brought home on the first of the evacuation flights. but peru is in a state of emergency and some tourists are still stuck in remote places. to make it worse, there are coronavirus cases in some of the hostels where british

people are staying. we will have two more british airways flights flying back from lima to london, bringing british nationals back to the uk, back to their friends and families. it is now a week since the foreign office advised all british tourists abroad to head home. hundreds of thousands have somehow made it back, mostly on commercial flights. but many people are still stuck in india, australia, new zealand and in almost every corner of the globe. the foreign office minister today estimated there are a million people abroad, many now scrambling to get back. this doctor is in cape town. her husband is a trauma surgeon. they are keen to return in the fight against coronavirus. it is very frustrating, particularly around a time of... obviously, we saw the situation deteriorating and tried to get out. by the time we tried to get out, the flights were booked. we are not receiving updates on what is being done.

we do appreciate it can take time to arrange these things but we are in the dark and not being told anything. and imagine how it feels on this cruise ship, where four people have already died of coronavirus. healthy passengers were transferred over the weekend to another cruise liner. they‘re hoping to make it to florida, where the british people on board will have to attempt to find flights. as desperation grows among those stranded far from home, new measures to help are expected to be announced within the next couple of days. area are a some new details to bring you from downing street related to the coronavirus outbreak. downing street has confirmed the office for national statistics will now publish weekly data to include people who died in the community. the current figures for the death toll come from deaths which take place in hospitals

in the four nations, england, wales, scotla nd in the four nations, england, wales, scotland and northern ireland. so downing street is saying provisions for how this new measure will work as set out in the emergency legislation, so we can expect to see iimagine legislation, so we can expect to see i imagine some bumping up of the death figures, given that they will be drawn more widely now. and one other piece of information should bring you from downing street is that over 900 front line nhs staff have been tested for coronavirus over the weekend. plenty more on the developing political situation, but for the time being let‘s take a look at the weather now. here‘s louise lear. hello. subtle differences to the weather story over the next few days. in fact today has been a case of sunny spells and scattered showers, most frequent to the east but some have been filtering further inland and as we go through this evening and overnight the showers will fade, the winds will ease a touch and we will have some clearing skies. most favoured spots south

east england and east anglia. a chilly start for some but that is where the best of the sunshine is likely to be. it is not going to last. cloud will develop as we go through the day. for many a bus, it will be brief, sunny spells, plenty of cloud and a few scattered showers, mostly open into the far north and west but a subtle difference for tomorrow is lighter winds generally across the country. still coming from a ghoulish source but noticeably lighter, in comparison to the weekend, and as a result that might just comparison to the weekend, and as a result that mightjust make it feel just that more pleasant if you are heading out for a brief spot of exercise. that is it. take care. hello this is bbc news. the headlines... the government insists it‘s ramping up testing for nhs workers — as doctors‘ leaders warn the shortage of tests has caused serious problems for the health service. formula one developers join

scientists to make new breathing equipment, which can help keep patients out of intensive care. easyjet grounds all its planes, as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects of the pandemic. in the us, president trump extends restrictions on movement till the end of april, as the number of cases there continues to rise sharply. a minute‘s silence is held in madrid for victims of coronavirus, as spain‘s death tolljumps to 7,340 — a rise of 812 in 24 hours. two flights bringing british people home from peru arrive back in the uk. but the foreign office says there may be as many as a million other britons abroad. many of you have been sending us your questions about the coronavirus outbreak and how it‘s affecting your lives. earlier, victoria derbyshire put them to the experts. let‘s take a look.

thank you so much to all of you who get in touch and we appreciated, we read as many messages as we can, asking you today how you are coping with week one of the partial lockdown, as we head into week two. claire says i desperately miss going to work and my business, at school speakers, but i am enjoying the calm and not rushing and cooking and teaching my daughter, who is seven. allen says for me it is the feeling of claustrophobia as we are all stuck indoors was not also a feeling of anger and frustration at the people who are still not following guidelines and still going out and meeting others. 25 people at a karaoke party? really? thank you for those and to the many of you who write in with questions, because there are so many questions to be asked, and so many to be answered. today we can talk to dr amir khan, who is a gp and is in bradford and can help with some of your

questions. also dr katrina lithgow, an epidemiologist at oxford university. welcome both of you, thank you so much for volunteering to a nswer thank you so much for volunteering to answer some of our viewers‘s questions. let me put this to your doctor can‘t, this is from eliza, who says i am now five days with covid—19, and i‘m starting to recover. i would like to know once recovered how long will i be infectious for? right, morning, with regards to that person, it is seven days after the onset of the symptoms. so she is five days into it now, another two days for which she is still infectious after that she is still infectious after that she shouldn‘t be shedding the virus after that, and can go back to social distancing rather than self isolation. however, if there are any household contacts, people who live in the house with her, they should self—isolate from the 14 days from the onset of her symptoms. katrina,

this is from sofia hargreaves, she says i know scientists are still discovering how the virus is contracted, but do we know if it is airborne? yeah, really good question, and it really depends what we call airborne. we know it can spread through droplets like coughing and sneezing and this is why we need to be careful with close contacts. there is some evidence as well it can spread in the form of aerosols, which are likely to stay ina room aerosols, which are likely to stay in a room for a bit longer. dr khan, this is from marty, i have a chest infection at the moment which is not improving with medication. is it safe to go to hospital with an x—ray without putting myself at risk? what i would say to that its only go for an x—ray if absolutely necessary. we can‘t say there is no risk at all, because you yourself may well be a risk to other staff members and not know you have got the virus, and again it is the same for them as well. i would say only go for a

chest x—ray if you are absolutely certain medication is not working, you have had the cough or whatever symptoms you have had for three weeks or more and it has been recommended by your gp. if at all you can avoid it, i would try and avoid it. if there is no other option but to go for the chest x—ray, then you must go. option but to go for the chest x-ray, then you must go. katrina, can you get the virus off food cans and food packaging? that is from julie. the first thing we need to do is rememberthere are julie. the first thing we need to do is remember there are very different levels of risk, and really close contact is the biggest risks, but there is evidence it can survive on surfaces, but how long this is in the real world isn't really known. i would say if you are worried, then time is on your side, so leave packages for a day or two or you could write them down with a disinfectant, but always be careful to wash your hands before and after, and don't touch your face. thank you, the next question is about pregnancy, and we will focus more on

this dr khan in the next few minutes, we will talk to the royal couege minutes, we will talk to the royal college of midwives and also someone who is due to give birth in the next few weeks. but this is from berlin, she says what should we do if a family member is packing and goes into labour? my son and daughter—in—law are due to have their baby in the next few days will stop we know pregnant women are in an at risk group and where possible they should be self isolating the 12 weeks. if you are due to go into labour, i would say stick to the birth plan that you have already had, don‘t change from it. lots of people are thinking about having home births rather than going into hospital but if your birth plan was to go into hospital, that is still the safest thing to do for you and everything should be in place to reduce the risk of infection there. there is some evidence that children under the age of one, including newborns, are at risk of getting the virus and having symptoms from it as well, so once baby is born, you should be home as soon as possible

and back to self isolating. so grand pa rents and back to self isolating. so grand parents really shouldn‘t be visiting, anyone else in the household really should be isolating themselves as well. this question for you, katrina, from vincent, the medical people are saying once you have had the virus, you are immune and cannot pass it on. is this true? sol and cannot pass it on. is this true? so i think it is almost certain that people who have had coronavirus are immune, at least for a few months, but we don't know how long that immunity will last. it may be years, we don't know, and really when we have done further studies, so reinfection studies, then we will have more answers to that question. this is from an, do i have to keep washing my hands if i am at home and i haven‘t been outside? washing my hands if i am at home and i haven't been outside? yes, you should be washing your hands at least every two hours, regardless of where you have been, and i know that might sound strange, because you are just stuck inside, but you can never be too careful, so yes, please, keep

washing your hands regardless. this is from gary, we get our exercise walking in the local countryside but feel vulnerable when cyclists pass us. as the social distance, two metres, affected by strong winds? so i would first say it is great you have the opportunity to explore the countryside near your home, and i think it is whiley important to reiterate the government message here that we should be exercising near our own homes. as here that we should be exercising near our own homes. as i said before, there are different levels of risk. i would say it is extremely unlikely you could catch a virus from a cyclist going past, unless they sneeze right on top of you, and really the psychological benefits of exercise for everyone, be that cycling, walking, running, are really extremely high. i would say to cyclists, though, keep your distance. that would be a nice thing to do. it certainly would be nice. dr khan, this is the final question for the moment. ifeel

dr khan, this is the final question for the moment. i feel like dr khan, this is the final question for the moment. ifeel like there is something stuck in my throat. sometimes it feels difficult to breathe. are the symptoms of the virus, and that is from mary. we know the vast majority of people get a fever and a cough and some fatigue with the virus, but sore throats have been reported in up to a third of cases, so if you feel like you have a sore throat or something stuck in your throat, i think the safest thing to do is to assume it is the virus and self—isolate for seven days and monitor your symptoms. in cases of difficulty in breathing, that is slightly more worrying and can be a complication of the virus, in which case you should go to the nhs111 website if you are having difficulty breathing, because they may want to see you. you are having difficulty breathing, because they may want to see youlj wa nt because they may want to see you.” wa nt to because they may want to see you.” want to ask you finally, dr khan, if i may, we heard this week an nhs co nsulta nt i may, we heard this week an nhs consultant has become the first front line worker to die in this crisis. how did you react when you hear the news of his death? well, it

is absolutely devastating, a colleague dying. it was a matter of time, it was if rather than when, there has been a slow response with there has been a slow response with the ppe and i think a lot of health ca re the ppe and i think a lot of health care professionals will feel the same, and there is some anger among health care professionals, including myself, about the lack of ppe. i know the government are stepping that out, and also that it is with regard to testing as well. ijust hope that his death wasn‘t related directly to the absence of ppe, but i can‘t be sure, but it is really, really tragic news to hear that a colleague in the front line helping people has died, and sadly, it is sad to say he won‘t be the only one. have you got proper protective equipment? no, no, we haven't. we are still seeing patients and the only protective equipment we have been given, in very limited numbers i must add, is a plastic pin yi, a paper mask and a pair of gloves. we

have no eyewea r. paper mask and a pair of gloves. we have no eyewear. we know it can be contracted through any kinds of eyes or ears, they are not protected, bear arms as well. so really we are not being offered the protective gear we should be wearing when seeing patients with potential covert symptoms. so are you worried? yes, iam covert symptoms. so are you worried? yes, i am very worried. you know, this week bradford has, we have set up this week bradford has, we have set up these hot sites, where patients who are not unwell enough to need hospital but are unwell enough to be seen are being seen by gps, including myself. iwill seen are being seen by gps, including myself. i will rotate into that and i‘m quite happy to do so, that‘s my duty, but i will only be wearing a plastic pinny, mask and gloves, so i am very worried, but i can‘t do anything about it. we‘ve tried to protest, we have tried to do something about it, we are told that we are only limited to 100 items per practice. we‘ve got 25,000 patients, so you can imagine how long 100 masks and 100 pinnies are

going to last, so it is really worrying. but i‘ve got to balance that out with the duty i have to my patients, so i do have to go into work and see these people and try and help them. thank you. thank you very much. thanks for coming on the programme, doctor and khan very much. thanks for coming on the programme, doctorand khan and very much. thanks for coming on the programme, doctor and khan and also dr katrina lithgow. thank you very much for answering these questions. -- dr much for answering these questions. —— drali much for answering these questions. —— dr ali khan. it isa it is a quarter to three. you are watching bbc news, time for the headlines. the uk government insists it‘s stepping up the testing of nhs workers in england, after calls from doctors‘ leaders for it to be increased. formula one developers join scientists to make new breathing equipment which can help keep patients out of intensive care. easyjet grounds all its planes — as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects of the pandemic. in her daily news conference,

scotland‘s first minister nicola sturgeon has confirmed that another six people have died from the virus there — taking the total to 47. she also outlined further plans to cope with the spread of the virus by announcing that the scottish exhibition centre in glasgow will be turned into a temporary nhs hospital. initially, it will offer an extra 300 beds but will have the capacity to house more than 1,000 patients. she also announced the suspension of various screening programmes, including those for breasts, cervix and bowel. it is not an easy decision, i want to repeat that, but the balance of risk supports the approach we are taking. it is however worth stressing that if you detect any symptoms of the conditions we would normally screen for, if you notice a lump in your breast for example, then you should contact your gp immediately. we will restart these screening programmes that we have paused as soon as we can. this is a

temporary suspension and will be reviewed after 12 weeks or earlier if evidence suggests restarting the programme is feasible. however, at this moment, pausing these programmes is an important way of allowing the nhs to deal effectively with the impact of covid—19. wales‘ first minister has announced a new £1.1 billion fighting fund, with almost half the money being set aside to help businesses, charities and social enterprises. describing the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on the welsh economy as extraordinary, mark drakeford said the budget had been re—prioritised to free up funding. this fund will help businesses to survive the coronavirus challenge so that they are ready when we come out the other side of this to go on providing jobs and here in wales, and this help is over and above the

support schemes already announced by the chancellor of the exchequer. the fund will help those firms who are having to go into hibernation, or those firms which need cash flow support to adapt to new ways of working during the pandemic. in france, there‘s a crisis emerging in care homes, with double—figure deaths reported in some, and more than 80 residents testing positive for coronavirus in one building alone. no nationalfigures forfatalities in care homes are being made public — and they‘re not included in the daily briefing figures. relatives who‘ve been forbidden from visiting for more than a week now — say they aren‘t being told when a family member tests positive. lucy williamson reports. even when deaths are invisible, you can count the coffins. signs of a hidden crisis inside care homes across france. this home in paris has lost 16 residents to coronavirus — more than 80 more are infected.

those delivering the coffins here told a waiting journalist it was non—stop. 21 people have died at this home in vosges, but while hospital deaths are recorded in the daily toll of coronavirus, deaths in care homes are not. translation: there was a cluster of about 50 people with fever over five days, followed by symptoms of severe pneumonia, so we had to use oxygen. at the height of the epidemic here, there must have been 25 or 30 patients on oxygen. so far, more than a third of care homes in the paris region are thought to have been affected by coronavirus. the government is launching an app to monitor these cases, and add them to the national totals, but france‘s most senior health official has said that numbers could spiral as a result. at the beginning of march, president macron visited a care home to talk about protection — no masks then, no social distancing. a few days later, all visits to france‘s retirement homes were banned, and last week the government said all residents

should be individually isolated in their rooms. but care workers say that they are now the biggest risk to residents, and that some homes were keeping masks in reserve for an outbreak and not giving them to staff. translation: as soon as the coronavirus enters a care home, it‘s all over, there is nothing we can do. since we don‘t have enough staff, it will be dramatic. in several centres, there will be a huge number of deaths. space in hospital life support units in the paris region is now critically low, and there are shortages of some drugs. the health minister has said france will begin mass testing of its population and has ordered a billion facemasks to protect healthcare staff. but polls suggest that trust in the government has plummeted, even before the wave of this epidemic has peaked. lucy williamson, bbc news, paris.

long queues of shoppers outside supermarkets are a daily reality for us all now, as are empty shelves as retail staff struggle to restock quickly enough. at the other end of the supply chain, farmers are warning that they are facing huge pressure to keep up. so — how are producers coping behind the scenes? our correspondent sian lloyd has been to meet those working hard to keep food in the shops. keeping livestock moving. markets like this play their part in the food supply chain but it‘s not business as usual. restrictions have been introduced in line with government advice and have been further tightened since we filmed here. hello. access is controlled and farmers are being told to do things differently. they are very dyed—in—the—wool traditionalists but we are asking them to drop the animals, leave them to us and go

so that we restrict the amount of people even more. we don‘t want to be locked down. that‘s the last thing — it‘s got to be kept going to keep the public basically fed. those working on the land are facing unprecedented demand. lambing has just begun on this farm with more newborns arriving every day. but the family business is also trying to keep up with a huge increase in demand for potatoes grown here. one of bill‘s concerns is how future crops will be harvested, and across the agricultural sector, there are calls for british people to fill the gaps that will be left by seasonal workers from abroad to keep farming moving. those opportunities are ever more here. it‘s a bit like the war. the war... farming was kept going by young women, the land girls, and old men. and they kept producing food to keep our boys fed on the front. this site in hereford supplies poultry from its farms to large supermarket chains. the company produces 4.5 million chickens,

turkeys and ducks a week. they have been working with their customers to ensure supplies hold up. it was necessary for everybody to come together and say, "how do we really be as efficient as we can?" so we worked very closely with our customers to say, "what we need to do quickly?" we started making those changes three weeks ago. we are seeing those changes come through the system and although, clearly it's been difficult with the level of demand that retailers in particular have seen, there is plenty of supply coming through. the system is not any less supplied than it was. the current pressure on the supply of food is unparalleled but the sector recognises there will be further challenges to come. sian lloyd, bbc news, herefordshire. as the human world grinds to a halt, the wild world continues. high up in the east yorkshire wolds, the wildlife artist robert fuller

has been keen to share some great footage of the animals that are getting on with their lives around and about his studio. in robert‘s words "it‘s about spreading a little bit ofjoy". paul murphy reports. spring is arriving in the east yorkshire wolds. these creatures are oblivious to the world around them, and rob fuller is going to continue to film and paint them. so we are obviously also a business here and that is more or less closed down now. i‘m still here, painting away at the easel. i‘ve got 13 staff working for me, so they‘ve all been at home at the moment, some are home—working, so it‘s a really difficult time for everyone, but i‘m very, very lucky that i live in such a beautiful place. rob has dozens of cameras set up to observe the wildlife around his studio in fixendale and further afield. in recent days, he has felt it particularly important to share these images on social media.

we‘re just trying to spread a bit ofjoy, really, into what is a very difficult place for everyone at the time, so the peregrine‘s actually in hulks, so we actually still able to see this peregrine nest and i can see the eggs have been laid now, and i canjust see a kestrel flying down into one of my nest boxes down in the valley at the moment, so it‘s the female having the bath, she spending most of the time actually in the nest box, and then the barn owl in the neighbouring tree, she‘s started thinking about laying. so she is spending time just sitting down. and then there are the badgers. rob built a home for three rescue cubs in his garden. moments like this with the video i was able to capture underground is something so rarely seen or witnessed by any humans. it was so special to watch them sleeping, playing. wildlife is magic. that‘s just carrying on completely as normal, and humanity is literally really

struggling at the moment, and it‘s quite special to see that the wildlife literally is untouched by this, and some of the wildlife are actually doing better. very calming, somehow. that was paul murphy reporting. now it‘s time for a look at the weather with louise lear. hello. with apriljust around the corner, a month often characterised by plenty of april showers. well, we‘ve got that actually today, and you can see by this weather watcher picture sent in from east yorkshire, the view from their window captures this rainbow quite beautifully. most of the showers over the last few hours have been across northern scotla nd hours have been across northern scotland and spilling off north sea coasts. affecting most of eastern england but they are starting to

filter a little bit further west. we are still under the influence of high pressure that we had at the weekend. the winds, well, not quite as strong as the weekend but they are still coming from a ghoulish kind of source and they are driving those showers in off north sea coasts. so as we go through the remainder of the afternoon, there will be plenty of cloud developing, sunny spells will be fairly limited and we will continue to see some showers filtering just that little bit further westwards through the afternoon. the wind is not as strong as yesterday, but still coming from as yesterday, but still coming from a north of north—westerly direction, so not a particularly warm sauce, so temperatures struggling for the time of year, maximum values of nine to 11 degrees. now, as we go through the overnight period, actually the winds will fall lighter still, and the showers will ease away so we will start to get some clearer skies, particularly down across the south—east of england. here, temperatures down to low single figures for a time, a bit more cloud continuing to the far north of scotland, a few isolated showers

here. but our high pressure is still starting to drift slowly west and the isobars will open up, so lighter winds perhaps for tuesday. so although the temperatures will not alter that much it might feel a little bit better. so for many of us, though, it is still a case of quite a lot of cloud around through the day. early morning sunshine will quickly be masked over and temperatures are likely to peak at similar values really, nine to 11 degrees. as we move out of tuesday into wednesday we will start to see a subtle change. with this weather front pushing into the far north—west, again, the winds will strengthen, gale force gusts in scotland, which will introduce colder air to the north, as you can see with their wind direction turning round to more of a northerly. it stays in a relatively mild across southern england for a time. as we go through the week, su btle time. as we go through the week, subtle changes. some showers at times and often quite cloudy. that is it, take care.

this is bbc news. the headlines: the government insists it‘s ramping up testing for nhs workers — as doctors‘ leaders warn the shortage of tests has caused serious problems for the health service. we do need this extended to all staff. and certainly in general practice at the moment we are still waiting for testing, so i have lots of doctors contacting me every day saying they want to get back to work. formula one developers join scientists to make new breathing equipment which can help keep patients out of intensive care. i sincerely think it may actually save many lives, by preventing patients from needing to go onto a ventilator, and again saving that vital resource for the very, very severely ill. easyjet grounds all its planes, as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects of the pandemic.

in the us, president trump extends restrictions on movement till the end of april as the number of cases there continues to rise sharply. a minute‘s silence is held in madrid for victims of coronavirus, as spain‘s death tolljumps to 7,340 — a rise of 812 in 24 hours. two flights bringing british people home from peru arrive back in the uk. but the foreign office says there may be as many as a million other britons abroad. and we look at how farms are coping, as they respond to the increase in demand from supermarkets. the government has insisted it is "ramping up" its capacity

to test health and social care workers for the coronavirus, amid confusion over whether it has reached its target — set for yesterday — of 10,000 tests a day. doctors‘ leaders have warned the shortage of tests has caused serious problems for the health service. this afternoon downing street have said that over 900 front line nhs staff were tested for the virus over the weekend, that‘s in addition to tests being carried out in a clinical setting. it comes as the prime minister announced 20,000 former nhs staff have returned to work, to help in the fight against the virus. a breathing aid that helps keep patients out of intensive care has been created in less than a week, by scientists working with the mercedes‘ formula one team. one of europe‘s biggest airlines, easyjet, is grounding its entire fleet because of the pandemic and there‘s a warning that the entire airline sector may need a government bailout.

across the uk there have now been 1,284 deaths. but an expert adviser to the government has said the rate of coronavirus infections appears to be slowing, suggesting government restrictions could be having an impact. our first report is from our health correspondent, lauren moss. test, test, test. that is the global health advice to track, tackle and get on top of the coronavirus crisis. and it‘s what the uk government has promised to do. at the minute, public health england says capacity is at almost 11,000 a day. more than 40,000 tests were done in the past week, though, compared to germany, which is carrying out 500,000 tests a week. there are a handful of countries that have higher rates of testing than us, but actually we are amongst the highest testers in the world. as i said, the numbers are going up. and we recognise the importance of this. the importance of testing, the importance of the equipment. and also, i should say, the importance of having enough trained staff. 20,000 retired doctors and nurses have also answered the call to return,

and final year medical students are being called up. instead of spending their final few months before graduation in australia, harriet and elizabeth are working on a&e at oxford‘s john radcliffe hospital. when patients come in the front door, we will direct them to the correct part of the department. and that‘s reallyjust making sure that patients who might have covid—19 are not coming into contact with those who don‘t have any symptoms. what is it like for you both on a personal level? we've just been kind of thrown into doing it all. and we've all been handling it. and it's great to use the skills that we've developed over the past six years. getting personal protective equipment out is still a top priority for both medical staff and those in social care settings, like this care home in dorset. how are we supposed to keep the two metre rule? we can‘t. i mean, we‘re doing personal care, we are talking to people that need us to be close because they can‘t hear. testing for front line nhs staff

with covid—19 symptoms also began over the weekend, so those self isolating as a precaution can get back to work. in spain, 12,000 health workers have had the virus. we do need this extended to all staff. certainly in general practice at the moment, we are still waiting for testing. so i have lots of doctors contacting me every day, saying that they want to get back to work. surgeon amged el—hawrani became one of the first front line doctors in the uk to die at the weekend, after contracting coronavirus in leicester. doctors are calling for all medics to be eligible for full death in service if something happens to them during the outbreak. the welsh government has freed up £1 billion to spend on supporting businesses and public services. this fund will help businesses to survive the coronavirus challenge, so they are ready, when we come out on the other side of this, to go on providing jobs and futures here in wales. and this help is over

and above the support schemes there are nearly 20,000 cases of covid—19 in the uk. as we go into our second week of life inside the government adviser offered a glimmer of hope when he said new hospital admissions are slowing down. but, we are warned, it will be many more months before we can even think of life getting back to normal. some used to bring you from nhs england, these are the figures for coronavirus for england. these see a further 159 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths in england to 1284. they give a breakdown of where those deaths have occurred and they seem to be by and large, the

larger numbers in the london area but also in the west midlands. those are the new figures for england today. let‘s get more from our political correspondent nick eardley. the latest figures and also today downing street are talking about a new way of publishing the data of people who have died, tell us about that. the figures we talk about daily at the moment come from hospital deaths, across the uk scotland, wales, england and northern ireland, people who have been diagnosed coronavirus who die, are part of those figures but what we are going to get weekly now is figures that also included deaths in the community got people who have not gone to hospital who have died in some circumstances, that could be

retrospective testing, so once someone died checking whether they had coronavirus. the hope is that will give the nhs and the government more of a complete picture of exactly how many people are dying from this disease. the issue of testing and the availability of testing kits continues to be a controversial subject that keeps dogging the government because doctors and ultimately doesn‘t say they don‘t have enough. there has been some confusion over how many tests have been done, the government at the weekend spoke at that meeting their short—term target of 10,000 tests each day but public health england saying only 9000 had been done. the discrepancy is between how many have been done and how many can be done potentially, not quite, the capacity is over 10,000 now, the government says, not quite that amount have been done, however. more broadly, the issue of

testing is one we are hearing a lot about from a number of different quarters because the more people that are tested in and out of hospital, then more people the government knows whether either can be at work potentially have to go to hospital and require further medical attention. there is lots of pressure on the government to try and ramp up that figure. the figure the government wants to reach is 25,000 each day, that is less than some european countries, more than others. but do we keep hearing both from people in the nhs, world health organization, and some in politics as well, imploring the government to try and get as many tests done as possible, firstly, for medical reasons, to figure out who has the condition. we know many doctors and nurses are self isolating at home because some people in their

household perhaps have symptoms. if you could test them and figure out they are negative and send them back to work. there is also some political pressure to try and bring the figure more broadly. the former health secretaryjeremy hunt saying today on the bbc if you could have amassed testing of the whole population, if you knew who was negative for coronavirus or who had already had it, that could allow you to lift some restrictions, although some people to get back to work and some people to get back to work and some parts of the economy to start ramping up again. we are not there yet. the government is trying to increase its capacity to get to that 25,000 each day figure. as you also heard in that piece, the message from health experts is that the more people you can test the more you know about this virus and the more you can control exactly what‘s going on. many thanks for that. prince charles is out

of self—isolation, a week after it was announced he tested positive for coronavirus. clarence house said the prince of wales is in good health, and is following government advice. his wife, the duchess of cornwall, tested negative for the virus but also spent the period in isolation. a breathing aid that can help keep coronavirus patients out of intensive care has been created in just a few days by engineers at university college london. they‘ve been working with clinicians, and the mercedes formula one team, to develop the device, which delivers oxygen to the lungs without the need for a ventilator. if trials are successful, it could go into mass production, relieving the pressure on intensive care units. fergus walsh reports. it‘s a small device that could make a big difference. known as continuous positive airway pressure, or cpap, it pushes oxygen into the lungs, keeping them open, making it easier to breathe. there are already used in the nhs, but are in short supply,

so a team modified and improved on existing design in less than a week, which has now been approved for use by health regulators. normally, medical device development would take years. in this instance, we‘ve been able to do it in days, because we‘ve cleverly thought about how we can go back to existing devices and models, reverse engineer them and then engage with our industry partners to manufacture them at scale. this demonstration was done at university college london hospital, which is now using the device to treat covid—19 patients. i sincerely think it may actually save many lives by preventing patients from needing to go on to a ventilator, and, again, saving that vital resource for the very, very severely ill. every second counts in motor racing. here, mercedes formula 1 partnered with doctors and health care engineers on a medical device that could be mass produced. this is a great example of how the nhs, universities and industry are working together,

at extraordinary pace, to meet the challenge posed by coronavirus. if the trials of this device go well, then mercedes formula 1 says it can produce up to 1000 of these a day. in italy, around half of covid—19 patients given cpap have avoided the need for intensive care. and, unlike mechanical ventilators, there is no need for them to be sedated. meanwhile, a consortium of companies, including airbus, bae systems, ford and rolls—royce, have joined forces to produce much needed ventilators for the nhs. they‘ve received orders for more than 10,000 ventilators, and are ready to start production, pending regulatory approval. fergus walsh, bbc news. the scottish regional airline loganair has said it will ask the government for emergency financial support. the company has warned it will be impossible for most british airlines

to continue operating without a bailout. easyjet announced this morning that it has grounded its entire fleet. our transport correspondent tom burridge reports. easyjet, the latest airline to park up its entire fleet of aircraft. it can‘t say when commercial flights will run again. aviation has largely ground to a halt and airlines are fighting to survive. then you have a situation where, if you‘re not flying properly during the summer, you are missing a very profitable part of the flying schedule and you would go into the winter where airlines typically are loss—making in a position where you also have potentially much more debt than you expect to have. easyjet will seek government support via existing schemes but not an additional bailout.

virgin atlantic is expected to apply for one of those in the coming days. and the uk‘s largest regionalairline, loganair, which links scottish islands to regional airports, has confirmed it will, too. i think really the magnitude of what we‘re dealing with as an industry here is so significant, i would be very, very surprised if any airline is able to get through this without request for support in some form or other. but cabin crew staff from easyjet and virgin atlantic, who have been temporarily laid off, can now volunteer to work in support roles at three temporary hospitals being set up here in london and in birmingham and manchester. the airlines will continue to pay staff who sign up and they will provide valuable support to the nhs. tom burridge, bbc news. the headlines on bbc news: the uk government insists it‘s

stepping up the testing of nhs workers in england, after calls from doctors‘ leaders for it to be increased. formula one developers join scientists to develop new breathing equipment which can help keep patients out of intensive care. easyjet grounds all its planes, as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects of the pandemic. the government has ordered thousands of ventilators to help ease the pressure on hospitals caused by the coronavirus. for patents who are severely affected by the infection, a ventilator offers the best chance of survival. a consortium of industrial, technology and engineering businesses — including airbus, bae systems and rolls—royce — has come together under the name ventilatorchallengeuk to produce these ventilators at speed, with production starting next week. ben fletcher is director of policy for make uk — an organisation which represents manufacturers. he joins me now from

gravesend in kent. production starting next week, that is speedy, how long before hospitals start getting these ventilators? i think the critical issue all the firms involved are focused on is maker about as short as possible a period of time. i was speaking to one of the firms involved last week and they said that to produce a piece of kit like this is an incredibly complex piece of electronics and engineering, to have something of the scale needed in this critical care centres, you would be talking about a period of time are normally measured in years, so people have come together, drop the normal commercial rivalries in the normal commercial rivalries in the national interest to bring this together and they are working as fast as they can. hard to say precisely when they will be available but with the kind of firepower at those firms have they will look to do it as quickly as

possible and i think there will surprise a lot of people with the speed they get it into the hospitals. it's hospitals. it‘s a question many people will ask, how easy is it for such different industries to turn their hands to making this complex medical equipment? i think it‘s fair to say for some of them this is one of the biggest challenges they will be facing for decades. this is complicated stuff but one of the great things about the consortium that has come together, some of the other people involved in different groups, is they are bringing together different levels of expertise, in this insta nce levels of expertise, in this instance we‘ve got some very big scale manufacturers, some very special is manufacturers with experience of medical devices is a very specialist area and you also have high value manufacturing. one organisation is a fantastic place for academia and business and so on

come together so the best ideas can be disseminated and shared widely. you‘ve got the very best people in industry working on this and with those kind of skills and experience, some of those challenges about moving from one level of expertise to another can be overcome but i would not want to underestimate this isa would not want to underestimate this is a really big task but then this group we have the very best people working on it. that‘s a very good to hear. are there challenges in terms of getting hold of the needed component parts? i think so and one of the things that should not be neglected in the headline announcement is just how many of these firms will also be working with their supply chains and many of them will have supply chains encompassing hundreds and hundreds of medium and smaller businesses. the critical issue right now is lots of thistop relies on sophisticated electronic components and obviously in manufacturing, lots of that is sourced from china and for obvious

reasons there has been real delays in that country‘s ability to produce. also lots comes from northern italy which is, alongside the uk, one of europe‘s‘s big manufacturing houses. by having so many firms involved you have the ability of those firms to help, many of whom are operating at a slower pace on other orders at the moment and have spare components available, spare ability to feed into this. because the british manufacturing sector has come together, what we are hearing is as well as those big names involved at the headline level, they can get their supply chain to help with stuff that is sitting in warehouses that can go into this effort. the other great thing is because we‘ve got a really strong 3d printing capability in the uk which is technically called additive manufacturing, lots of parts can be produced through 3d printing, not necessarily the whole kitsc but tools or elements of the

kitsc but tools or elements of the kits can be made through 3d printing. we have this great consortium underneath the big names you have got an incredible infrastructure which is going to help and that is a fantastic addition to the overall effort. we‘ve seen what expertise and ingenuity can achieve with the news breathing aids has been created by university college london with the help of mercedes formula 1. this goes to the heart of what‘s happening and we are talking about an unprecedented set of circumstances, people are putting aside commercial rivalries and forming alliances that span industry, academia, health care, i conscious, certainly, the government has done a fantasticjob with the commercial team in bringing people together and also industrial groups have taken the initiative and reached out. the medical world has

learned a huge amount already from italy and what we are told is the experience of italian doctors and the learning they have done which is a few weeks ahead of us, has fared into some of those conversations so that we know the things that work in italy and the things that don‘t work and that has fed into some of the wider thinking and that is a good opportunity, so we can capitalise on the fantastic efforts of italian doctors to share their experience. we‘ll have to leave it there. good to talk to you. the travel industry is just one of a number of sectors threatened by the pandemic, with other well—known companies signalling they too are under great pressure. our personal finance correspondent simon gompertz has the latest on companies threatened by the coronavirus. we are talking about brighthouse, and the reason we are particularly worried about them is because it has just been confirmed they are going

into administration, and this is the terrible news 2400 staff have been waiting for and 240 shops that are threatened as well. what has happened is although thousands of people rely on them for their appliances like washing machines and televisions, they have been widely criticised for their charges and they have faced a price cap, so they were losing money after that, they are facing mis—selling claims, and the coronavirus and the blight that has brought to the high street has also hit them, and it has been confirmed they are going into administration. it‘s not entirely clear what will happen to customers as a result, and we will wait to hear what the administrators have to say. the spanish government has told all nonessential workers to stay at home for the next 11 days, as part of a series of tighter restrictions. more than 7,300 people in spain have died. our correspondent, guy hedgecoe, is in madrid and explained what the new measures were.

spain has already been under lockdown for the last two weeks or so and under quite a strict lockdown, whereby you are not allowed to leave your home without a specific reason to do so, whether it is buying food, going to work or buying medicine. as of today, nonessential workers are not allowed to travel to work — they also have to stay home. that is the main novelty. the government has done that because it says it wants to really make sure there is no resurgence or increase in the spread of the virus. it believes, although the latest figures do make for rather harrowing reading — over 800 people died over the past 24 hours because of the virus — despite those figures, the government says the virus is coming to the end of its upward curve and the figures are starting to flatten out, but it wants

to make sure of that with these new measures. the big concern right now is the health service — it is under tremendous pressure and the government believes taking these measures will help relieve that pressure. universities in england could face limits on the number of students they recruit, amid turmoil in the sector. there are fears the uncertainty caused by the coronavirus could leave some universities with too few applicants to stay financially viable. it is understood emergency controls are being considered to stop a free—for—all in student recruitment. two flights bringing british people home from peru have arrived back in the uk. but the foreign office says there may be as many as a million other britons abroad, and many want to get home. they‘re struggling with grounded airlines, restrictions on movement, and businesses closed in shutdowns. caroline hawley reports. this is one of the rescue planes sent to peru to bring stranded british tourists home.

by the end of tomorrow, with specially chartered flights, the government hopes to have about 1000 people back on uk soil. last week some of the most vulnerable of the british travellers in peru were brought home on the first of the evacuation flights. but peru is in a state of emergency and some tourists are still stuck in remote places. to make it worse, there are coronavirus cases in some of the hostels where british people are staying. we will have two more british airways flights flying back from lima to london, bringing british nationals back to the uk, back to their friends and families. it is now a week since the foreign office advised all british tourists abroad to head home. hundreds of thousands have somehow made it back, mostly on commercial flights. but many people are still stuck in india, australia, new zealand and in almost every corner of the globe. the foreign office minister today estimated there are a million people abroad, many now scrambling to get back.

this doctor is in cape town. her husband is a trauma surgeon. they are keen to return in the fight against coronavirus. it is very frustrating, particularly around a time of... obviously, we saw the situation deteriorating and tried to get out. by the time we tried to get out, the flights were booked. we are not receiving updates on what is being done. we do appreciate it can take time to arrange these things but we are in the dark and not being told anything. and imagine how it feels on this cruise ship, where four people have already died of coronavirus. healthy passengers were transferred over the weekend to another cruise liner. they‘re hoping to make it to florida, where the british people on board will have to attempt to find flights. as desperation grows among those stranded far from home, new measures to help are expected to be announced within the next couple of days.

now it‘s time for a look at the weather with louise lear. good afternoon. subtle differences to the weather over the next few days. today it has been sunny spells and scattered showers, most frequent to the east but some farther inland. this evening and overnight, showers feed, winds ease, clearing skies, most favoured spots in south—east and east anglia. chilly start for some but that is where the best of the sunshine is likely to be. that will not last as claude develops through the day. for many it will be breezy, plenty of cloud, scattered showers, mostly in the far north and west. subtle difference tomorrow is later winds across the country generally. still cool but noticeably lighter in comparison to the weekend. that might make it feel

just that little bit more pleasant if you are heading out for a brief sport or exercise. that is it, take care. “— sport or exercise. that is it, take care. —— brief spots of exercise.

hello this is bbc news. i‘m reeta chakrabarti. the headlines... the government insists it‘s ramping up testing for nhs workers, as doctors‘ leaders warn the shortage of tests has caused serious problems for the health service. formula one developers join scientists to make new breathing equipment which can help keep patients out of intensive care. easyjet grounds all its planes, as the aviation industry struggles to cope with the effects of the pandemic. in the us, president trump extends restrictions on movement till the end of april, as the number of cases there continues to rise sharply. a minute‘s silence is held in madrid for victims of coronavirus — as spain‘s death tolljumps to 7,340

— a rise of 812 in 24 hours. president trump has said restrictions imposed because of coronavirus will be in place across the us until at least the end of april. he had previously said that he hoped to relax the measures at easter. the government‘s medical adviser, dr anthony fauci, has warned the virus could kill up to 200,000 americans. paul adams reports. cheering and applause. as this global pandemic spreads, waves of gratitude are quick to follow. other cities have already thanked their health workers, but this is new york, a deafening chorus of appreciation echoing down the manhattan‘s misty canyons. but there is disquiet, too. nurses and doctors say they don‘t have enough protective equipment, told to wear masks notjust for one

patient but for up to five days. it‘s putting all of us in danger because we are reusing masks that should never be reused, we are running out of so many things, other protective equipment. with america‘s city streets increasingly deserted, the prospects of a swift return to normality are fading. officials are now warning of as many as 200,000 american fatalities. if we can hold that down, as we're saying, to 100,000, it's a horrible number, maybe even less, but to 100,000, so we have between 100,000 and 200,000, we altogether have done a very good job. but with the virus and the lockdown comes mounting economic hardship. new york‘s busy foodbanks now inundated with newcomers. people deprived in the blink of an eye of the ability to put food on their tables. in new orleans, before dawn, this emergency room doctor prepares for another long shift in a nearby hospital. he says he is not used to seeing so many people not recovering.

instead, they have gotten worse while they've been in the hospital and in fact, many of them have passed away already, in a way that's... it's not normal. a vast hospital ship is now moored off los angeles, helping to relieve the pressure on california. the mercy has 1000 beds for non—coronavirus patients. america‘s most populous state is now bracing for difficulties. earlier i spoke to cbs correspondent david begnaud on the latest on the situation in new york. it is arguably the hardest hit area in the country, and hospitals are doing everything they can to answer the call of the governor to do more. you have a hospital known

as mount sinai, who is setting up tents in central park to treat people who are afflicted with the coronavirus. i‘m personally speaking with icu nurses who are saying, "i still don‘t have the masks that i need." i spoke with one woman who said, "i‘ve been using the same mask for the last four days." she said, "i hang it up every time i leave work, i spray some lysol on it and i come back and i reuse the mask." the disconnect seems to be with what we‘re hearing from the frontline workers, from the governor and the mayor, and the president. the president says, the supplies are arriving by the planeload — tonnes and tonnes and tonnes, and he doesn‘t understand how they don‘t have enough. but the frontline workers are saying, regardless of what the president is saying, "i‘m telling you..." i had an icu nurse that said there were four people treating one patient who ended up dying of coronavirus, and not one of them had the mask that they needed. four. they didn‘t stop working, they did what was required, but they are begging that they get those masks. more than 110 countries

and territories around the world have now put in place widespread restrictions on the movement of their citizens. schools have closed and businesses have been forced to stop working. there are, though, still large differences in the approach that some countries have been taking as jim reed reports. so, it‘s vital to slow the spread of the disease. stay at home. it will break the chain of transmission, and it will save lives. a quarter of the world is now living under some form of lockdown. 3 billion people have been told to stay at home. in most of europe, day—to—day life has stopped. in the north of italy, hospitals are still struggling to cope. it‘s three weeks now since the start of the world‘s full national lockdown. the street is completely deserted. on a sunday afternoon, usually there would be certainly lots of people.

translation: it's a special emergency situation. everyone of us has a responsibility to do our bit so we mustn't approach each other. in northern europe, similar measures are now in force. in the united kingdom, any social gathering is now banned. the public has been ordered to stay at home with only a few exceptions. so this is what a lockdown looks like in the south of london. you are allowed to go out for essential needs, so i have been in the house for a couple of days now, about to go out to the big supermarket. they now restrict the number of people in the building at any one time so the queue to get in goes round there. and finishes there. there are differences, though. in sweden, schools, cafes and bars have stayed open, at least for the moment. in the united states, meanwhile, some individual states are moving faster than others. the sooner we get back to normal, the better, but obviously that‘s up to the experts. even the president has

to listen to those people and hopefully he‘ll do that. new york state still makes up around half of all cases nationally. broadway theatres and schools have been shut, residents have been ordered to stay at home. in asia, 1.3 billion indians have been told to stay indoors for 21 days. the government is desperate to stop the virus spreading in its huge cities. translation: no one is helping us. people are scared to give us a ride because of the virus. the police are also asking for our identity cards. in other countries, though, rigorous infection tracking has allowed life to go on. in singapore, the streets are busy and the shops open. it‘s closed its borders but there is no lockdown. here, a heat sensitive camera takes your temperature before you are allowed to enter an apartment building or restaurant. i feel very fortunate, we‘re living in a place like this. in this moment. because most of my friends and family members, they don‘t

have the luxury to contemplate the idea of going out for a drink. in china, meanwhile, the number of new hospital infections in the city where the outbreak began has slowed to a trickle. and the residents of wuhan are now being allowed to walk the streets again. translation: for us, the news about lifting the lockdown is like the biggest recognition for us staying at home for more than two months. it‘s a positive sign, a relaxation of restrictions in a world that elsewhere has been shutting itself down. stay with us from the daily news briefing from downing street, coming up briefing from downing street, coming up shortly with ben brown but now it is time for the sport. we start with the new dates announced for the tokyo olympics. the rescheduled games will start on

23rd ofjuly 2021 and run until 8th of august. that after being postponed for a year because of the coronavirus pandemic. the olympics will still be called tokyo 2020, despite taking place in 2021. the decision on dates was made by the ioc‘s executive board, who met on monday. meanwhile, the paralympics will start now on the 24th august. some athletes have expressed concern that the postponement may harm their chances of participating next year. they may just not they mayjust not be able to make the new dates, because prolonging their careers by a year, if they we re their careers by a year, if they were planning on using tokyo as the last event in their career, itjust might not be possible for them to make it, and of course this does mean that there will be new qualification and new selection events, so some athletes who were on track to make the games this summer, they will have to go through trials this time next year instead. so a

lot of athletes, this will mean perhaps that they don‘t make it, but the decision has been made to protect the athletes, so i would imagine, and we have already seen some welcoming this decision and the 78 provides but it will be a popular decision to have moved it by a year to replicate what they would have had this summer. lionel messi and the rest of his barcelona team—mates have accepted a 70 per cent pay cut and pledged donations to help the club‘s staff continue to receive their full wages during the coronavirus pandemic. over 7000 people have died in spain because of covid—19. dillian whyte‘s heavyweight fight against alexander povetkin has been postponed, with the british boxing board of control suspending all events until the end of may because of the coronavirus outbreak. the fight was originally scheduled to take place on 2nd may, but will now take place on 4thjuly at the manchester arena. world champion billy joe saunders has had his boxing licence suspended by the british boxing board of control after he released a video

advising men how to hit theirfemale partners. in the video, saunders uses a punch bag referring to domestic violence. he later apologised, saying he would "never condone domestic violence". promoter eddie hearn said he is "appalled" by the "idiotic" video. some sad news from the world of cricket and lancashire cricket club have this afternoon announced the death of their chairman david hodgkiss. he died after contracting coronavirus. hodgkiss, who had underlying health issues, had been chairman since 2017 after almost two decades on the club‘s board. the county released a statement saying, "he was much loved by everyone at lancashire and respected throughout the cricketing world." manchester united and england forward marcus rashford says helping children is his top priority at the moment, after working to get

food to those who relied on free school meals. rashford has been working with charity fareshare to help children in the north west after schools were closed across the country due to the coronavirus pandemic. when i heard about the school is shutting down, and that obviously means free meals for some kids that they are not getting at school. i was in school, i was on free meals and my mum wouldn‘t get around until six o‘clock, so my next meal would have been around eight o‘clock. but i was fortunate. so there are kids in much more difficult situations that don‘t get that meal at home, so basically when i heard the schools we re basically when i heard the schools were closing, i wanted to try and make a positive influence and make sure these kids were getting the meals that they need. we managed to get to the hundred thousand mark, which means we get to feed 400,000 children. an injured right now, so for me it isjust children. an injured right now, so for me it is just about patients. i

do feel a lot, like, ten times better than how i did feel in a month, a month and a half, and also things are moving in the right direction. great gesture from marcus rashford. that‘s all the sport for now. we will see you again this evening, goodbye.

welcome to this bbc news special, as the lockdown enters its second week, we will be bringing you the daily press co nfe re nce we will be bringing you the daily press conference from downing street as soon as we get it but let‘s first of all take a look at today‘s main div elements. the death toll from coronavirus in the uk has now risen to more than 1400. it comes as the government insists it is ramping up its capacity to test health and social care workers for the virus, amid confusion over whether it has reached its target, set for yesterday at 10,000 tests a day. doctors leaders has warned shortage of tests has quality responds for the health service. this afternoon downing street has said that over 900 front line nhs staff were tested for the virus over the weekend. that is in addition to tests being carried out in a clinical setting.

it comes