this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. with nearly a quarter of a million confirmed coronavirus cases in the us, america's health watchdog says people should wear face masks when they go out, but the president doesn't seem to agree. so, with the masks, it's going to be really a voluntary thing. you can do it, you don't have to do it. i'm choosing not to do it but some people may want to do it and that is 0k. as governments around reiterate the need for people to stay in lockdown, to prevent the virus spreading still further. we cannot relax our discipline now. if we do, people will die. police in paris step up spot checks to prevent people heading out

of town for the traditional easter break and taking the virus with them. battling the virus in asia's biggest slum, where social distancing, is virtually impossible. i know tomorrow, i'm going to be a doctor on the ward. how fans across the world are turning to a fictional doctor to help them cope with the stress of isolation. hello and welcome to audiences in the uk and around the world. we're covering all the latest coronavirus developments here in britain and globally. donald trump has announced that us health officials have put forward new advice to help slow the spread of the coronavirus,

recommending that people a wear face covering in public. speaking in the last half hour, mr trump said the guidance was based on research indicating that the virus could be spread by people not showing symptoms of the disease. today, also, the cdc has announced additional steps americans can take to defend against the transmission of the virus. from recent studies, we know that the transmission from individuals without symptoms displaying a more significant role in the spread of the virus and previously understood. so you don't seem to have symptoms but it still gets transferred. in light of these studies, the cdc is advising the use of non—medical cloth face coverings as an additional voluntary public health measure. so, it is voluntary, you don't have to do it. now suggesting it for a period of time. but, this is voluntary. i don't think i'm going to be doing it. lets cross over to washington and speak to our north america correspondent aleem maqbool.

different parts of the world have a different view of this. what is the thinking of scientist in america? as you say, this has been discussed all over the world but the cdc actually came out over recent weeks and the chief medical officer here as well said people should not wear masks. the feeling was that it would potentially make people more safe than they were. people would touch theirface as than they were. people would touch their face as they adjusted their mask all the time and it could endanger them. now, they say that because, as you rightly said in your introduction, because they have got more evidence they say that people who don't have symptoms can still carry the virus, can still spread the virus, that is why they are now encouraging people. but as you heard there from the president, on a volu nta ry there from the president, on a voluntary basis, to cover their face with a cloth mask. but the president again said that was something he was

not going to do and you can get a sense, just that one line, on one hand, he said it was something that was being advised but on the other hand, he said it was something that he was not going to do. the confusion that the reason among many americans about what they should be doing. on one hand, over recent weeks, the president has been talking about social distancing and yet almost every date, he appears on that briefing platform with lots of other people who are within the safe space. you know, we've heard talk that people shouldn't be shaking hands and yet he was doing that in the early days. he has been handing out pens after doing signings in the oval office. so a lot of people are getting mixed messages and that is why there has been a lot of criticism of the president for saying one thing and doing another stop this time though, it is volu nta ry stop this time though, it is voluntary the advice that the cdc is issuing but that is a decision this

body, the center for disease control and prevention so following on this issue now. thank you very much. stay at home and protect lives — that's the clear warning from the england's health secretary matt hancock, who says it's not a request but an instruction to the british people to beat the coronavirus. with warm weather expected this weekend, he says any relaxation of social distancing rules will mean more people will die. the number of dead has risen by 684 in one 2a hour period. here's our health editor, hugh pym. aimee o'rourke, one of two nurses who've lost their lives to covid—i9. tributes were paid today to their bravery, including at the downing street press conference, and there was this morning to the public from the health secretary. we cannot relax our discipline now. if we do — people will die. so, i end with the advice that we all know.

this advice is not a request, it is an instruction. stay at home, protect lives, and then you will be doing your part. it was the same message from borisjohnson, still in self—isolation. in my own case, although i'm feeling better and i've done my seven days of isolation, alas i still have one of the symptoms, a minor symptom, i still have a temperature. everybody may be getting a bit stir crazy and there may be just a temptation to get out there, hang out and start to break the regulations and ijust urge you not to do that. earlier, there was an unusual official opening of the newest nhs hospital. the key players keeping their distance at fixed points, the moment marked by a royal video contribution. perhaps i could invite nightingale's head of nursing, natalie grey, on my behalf, to unveil the plaque to declare nhs nightingale hospital open.

applause. in less than two weeks, huge empty exhibition halls have been transformed into specialist hospital wards for covid—i9 patients. the hospital is ready for new patients. it had been thought the first group would've arrived by today but london's hospitals have built up enough extra capacity to cope with the caseload at this stage. so, the nightingale won't be needed until next week. good, i'm glad you got the protective clothing... getting things done is the message the government wants to convey, but matt hancock, meeting staff in training at the nightingale, has faced claims he hasn't done enough on testing for the virus. having set a target of 25,000 tests a day, which slipped to later this month, he's now come up with a hugely increased figure of 100,000 by the end of april, including many more done by academic and industrial laboratories. where are the tests going to come from, who's going to do them?

itjust hasn't really been explained, you haven't given any detail. well, we have. i set out a five—point plan yesterday. the first stage is the expansion of the testing capacity within the nhs and with public health england, who are doing an amazing job. and then, also, the next stage is to bring in the private sector companies, the existing testing companies. testing nhs staff helps get more of them back to work quickly. the scottish government is increasing facilities like this. this expansion of testing capacity means, amongst other things, that we will be able to test more key workers with every day that passes. however, in addition to increasing capacity within nhs scotland, we are also working with the uk government and other partners to further increase testing capacity beyond that. the nhs needs all the protective clothing and ventilators it can get and 350,000 items arrived

from shanghai today. virgin atlantic working with guy's and st thomas hospital trust. there was a virtual graduation ceremony for doctors at the university of bristol today. it happened early so they could move straight to the nhs front line, where they'll certainly be needed in the months ahead. hugh pym, bbc news. the british government has set itself the target of a 100,000 tests per day for the coronavirus, by the end of the month. our science editor, david shukman looks at the two different types of test, and what they may tell us, about the pandemic. the government is under relentless pressure over why more testing isn't happening. so, why does that matter in the struggle against coronavirus, and what are the different tests involved 7 the first kind of testing is the most urgent, because it's to try to find out who actually has the infection. this is done with a swab inside the mouth and throat to look for clues about the virus. this is really important

for patients in hospital, because if they're infected, that will determine the course of their treatment. it's also vital for healthcare workers and many others, because if they've got mild symptoms that turn out to be negative, then they can go back to work. and longer—term, relaxing measures like social distancing will all depend on working out who's got the infection and who hasn't. testing for the virus is now being scaled up, and scientists say that without it, we simply can't tackle the pandemic. it's like trying to fight with almost both hands tied behind your back. it means you're always responding a little bit after the effect. we're not really able to work out the extent, we're not able to plan as well as we could do, if we had more information. the second type of testing is to look for evidence that you've had the virus in the past. this involves a blood test — just a pinprick on the finger — to look for antibodies,

a sign of your own response to infection. now, this should help answer the question about whether you have immunity — having had the virus and then recovered, and that would allow you to return to work. but how long would that immunity last? months? years? at this moment, no—one can be sure. the hope is that the public will eventually get tests to see