this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. the number of coronavirus patients who've died in hospital in the uk rises to almost fifteen and a half thousand. it comes as the uk government accepts that some personal protective equipment is in short hello this is bbc news supply and says it's doing the headlines everything it can to bring in more. the number of coronavirus patients who've died in hospital in the uk rises to almost fifteen we've got to do more to get the ppe and a half thousand. it comes as the uk government that people need to the front lines. accepts that some personal this is an extremely challenging protective equipment is in short supply and says it's doing situation. everything it can to bring in more. an extra 1.6 billion pounds for councils across england so they can protect essential services during the pandemic — there's also extra cash we've got to do more to get the ppe for scotland wales and northern ireland. that people need to the front line. doctors injapan warn that the country's medical system could collapse amid a rising number this is an extremely challenging situation. of coronavirus cases. as coronavirus cases in moscow rise, an extra 1.6 billion pounds ambulances queue for more for councils across england than nine hours to drop so they can protect essential

patients at hospital. services during the pandemic — there's also extra cash for scotland wales and northern and in the midst of ireland. the pandemic — police in hong doctors injapan warn kong arrest 15 high profile that the country's medical system democracy activists and lawmakers — after last yea r‘s protests. could collapse amid a rising number we'll be speaking to the former of coronavirus cases as coronavirus cases in moscow rise, governor of hong kong lord patten ambulances queue for more than nine hours to drop patients at hospital. and in the midst of the pandemic — police in hong kong arrest 15 high profile democracy activists and lawmakers — after last yea r‘s protests and now on bbc news, victoria derbyshire has more information and health advice on the coronavirus outbreak, in this special programme. hello and welcome to audiences in the uk and around the world. we're covering all the latest coronavirus developments, both here and globally. first — more than 15 thousand people in the uk have now died in hospital from coronavirus —with 888 new deaths recorded in the last 2a hours. that grim number doesn't include people who have died in care homes hello and welcome to this special programme. or in the community in england and northern ireland.

it comes as the communities secretary robert jenrick said 84 tonnes of personal protective equipment, or ppe, is due to arrive in the uk tomorrow from turkey. ministers have been coming under intense pressure about the shortage of ppe for medical staff, with doctors' unions criticising new guidelines released yesterday which advise hospitals to re—use some items where appropriate. mrjenrick also said local councils in england will be given extra funding of one—point—six billion pounds, to tackle the coronavirus pandemic. there will be extra funds for the other uk nations through the barnett formula. elsewhere, doctors injapan have warned that the country's medical system could collapse amid a wave of new coronavirus cases. and in spain, deaths from covid—19 have exceeded twenty thousand, making it the third country after the united states and italy to surpass the figure. but first, with the latest in the uk, here's our health correspondent dominic hughes. john coker, a detective constable for british transport police who

leaves a wife and three children. retired paediatrician judith darmady, founder of a children's charity, awarded an obe, who dedicated her life to the care of others. two of more than 15,000 deaths caused by covid—i9. it is hitting families across the country, but the really sad thing for people is when someone dies, they are dying alone. it is a bad way to go. they are feeling alone, probably scared, and their family are not able to console them, not able to know how it happens. and, as someone said, after all of this is over, there are going to be many stories required to be told by nhs staff who were the last people with loved ones as they died. more lives are being saved than lost, but medical staff are worried they are being put at risk because of a continuing

shortage of personal protective equipment, ppe, especially gowns worn when treating the sickest patients. as hospitals face the possibility of running out of some kit, public health england changed its guidance. some gowns could be reserved for the most high—risk procedures, or staff could reuse washable clothing. and today, a promise that fresh supplies are on the way. 84 tonnes of equipment, including 400,000 gowns. we are trying to do everything we can to get the equipment that we need. we are trying to source more internationally. that is difficult at times. there is a great deal of demand for it. and the security of that supply can prove challenging. but we are making progress bar. but we are making progress there. but medical workers are anxious about where this leaves them. a&e doctor nick works directly with covid—i9 patients. back on shift tomorrow, he does not know how much ppe will be available.

there are apprehensions about, you know, what might there be, what might there not be, or how much has deteriorated and changed. and especially when we see the news reports now saying that stocks may be close to zero, nationally, it is really worrying, especially being on the front line. we have to do what we do, and it comes with the job. it would just be good if, you know, we were adequately protected. the new guidance is in line with world health organization advice, and hospital managers are facing a global shortage of ppe. we have to really focus on what we can do because there is a shortage of gowns. in that situation, following world health organization guidelines has to be the way that we go. they are saying that if other stocks are not available, this is the way to go and this is safe to use. the new guidance only applies when ppe stocks are running low. the picture across the uk is mixed. but the patience of health—care

workers is also in short supply. dominic hughes, bbc news. doctors injapan are warning that the country's medical system could collapse because of a new wave of coronavirus cases. japan initially appeared to have the virus under control but there has been a recent surge and there are now more than ten thousand confirmed cases. reged ahmad reports. a much quieter tokyo in the wake of the state of emergency declared by the government. japan had its first recorded covid—i9 infection injanuary, and, since then, the government has been criticised for not giving enough to prepare for an increase. now, medical associations say the outbreak is reducing japan's ability to treat other serious medical emergencies, even strokes. it is understood one patient with a fever was turned away by 80 medical facilities before

he was accepted by a tokyo hospital. like many countries, doctors are complaining of a lack of protective equipment as well. critics have taken aim at the prime minister, saying he has delayed restrictions in favour of the economy. shinzo abe says he is trying to effectively reduce people to people contact. translation: people out on weekdays in city areas like shibuya in tokyo have been reduced by 60%. in umeda in osaka, it's been reduced by about 70%. but we have not yet reached our target level. japan is facing a new wave of infections, and with it, a push to increase relatively low testing levels. it now remains to be seen if the country has done enough quickly enough to protect its medical system and head off a major outbreak. councils across england

will receive anotheri point 6 billion pounds in additional funding from the government as they continue to respond to the coronavirus pandemic. the announcement from the local government secretary came after council leaders warned they may have to consider "extreme" measures to cut costs. this report from our political correspondent, nick eardley. closed, like many parts of the country. councilfacilities have been shut, starving local authorities of cash, just as they face extra pressure to pay for things like social care, and to support vulnerable communities through the crisis. this afternoon the government said it would make extra money available for councils in england. today, i'm providing an additional £1.6 billion of new funding to support councils. we are backing councils to make sure vital services such as adult social care, children's services, support for the most vulnerable, and waste collection,

continue, despite the increased pressures. there will be extra cash to spend in scotland, wales and northern ireland, too, but money is being spent quickly. council leaders say a similar amount of emergency funding announced last month has already gone. everyone will have spent the first tranche of cash in one or two months, and i don't think anyone thinks this crisis is only going to last that amount of time so councils will start to either go bankrupt or will have to start heavily rationing services. this is another reminder of the massive economic impact the shutdown is having, both on individuals and communities, and the bill the government is facing is mounting, with huge amounts of money already promised to businesses and to try and keep people injobs. but with those extra pressures on local authorities, and fears that some won't be able to pay their council tax compounding the funding problem, some fear the extra money announced

today will not be enough. the streets being cleaned this afternoon may be quieter but important local services continue. in one way or another they have to be paid for. well, earlier i spoke to nick eardley about all of this — he told me that at that government press conference this afternoon, there was question after question, about personal protective equipment for medics. public of england responsible for this having toward nurses and doctors that they may have to reuse some single use ppe. mounting pressure on the government hear about that, but what we always get from ministers are big figures. millions and millions of pieces of ppe being shipped across the country every day. but in truth, the issue seems to be very inconsistent. if you speak to some hospitals and some local council areas, they have

enough ppe and they are all fine with no shortages. but there are areas where it is not going through properly and the government still hasn't answered all the questions on that. and it's only to start hearing that. and it's only to start hearing that that these are going to continue. the talk about parks and funerals. two things that we are use to. a controversy in london with parks being far too busy on the weekend. everyone gets their daily exercise may go to the park rather than into the centre of town. it is a strange paradox review garon central london, it is empty. if you go to the parks and peripheries, it is really busy. so assumptive close, the community minister could absolutely say that is not going to happen. keep your parks open because people need them although obviously, echoing that message of social distancing, stay two metres apart. funerals of been really

controversial. we have heard anecdotal stories about people not being allowed to attend funerals not being allowed to attend funerals not being allowed to attend funerals not being allowed into other events when somebody dies. the clear message from the government is that it is not to happen. graveyards are to stay open and close family members are allowed to attend funerals. but again, social distancing measures need to stay in place. now away from coronavirus, fifteen prominent members of hong kong's democracy movement have been arrested for organising illegal protests last year, in what's being seen as a fresh attack on anti—government activists. britain has expressed its concern over the arrests, calling the right to peaceful protest fundamental to hong kong's way of life. earlier this week beijing's most senior official in the city called for a new security law to deal with dissent. david campanale has more. it's the biggest crackdown on the democracy movement since the outbreak of mass protests last year.

those detained in a coordinated swoop by the police include several who have, for decades, been important figures in hong kong's campaign for greater freedom. among them, the 81—year—old barrister martin lee, known in the territory as the father of democracy. translation: i am proud to have had the chance to walk along our road to democracy with hong kong's excellent young people. the publishing tycoon jimmy lai was also arrested. he runs the apple daily newspaper which is frequently critical of the hong kong and chinese communist leadership. the detentions relates to a series of anti—government protests last year. the first of these was attended by 1.7 million hong kong citizens. the authorities have not said why it is the high—profile figures,

among them former members of the legislative council, who have been targeted for detention. peaceful protest is protected in both the joint declaration between britain and china and the basic law. but hong kong police maintain that the rounding up of the suspects is simply the impartial application of the law. translation: they were arrested on charges of organising and participating in unlawful assembly at hong kong island and kowloon on the 18th of august, the 1st of october and the 20th of october 2019. before the coronavirus outbreak, hong kong had witnessed almost weekly demonstrations for greater democracy and less control from beijing. over recent days, chinese officials seeing the city have been making increasingly belligerent noises. some think beijing is worried about losing ground in local

elections later this year. in this climate, it is hard not to see this coordinated series of arrests as anything less than a warning of beijing's's intention to tighten its grip on hong kong. i'm joined now by chris patten, who served as the last governor of hong kong and oversaw its transfer to china. in1987, in 1987, china guaranteed to you in the uk that hong kong's freedom for the uk that hong kong's freedom for the next 50 years of one country to systems. we are only 23 years into that 50 years. china appears to be dismantling that guarantee. do you look back and feel that you were hoodwinked? i think the world was hoodwinked? i think the world was hoodwinked and the people of hong kong were hoodwinked. dictatorship.

by kong were hoodwinked. dictatorship. by using the cover. china very concerned and how to deal with the covid—19 epidemic. concerned and how to deal with the covid-19 epidemic. your line has cracked up a little bit. we will see if we can reestablish better contact. if we can reestablish better co nta ct. we if we can reestablish better contact. we did get the first sentence. we will try to reestablish contact. now let's take a look at some of the main stories around the world. spain's prime minister pedro sanchez says he will begin to relax the rules ordering children to stay indoors by the end of this month. but he will also ask for the state of emergency set up in response to the pandemic to be extended by another fortnight. more than twenty thousand people have died after contracting the virus in spain and officialfigures suggest one person in every 250 has been infected. some parts of america have begun easing social

distancing restrictions, including city beaches in florida which re—opened on friday. elsewhere, demonstrations have continued — tacitly encouraged by president trump — against the measures. hundreds of people gathered in austin, the capital of texas, to demand the reopening of the economy. there's been concern that lifting the restrictions too early could lead to more people becoming infected. orthodox christians have been celebrating easter in the middle east — transporting the holy fire from the church of the holy sepulchre in jerusalem, to bethlehem. the ceremony, which is considered as a miracle in the religion, took place despite the lockdown, which prevented any crowds from gathering to watch. a global concert to support frontline healthcare workers and the world health organisation to raise funds for equipment to help fight the spread of the coroanvirus is being televised and live—streamed around the world. the one world together at home features a range of musicians performing from their homes. the pre—show for the gig, which has been pulled together by lady gaga, is currently underway, while the main event takes place later. among the artists who will perform

are the rolling stones, stevie wonder, billie eilish, paul mccartney and the concert pianist lang lang, who spoke to us earlier. it will make the musicians are talking about their absolutely the best of their field. i do not think it is hard to find the position because piano has good reaching effo rts because piano has good reaching efforts so you can really fit into the instrument and voice. let's speak to our entertainment correspondent colin paterson. the singers have decided that we need a get singsong. this is not a singsong event. this is to raise awareness of the work of front—line workers were working against covid—19, those health care, those who are working in the care sector, those were working in shops and what they're doing for the public in general, just looking away from the

tv set and watch the first hour and 20 minutes of the warm up show and a virus into members of one direction to solo tracks. these concerts when we see them, they usually require huge life audiences to give them a kind of atmosphere the mid—80s. you must remember that as well. how can this really work without a massive audience that they can serve or enjoy? i do not think it will have the lasting residence of the live aid. we think of that, you think of freddie mercury and stage of wembley. looking at peoples living rooms, when are people going to perform? the rooms, when are people going to perform ? the oscar winners rooms, when are people going to perform? the oscar winners and sinkers, very balding went to sing memory from cats despite the critical mauling of god. she performed in a guitar room with guitars around and andy lambert seems to be singing a cover version

of matt world from the middle of his pot plant collection. one thing realised is that we do not want new songs, we want to belt out the old favourites, the one set up and our friends for years and years, are they doing this that favour? he just under the dreaded words, here is my new single. but then you do get a good production of matt world. the fa ke good production of matt world. the fake names when we lived in the night. when in the uk time and it is life on us totally across all three major networks. paul mccartney, sir eltonjohn. major networks. paul mccartney, sir elton john. one suggestion from the team, don't stand so close to me by the police. any suggestions you from the police. any suggestions you from the playlist? hopefully no one will suggest you better walk alone. thank you forjoining us.

if you're in the uk and miss the concert, the bbc is showing a special highlights programme. it will air on bbc one from 7.15 pm british standard time on sunday. it will include extra performances from british artists like little mix, sir tom jones and rag ‘n' bone man and additional footage will also be available on bbc iplayer. vladimir putin has warned russians that, as the number of coronavirus cases rises, covid—19 continues to pose a high risk to his country. russia has seen its biggest daily increase in the number of confirmed coronavirus cases, up nearly 5 thousand from yesterday. our moscow correspondent steve rosenberg has this report. rarely has moscow felt so calm. bells chime. so quiet. so empty. in lockdown, a city of 12 million people so peaceful. but not everywhere.

on the edge of moscow, ambulances queue outside a hospital that's treating covid—19. the crews had to wait more than nine hours to bring in their patients. this is a health system under pressure. at another facility, doctors are preparing for their shift in the coronavirus ward. with moscow the epicenter of the outbreak, the hospital is already overcapacity. but its head doctor is used to emergencies — he was a paramedic in chernobyl. translation: the pressure on us has increased. we're getting around 150 new patients every day. we're not at breaking point yet, but we're getting close. when georgiy got sick with suspected coronavirus and was struggling to breathe, twice he called for an ambulance, but none came. the system was overloaded.

translation: when i did get to hospital, it was like watching a conveyor belt — ambulances constantly coming and going, bringing in new patients. the strain on the system is close to catastrophic. i decided to go back home. most of the patients were sicker than me. but coronavirus isn'tjust a medical challenge. it is a political one too. in the 20 years he has been in power, vladimir putin has never faced the challenge of this magnitude. a virus, an invisible enemy that is totally threatening lives, but the entire russian economy. and with it, the image that vladimir putin has been keen to cultivate, mr stability. the epidemic has already forced the president to postpone the annual may ninth victory day parade on red square. huge celebrations for the 75th anniversary of the end of world war ii now on hold.

and in moscow, the lockdown is tightening. to use a car or public transport, you now need a digital permit. the aim, to slow the spread of the virus by keeping more muscovites off the streets. i'm joined now by lord chris patten, who served as the last governor of hong kong and oversaw its transfer to china. we spoke to you over a dodgy line earlier. i will ask you if we have been hoodwinked by china's promise of 50 years of hong kong freedom. been hoodwinked by china's promise of 50 years of hong kong freedomlj think of 50 years of hong kong freedom.” think the chinese government has taken the pandemic as, as a cover to

apply the screws to hong kong. iamso i am so sorry, this is another reasonably hard line, but i will persevere. what is to stop china from doing what it wants now in hong kong? well, the tickets were to take its word is something we can depend on. the case this epidemic there were issues raised from china covering it up issues raised from china covering it up in the beginning. but if they can be trusted on hong kong, where can we trusted? the answer is nowhere. taking part in demonstrations. we

must stop it there, thank you so much for speaking to us. please do stay everyone with bbc news. captain tom moore will be the guest of honour at the opening of a new nightingale hospital in yorkshire next week. the 99—year—old war veteran will appear by video—link. it was announced today that the twenty—three—million—pounds raised by captain tom would be used to buy food parcels and counselling sessions for nhs staff. the chairman of nhs charities together said the money would also go towards electronic tablets to allow patients to talk to their families. now it's time for a look at the weather with nick miller. hello. if your weather is been a cloudy when it is like there tomorrow it will be brighter. we will keep a fair amount of cloud

through england and northern ireland overnight. we seemed a bit of rain in some parts today. but i will fade away and we will keep a few showers running into is east anglia and parts of them west midlands. over scotland, temperatures will fall lower than this in more rural spots and will end up with the few frosts and will end up with the few frosts and few places may be or two spots in northern england will be a lot of sunshine to start sunday. clouds across parts of in the day northern ireland and that within alone some sunny spells to come through and a lot of places will be able to see the afternoon and wanted to early showers towards cornwall will fade away and there will be a fresh easterly breeze, particularly across parts of england and wales and temperatures will be held down along the coast but where many were exchanging clever sunshine, it will 00:27:50,751 --> 4294966103:13:29,430 be warmer out there.