and germany says, it will keep up its aggressive programme of testing and tracing — as its covid—19 restrictions, are partially relaxed. 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. first, let's start in the uk. the number of people recorded as having died with coronavirus in care homes in england is thought have doubled in the space of five days. preliminary figures by the care regulator suggest that more than two thousand care home residents have died in england since the beginning of the outbreak. in other developments, more than 2,000 people each week in the uk may be missing cancer diagnoses, and possibly losing vital treatment time due to coronavirus fears,

a leading cancer charity has warned. in spain, the prime minister says the nationwide lockdown will be eased "slowly and gradually" in the second half of may, provided authorities stay "on top of the virus". and in germany, the wearing of face masks in public is set to become compulsory to combat the spread of coronavirus. our first report tonight is from our social affairs correspondent alison holt. ca re care home by care home, we have been told of many lives lost in recent weeks from the 0aklands missing him in hove to castle troy in luton and onto st ives lodge in the outskirts of london. 0fficialfigures have lagged behind this reality. today pots organised and suggesting a doubling of death and ingot in five days underlines the pace of what has been happening, it adds urgency to the ongoing calls for more help and more protective equipment. we need

to get the testing across the board in social care facilities across the country. and we need to be pursuing the preventative agenda with much more rigour than we have been. the ca re more rigour than we have been. the care regulator in england has altered the way it collects information about people who have died in residential and nursing homes. since april the 10th, died in residential and nursing homes. since aprilthe 10th, it died in residential and nursing homes. since april the 10th, it has askedif homes. since april the 10th, it has asked if the death was linked to or confirmed of suspected coronavirus. disciplinary fight —— findings suggest thousands of people could've died in homes in days... she was my mum, she had the start of dementia but she not serially disabled with that. christine mullen was moved from ek her care home to house or where she died for supper death will be reflected in nhs vegas but for herfamily like be reflected in nhs vegas but for her family like many others, be reflected in nhs vegas but for herfamily like many others, the question is whether vulnerable residents have been protected.” think the ultimate people from the beginning are said to be the most

formable —— vulnerable people of this virus was up and they should have been focus on immediately for prevention of spread of the virus and production. in scotland it is estimated a third of covid —related deaths are in care homes wasn't the first minister insists that is not inevitable and in england, the government says it is doing all it can to protect people. in a virus that targets the elderly and the vulnerable, do you see that as inevitable? no, i don't think anything is inevitable. we are fighting tooth and nail striving to make sure we are minimising the life loss in all contexts. we are acknowledging that there are challenges and care homes, but we are doing everything we can come of the situation is improving, we are getting the ppe to those places that need it. care set that are still struggling to get the protective equipment and testing they need will wa nt equipment and testing they need will want ongoing reassurance that those promises will be fulfilled. alison

holt, bbc news. with me is kathryn smith, director of operations, at the alzheimers society. welcome here to the programme. do these figures today that we have seen confirm what you already knew, just the speed and spread of this in ca re just the speed and spread of this in care homes? absolutely, i mean it is shocking that you think this is effectively a 300% increase in cases within care homes and in fact there isa within care homes and in fact there is a delay of at least a week and recording. figures are wacky —— likely to be much more in some places. this is something people have been very concerned about that ca re have been very concerned about that care homes are not getting adequate testing and support and the appropriate personal protective equipment to enable them to look after some of the most vulnerable in oui’ after some of the most vulnerable in our society. how frightening is that you think both for the staff and residents given what you have just said and the figures show in terms of what is being in spirit in ssdc? it is extremely frightening. we are finding that 80% of our calls to the

all summer society and dementia connection hotline are about coronavirus and about people pots or concerns about their love ones living in care homes are receiving ca re living in care homes are receiving care in the community. and not being able to get the support or are concerned that the care staff are nothing ever to get them, that they cannot visit them. it is really a concern for people and a big worry for both the people in themselves, what spreads in the care home and also the systems they are working in as well. given what we've heard the clamour for it that's been going on for weeks? we have heard some stories but some people have been able to access previously. but fortunately for all

of the care from eye care homes are still having some but still having to make different solutions such as having equipment made for them or donated through schools or colleges. the government said only a few days ago, they wanted to test every patient being transferred from hospital to a care home. should the test be done though in hospital and people only said once they've had a negative test result because the flip side of that, if you don't wait for a negative, if you wait for the testing at home you have the danger, don't you of potentially exporting this virus into the care home itself, potentially. yeah, we've got itself, potentially. yeah, we've got it exactly that problem now. because when people are being tested positive from a careful dystopian setback which means there taking back. and then we can't... living with it that simply can't get

tested. so effectively can't be expected to carry a extremely high burden in an extremely difficult situation. i believe there to that. 0ne situation. i believe there to that. one is that people absolutely should be tested so we do know what we're dealing with and how we can treat people. but there also needs to be treatment in a sense there's a way for the care home so they not bringing straight ham back to the residence in the care home. did it concern you early in the day when dominic rob was asked how many care home staff had died and didn't, wasn't able to actually answer that pretty basic question?” wasn't able to actually answer that pretty basic question? i mean again, i think it's one of our messages all the way along is that social care is, social care working extremely ha rd to really is, social care working extremely hard to really support the nhs. they are hard to really support the nhs. they a re key hard to really support the nhs. they are key workers but their deaths within social care, within the care communities have been counted and the same appears for the staff working in those services as well.

we have to leave it there. thanks for joining we have to leave it there. thanks forjoining us on the program. i mentioned their prime minister's questions that was early in the day, uk's new opposition leader used his first prime ministers question to strongly criticise the government handling of the coronavirus pandemic. 100 md these took place in the debate online. sanc the government had failed to develop that number of coronavirus test required. here's oui’ coronavirus test required. here's our political editor. time for the serious business of prime minister's questions. not quite as you know it. not borisjohnson questions. not quite as you know it. not boris johnson but questions. not quite as you know it. not borisjohnson but rather leaving number ten. the usual hour but not the usual look of the green benches. 0rder. i'd like to welcome everyone both remotely up and down the uk. 0ur both remotely up and down the uk. our members here in the chambers. and a new opposition leader in position for the very first time.

with question after question on the governments handling of the coronavirus kit for medics, the number of tests and the pace of the response. there is a pattern emerging here. we were slow into lockdown, slow on testing, slow on protective equipment and now slow to ta ke protective equipment and now slow to take up these offers from british firms. the prime minister has said this is a national effort. and he's right about that. in that spirit can i ask the first minister to commit to working with the opposition to identify and take up these offers from british manufacturers?” identify and take up these offers from british manufacturers? i don't expect this premise that we've been slow. we have been guided by the scientific advice, this chief medical officer, at every step along the way. if he thinks he knows better than they do with the benefit of hindsight then that his decision. but that is not the way we pursued it. and is not the way we will in the future. with mps also keeping their distance plenty of them like plenty of us are working from home. so we just started the session we

can hear the speaker speaking and the questions about to start. balancing tablets for a decent shot, crossing their fingers hoping the technology would work. looking forward to making history, very excited and to be honest a little bit nervous. it did, mostly. i hope the secretary can make the most of that question. this virtual parliament grappling with the crisis that's all too real. the governments taking some huge decisions on all or perhaps during this crisis. and in the main and there was broad support from most of the dramatic measures. but on some vital specifics the oppositions is starting to show. parliament have been away for a few weeks and its absence mattered. now it's back in the political pressure will rise to. not least on the man in charge of the health system. hgppy in charge of the health system. happy to pose outside number ten. far too soon for any final verdict

but the tough judgement day by day. the uk chief medical adviser has warned that the likelihood of discovering an effective vaccine soon is remote. chris whitty said it "wholly unrealistic" to think, life can return to normal soon, and social distancing measures would be needed for a ‘long time' this disease is not to be eradicated, it is not going to disappear. so we have to accept that we are working with the disease, that we are going to be with globally, this is a global problem for this foreseeable future. what we're trying to work out is, what other things which actually add up to an of lesson one and there are lots of different options which ministers will then have to consider. but that narrows our options quite significantly if you are having to keep the are below one. i think we have to be realistic that if people are hoping that is

suddenly going to move from where we are new now in lockdown suddenly to everything is gone, that is a wholly unrealistic expectation. were going to have to do a lot of things for a quite a long period of time. the head of the world health organization has also warned — the pandemic won't be over soon — and there could be a resurgence in some countries. he also defended the organisation's handling of the crisis, after criticism by president trump that it had been slow to respond and too supportive of china. as south america and eastern europe. most countries are still in the early stages of their epidemic. and some that will affected early in the pandemic are now starting to see a resurgence in cases. make no

mistake, we have a long way to go. this virus will be with us for a long time. we triggered the highest level of emergency when the rest of the world had only 82 cases in note deaths. so looking back, ithink the world had only 82 cases in note deaths. so looking back, i think we declared emergency at the right time. and when the world had enough time. and when the world had enough time to respond. when the rest of the world had enough time to respond. as we've just heard, the government remains under pressure over the supply of personal protective equipment for health and careworkers in england. an raf plane carrying protective gear from turkey arrived here overnight but ministers say there's a global shortage. personal protective equipment

for health care workers are is in great demand around the world with a massive increase in what health systems require because of the pandemic. the nhs is no different. there has been a rush to secure supplies and have been reports of shortages. some gp practices say they aren't getting adequate supplies through official channels. we've run out of these completely in the last couple days. so i've had to go out by some of those. gps here and feel especially vulnerable because they run a coronavirus assessment center. it's just quite terrifying because it's notjust a risk to yourself it's a risk to everyone around you. we all know the bad effects. it'sjust scary, you feel like you didn't really sign up for this. some hospitals have had a adequate ppe but others say they're down to a few of supplies. staff say the uncertainty can be unnerving. the stresses the lack of transparency, it is very

difficult to be going to work and being asked to see a patient without ppe and then to be hearing that there is adequate ppe. i don't think the situation we wanted to be in. 0ne trust in linkage or revealjust how much ppe they get through. the three main hospitals they use almost 73,000 items each day. things like surgical mask, gloves and gowns. based on the trust size in the number of coronavirus patients it's dealing with bbc analysis suggest the total daily usage at english hospitals would be at a range of ten to 16 million items per day. the government says around 1a million units have been distributed daily in recent weeks in england. since the virus that became clear the uk authorities have struggled to find enough supplies overseas an expert say there's a lesson there. we've relied on being able to buy all these things from low—cost countries,

local sourcing like china. on the assumption that they would always be available. so we've lost our domestic industry in many areas that are really important for government for different parts of government. companies like this one in yorkshire are keen to help and started making more than 10,000 face shields each day. it supplied some local hospitals but has had no firm commitment yet from the government. we'd really like to help the nhs first but, it's our country, we need to all help. but with the amount of money that the company spent so far might have to come up that we will supplied to the us. ministers say thousands of offers from companies are being assessed and ensuring that the right equipment is provided is the priority. the spanish parliament is debating whether to extend its corona virus lockdown. the country — one of the worst hit in the world, with more

than 21 thousand deaths — has been under severe restrictions for more than five weeks. the prime minster‘s request, would extend the state of emergency until the may the ninth. 0ur reporter guy hedgecoe gave me the latest from madrid. it's been a real marathon session today dedicated completely to the governments real marathon session today dedicated completely to the governments handling of the coronavirus crisis. as expected there has been a lot of criticism from the political opposition. mainly from the parties on the right who've been saying that the government hasjust performed badly, really since this crisis erupted early march. it wasn't prepared, it's been poor in terms of getting medical equipment, ppe, that its message regarding the national lockdown which is been a place forfive and half weeks has been confusing at times. and so on. prime minister pedro sanchez has defended very robustly his record on this. and has pointed out

that the government have done the very best on the neck under very difficult circumstances. but it has been quite a fair sit at times bitter debate today. (pres) let mejust bring let me just bring you some of the latest figures from other countries. sta rt latest figures from other countries. start with science because in the last half hour with 540 for new coronavirus last half hour with 540 for new coro navi rus tests last half hour with 540 for new coronavirus tests to bring the total in france to just over 21,000. let's go from france to italy. a drop in today's figures to 537. going past the 25,000, a total number of deaths in italy. in the world health organisation has just said that the global death toll has gone past the 180,000. some of the latest figures coming into us just into usjust in into us just in the last little while. into us just in the last little while. health experts are warning that thousands of cancer cases are being missed each week due to the impact of covid—19 on nhs services.

cancer research uk says referrals for urgent hospital appointments or checks have fallen by 75 percent in england. and they warn that around 200,000 people per week across the uk are no longer being screened for bowel, breast and cervical cancer. this report from our health correspondent lauren moss. taking part in a fundraising video for charity. mum of two laura flaherty from wigan has been clear of cervical cancer for four years and hopes every day that it will never return. she was diagnosed following a routine screening when she was just 29 and had to have a hysterectomy. i said, i can't die, i've got two children. they were two and six, and ijust kept thinking, they won't remember me. laura was due her first annual screening this month to check that she is still free of cancer, but it has been postponed. how long could you be waiting for your next screening?

i don't know. you start thinking, what about if it is there? it takes about 12 months to go because i haven't been checked in 12 months and now i don't know when i will be seen. —— what about if it is there? doctors are concerned this could lead to thousands of cancer patients being missed. the consequences are really quite severe, most of the model is working on this across the uk show the excess of deaths is going to be way greater than we are going to seat with covid—19. and you have to remember as well, we are often dealing with a patient cohort which is much younger. cancer research uk says it will take a monumental effort to get screening and diagnostic services back to normal and the charity is calling for more clinics to be set up away from covid—19 patients. and anyone who is concerned about possible cancer symptoms is still really urged to contact their gp.

breast, bowel and cervical screening programmes had been paused in northern ireland, wales and scotland. nhs england is advising urgent treatment continues, but there are some delays. max in reading was diagnosed with skin cancer after a mole was removed. further surgery and investigation she was due to have suspended and she is now considering paying to have it done privately. it's notjust skin cancer, it can kill you. so to be not able to have the treatment i feel i should be getting, i didn't really have any choice but to do something else about that. but, yes, it is scary. the government insist the nhs is still open no covid care care. it is hoped patients missing out now won't become the unintended casualties of the virus —— non—covert care. lauren moss, bbc news. charities representing victims of domestic abuse say, they're concerned that people are unable to seek the help they need, because they're sharing lockdown with violent

and controlling partners. west midlands police has made 400 arrests for domestic abuse in the past fortnight, but officers fear more crimes may be going unreported. our correspondent phil mackie has been following a team of specialist police officers who are trying to deal with the problem. it's first thing in the morning in birmingham. 0urteam it's first thing in the morning in birmingham. our team dedicated for domestic abuse are following up a 999 call. so he's wanted for three assaults on his partner and his two children. it's a very nasty as all, very high risk and it's up to the victim to get this person. the people in the house say they don't know where the man is and warned the police not to come in. he's telling us police not to come in. he's telling us that he's got coronavirus and doesn't want us in the house. that's not to stop us we've got ago and it could be a family member that's holding or looking after the guy we want.

the man they want to arrest is hiding in the bathroom. open the door will kick it in. stay where you are asked not stay where you are! officer and taser! he's been arrested and is being taken away to be interviewed. jamie was a victim ofa be interviewed. jamie was a victim of a violent and abusive partner and now helps others like her. lockdown makes it even harder to get help. it so, so frightening. you can't get access, it's very difficult to get access, it's very difficult to get access to people. you're constantly monitored and flee back under surveillance. everything is being checked. and to try and find somewhere where you can make a call would be extremely difficult. in birmingham alone there making up to 30 arrests every day in connection with cases of domestic abuse. well,

this man's alleged to be in breach of restraining order. his ex—partner has told the police that he's been sending her offensive messages and threatening pictures over the last couple of days. it's another arrest for somebody who is involved potentially in domestic abuse. even for those trapped with abusive partner there is a way to get help. dial 999 then select the number five twice and the police will be alerted. the coronavirus has given us so many stories of despair, but also stories of hope, like this one this is staff at a hospital in new orleans celebrating their fifteen—hundredth coronavirus patient being released. they sang ‘when the saints go marching in' for kathleen bennett, who was reunited with her family three weeks after being admitted with covid—19.

i'm back with headlines here injust a moment. also it will be hearing from a doctor in chicago. all that here injust a moment. good evening, 22 degrees today in highland scotland, west wales, and the south coast, and it is likely to be warmer tomorrow because we are losing the brisk easterly wind that we had. it is not been such a feature in scotland, we have had an abundance of sunshine here and rather high cloud making the sunshine hazy in the west but with clear skies and very little changing through the overnight period, temperatures will again fall away. and as i mentioned the winds will continue to ease allowing low cloud to drift back up to the pennines, south east scotland, west wales but some fog at levels potentially as well. the temperatures not as low as they were last night but there still will be a frost in the glens of scotland, chilly first thing thursday morning. that mist and low cloud, any patchy fog will clear

in the strong april sunshine and it looks as though there will be lots of strong april sunshine through the course of the day. and because the winds are lighter, the winds will see a temperature of degree or two up or so. we could see 25 in localities west of london. in other parts of wales and northern ireland and scotland and for the east coast where it has been gently recently it won't feel as cold but high levels of pollen are forecast once again. these are the pollen levels for the day on thursday. as we head into friday though, our high pressure starts to decline somewhat so it is giving an increase for showers developing. subtle changes under way by the end of the week picking up a northerly wind for the northern isles and then a chance of some sharp showers are coming in across southwestern england and wales. still mostly dry with temperatures and more cloud it probably will not be quite as high for many but still only in degree or so down. the high pressure declines further as we go through the weekend

allowing the risk of the chance of a few showers coming up the south and west and from the north as well. the devil is in the detail for the weekend in expecting where those showers will occur. most parts of the united kingdom look dry. more hazy sunshine, temperatures into the high teens and low 20s that could just have the odd shower around. and by sunday we start to pick up that northerly northwesterly more widely across scotland. so it will feel cooler here, the temperatures down a few degrees. as ever, there is plenty more on the website.

this is bbc news with the latest headlines for viewers in the uk and around the world. new estimates suggest — the number of deaths in care homes in england — may have doubled in just five days. the uk chief medical officer warns that social distancing measures may have to stay in place for a long period of time. leading cancer experts warn — thousands of patients are missing out on treatment — the number of urgent referrals is down by three quarters. spain's parliament debates a third extension to its lockdown — taking it to early may. and — germany says, it will keep up its aggressive programme of testing and tracing — as its covid—19 restrictions, are partially relaxed.

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. the uk government has promised 100,000 tests a day, for covid—19, by the end of the month. at the moment around 40,000 tests a day are available but only half that number — almost 23,000 are being carried out. 0ur political correspondent alex forsyth has been speaking to carers across the country about the challenges they face in getting a test. inside the country's closed off care homes, it is a fight to keep the virus from the most vulnerable. testing is key, knowing who has got it to stop the spread, keep people safe. care workers can now get tested,

but staff at this home in bath have been told they would have to travel to worcester, three hour round trip. if you are suffering from signs of covid—19, you are basically going to be made to drive halfway up the country. many care workers like anne don't drive at all. it would be impossible for me. you cannot get to worcester? no, not at all at the moment. the manager says he needs to know if staff can safely work. they are front—line staff, they need to be protected. yes, we can get staff tested, but to test them, we have to drive 80 miles each way to get to the nearest test centre, which is not practical. across the country, similar cases. care is directed to test sites miles away. 27 drive—through centres are open with more due soon, but some seem quiet, hard to reach without a car. some days, less than half the number of tests on offer are actually being carried out. the health secretary was asked again today about more local provision.

i am really pleased we have managed to out this testing to staff in care homes. he is absolutely right that that can helpfully be done to immobile units and to be the home testing kits that are increasingly available. —— done through mobile units. especially for care homes that are not close to one of the drive—through centres. care providers welcome efforts to increase testing, but warned those given care at home can't be forgotten, concerned carers are self—isolating without being tested. only a handful of care workers in each district, each local authority area, have had the opportunity for tests. some of them have had to travel quite substantial distances. take aimee, whose daughter started showing symptoms last week. as a home care worker, she needed to know if it was the virus, but was told she would have to travel more than 250 miles from cumbria to stansted airport because her daughter is under 18. it is not appropriate to take a sick child who is possibly infected with coronavirus halfway

across the country. and it is clearly against government guidance on reducing movement and virus spread. after a social media storm, a local hospital stepped in to offer aimee's a daughter test. she is waiting for the result. the government says it is working to make sure everyone across the country who needs a test can get one, but so far, provision is patchy. care welcome the fact more tests are available, but say they must get access to them. alex forsyth, bbc news. the bbc has had exclusive access to the first test of a contact tracing app designed to let people know if they've been in contact with someone infected with the virus. but critics are warning that there will be practical and privacy issues to be sorted out before the app can be released and questions remain around whether the technology can live up to its promise. here's our technology correspondent rory cellan—jones. millions of people are desperate for a return to normality. could technology provide a route

out of the lockdown? at this raf base in north yorkshire, they're giving test to an nhs app designed to trace anyone who's been in contact with an infected person. you canjust go into your phone, you have the button, check symptoms... the app uses the bluetooth connection on the phone to find out who you have the meeting. this is how it works, in theory at least. once installed, every time you come into contact with someone else who has the app your phones record that fact. if you tell the app you have symptoms of the virus to telephone —— the phones of everyone you've been in contact with over the previous seven days get an alert telling their owners they need to self—isolate. as the base is also practising social distancing, this early test is a little artificial, but scientists advising the nhs say if the app eventually works it could make a big difference. this could all help in the easing

of restrictions, letting us get out of our houses — but, and it is a big but, more than half of the population needs to download the app if it is to really work well, and that is probably about 80% of all smartphone users. that is a high hurdle. singapore had a similar contact tracing app but only around 20% of the population used it and now after a surge in new cases of the virus it is back on lockdown. critics say the nhs has to confront a host of issues, not just about whether the app will work but its privacy implications. should employers be allowed to require their employees to download the app as a condition to returning to work? or should delivery services be allowed to require customers to download the app before a delivery driver will attend the house? getting back to normal life may also involve employing people as well as an app to do contact tracing, and the technology still needs more testing before it is ready to play its part. rory cellan—jones, bbc news.

prof allyson pollock is director of the newcastle university centre for excellence in regulatory science. shejoins me now. and we will talk about contact tracing injust a moment but i wa nted tracing injust a moment but i wanted to start in terms of basic testing and questions around there because the uk has been talking for weeks now if not months about ramping up testing. why are we stuck at this figure of around 23,000 do you think? well, one of the problems with the lack of capacity, the government got its act together weight private —— probably because weight private —— probably because we privatised and close some of our laboratories, and pretty because we did not have the new we needed and also the reagents. the government has been slowly ramping up testing but testing is a huge confused area and we need to understand what the government strategy is. who is a testing, why is it testing people,

when are they testing, and what is the end point? it is a very confused picture at the moment but it does appear that the government has now prioritising health care and social ca re prioritising health care and social care workers and people going into hospital. but it is very, very unclear about government policy on testing, it is still unclear and still confused. in exactly that point, the government talks about a capacity of a 40000 and yet only around half of the number of tests are being carried out every day, people will look at that and think if there is a capacity for 40,000, why are they not testing 40,000 given there are thousands of people who want them ? given there are thousands of people who want them? well, i think this is the difference between people who wa nt the difference between people who want them and what we need to testing for. and i think the government needs to be much clearer about its strategy for testing. so, for example, if the government was really serious about testing, it

would be really prioritising the people who are working in social ca re people who are working in social care who are working with the most vulnerable and older people. and there are1.5 vulnerable and older people. and there are 1.5 million of those care workers who are doing thatjob every day. there are also 1.5 million people working in the nhs, there are also health care workers. so, clearly 40,000 also health care workers. so, clearly 40 , 000 tests also health care workers. so, clearly 40,000 tests isn't going to go very far so the government needs to be very strategic and prioritise who is going to have to tests and why and when. and this is why it's so important that the government begins to reintroduce a contact tracing which is the fundamental tool of public health and which have been commanded —— a caputi on the talk of march. i become to that as a moment. we are seeing pictures of the testing centres in birmingham that have recently open. when we talk about the figures we have in the uk how is a country by germany manage the amount of tests they have? because in terms of their testing capacity, that figure today

stands at 730,000 a week. germany started off in a much better position. they had much more public laboratories, they used its university laboratories and it also has quite a big diagnostics industry. the uk doesn't have any diagnostics industry and it is also closed and short on its public health laboratory assignments which used to do much of that. 0ver health laboratory assignments which used to do much of that. over the last 20 years, we have seen the centralisation, the privatisation, the closure, and the fragmentation of our public health laboratories. so that has actually been another major problem for the government which is how does it put capacity backin which is how does it put capacity back in that it has not got and that it has lost? and that same question goes for the nhs, for beds, the same question for primary care and also for the community services like contract tracing, public health and

environmental health. what we have seen is a decimation of our services over 20 years which was exacerbated by the health and social care act in 2012. coming back to contact tracing, medical experts and science experts say that the way out of lockdown is testing and contact tracing. in terms of what needs to be done apart from basically restarting it, what other priorities do you think? one of the mistakes the government has made, one of the many, is to treat this as a national epidemic and not to see this as hundreds of thousands of outbreaks that are going on at different stages in the country. and it needs to be mapping those outbreaks in each area in detail and putting in vocal teams to deal with the outbreaks to identify every case, to track down the contacts, to monitor the contacts, isolate, and quarantined them. unless it does this, it is never going to get on

top of this epidemic. and given the amount of cases though that there are, what about the manpower to do that tracing? is that there are doesn't need to be reconfigured? this is about political will. it is not about human resources. there are three quarters of 1 not about human resources. there are three quarters of1 million people who have volunteered for the nhs who have not been asked to help. there are 5000 environmental health offices who've offered help and who are expert in contact tracing. there are expert in contact tracing. there are teachers, lawyers, barristers, thatis are teachers, lawyers, barristers, that is what ireland has done, use its teachers and barristers. canada, and other countries are use the army. so there is no shortage of people. there are many people on furlough, there are millions, stu d e nts furlough, there are millions, students who are no longer at university who would be very happy to be involved in contact tracing. plus teams of retired people, gps,

environmental health officers, health visitors, my e—mail boxes full of them. so, if there is a will, there is a way to do it. can i just say? locally is building up local volunteers and it should be donein local volunteers and it should be done in every local authority with the relevant health bodies involved. just a final question then on testing. there were disturbing reports yesterday that some of the tests we are carrying out our giving a high number of false negatives. are you worried about the accuracy of the tests we do have? well, we a lwa ys of the tests we do have? well, we always knew from the chinese studies and the asian studies, we knew that 50% of the tests give false negatives and that critical observation is much better which is why co nta ct observation is much better which is why contact tracing together with reporting of symptoms and following up reporting of symptoms and following up symptoms, people per, this is much better than testing. testing is useful but it is only a support. it

should not, it can only supplement and support contact tracing and clinical observation and following people up over the period of 14 days of the quarantine. so, that's the message, there is nothing new about the false negatives in tests. doctor allyson pollock, thank you, we have to leave it there. thank you so much for joining to leave it there. thank you so much forjoining us here on the programme. we were talking about testing, and we we re we were talking about testing, and we were talking a germany, let's turn to the german expense and their handling of the crisis. germany's handling of the crisis with its early mass testing and effective lockdown has been the focus of international attention. and the world is watching now as the authorities begin to gradually ease some restrictions, which will rely on further testing and contact tracing to ensure the oubreak is kept under control. 0ur berlin correspondent, jenny hill, sent this report. slowly, cautiously, germany is feeling its way back to life. schools are reopening for exams. small shops back in business. at the same time, more testing

and a focus on contact tracing. every time someone tests positive, public health officials must track down anyone they could have infected. translation: of course it is not always possible to find everyone. we depend on the support and the memory of the infected person. they have to work with others to try to remember who they have had contact with. —— they have to work with us. it is why the army is helping to test a more high—tech solution. it is hoped a phone app could identify potential chains of infection, but there are concerns about privacy and the technology is considered at least a month from being ready. in the meantime, germany is studying its own population. looking for antibodies. the aim, to establish the true rate of infection, but also to learn more about how immunity might develop. you need to have a better idea clinically if antibodies are detected. how does it reflect

in terms of protection? and, if it reflects in terms of protection, how long does that protection last? and obviously, since we are very early in this stage of the pandemic, we don't know that for sure yet. but, this data will be coming in. meanwhile, oktoberfest's annual revelry has been cancelled. public gatherings are still banned, pubs and restaurants are still closed. germany may have got its outbreak under control, but it is far too soon, warn scientists, to celebrate. jenny hill, bbc news, berlin. since the coronavirus crisis began, there have been a number of violent attacks on doctors and health workers who are screening and treating patients in india. doctors had called for a symbolic protest on thursday, but they deferred it after assurances from the country's home affairs minister. the government has now announced severe punishment for violence against them.

yogita limaye reports from mumbai. attacking a doctor or a health care worker in india cannot attract punishment of up to seven years in prison. it is also now a non—bailable offence. these orders we re non—bailable offence. these orders were passed by india's government after doctors threatened to wear black patches on thursday to protest against the series of attacks against the series of attacks against health care workers. 0n sunday, a particularly grim incident was reported from the southern city where a mob violently prevented the burial of doctor simon hercules who died of covid—19. they were worried that if the doctor was buried in their vicinity, it would spread coronavirus there for someone of his friends, a fellow doctor, describe the situation. translation: when we went to bury doctor simon, people came with sticks and stones and attacked us. we had to abandon the body and run away. if a doctor

who tends to his patients dies of the disease, is this the reward we will give him? how can doctors feel safe ? will give him? how can doctors feel safe? three weeks ago, health care workers who were screening for coronavirus cases in a central city we re coronavirus cases in a central city were attacked with stones. a similar incident was also reported from the city of bangalore and for many other parts of india. these two doctors from the national capital delhi said they were assaulted when they were out buying groceries and were accused of spreading coronavirus a doctor from another place was badly beaten and colleagues from his estate staged this protest against such attacks was that these are just a few of the incidents that are highlighted but we heard of several such instances from around the country since the covid crisis began. a huge stigma has come to be associated with coronavirus in india. so people who are on the front line who are more exposed to

the infection are often thought to bea the infection are often thought to be a threat by many people and that's what's motivated some of these attacks. yogita limaye. the state of illinois has seen one of the worst outbreaks of covid—19. according to the latest figures, there have been more than 23,000 cases, and 1,000 deaths. dr emily landon is the executive medical director for infection prevention and control at university of chicago medicine. she says that the city's health care system is struggling to cope. when i am in the hospital, and you begin to hear about of reports in the hospital, we still have 140 something patients with covid at the university of chicago and we are just one hospital in the city of chicago. the numbers are flat and we have done a wonderfuljob of staying home to help keep things manageable. but only just manageable. home to help keep things manageable. but onlyjust manageable. we are still not able to do a lot of other essential services or provide elective surgeries or see patients in our clinics the way we usually

would in order to accommodate the number of patients that we have to ta ke number of patients that we have to take care of with covid. you told our producer you don't understand why the cries from the front line haven't mobilised america in the way america can be mobilised. what did you by that? you know, we needed ppe earlier. we need to testing to be expanded earlier so that we would know what we are doing. so we had better epidemiological inputs to inform our models. the models are still all over the place about when this is going to end and when we might be able to safely resume. it's great to me that we are in many at least as many patients as we are discharging with covid every single day. we are not ready to get back outside and do our regular lives. not in the same way we used to anyway. and yet there are people protesting on the street exactly for that and point. this is unbelievable to me. they are putting themselves and many others in harm's way. the real problem with this illness is not certainly, we care a lot about

those who are sick and are worried about them overburdening our health system. but it's the people who are transmitting the disease before they even have symptoms and those that never develop symptoms but can still transmit the infection and that is exactly where we see it spread like that in these sorts of protested crowds and situations. those people are probably starting complicated transmission webs. just a final thought than on a human level. what is it like the dangers to staff every day, the trauma of so many desperate outcomes, and i was reading one account from a doctor who said he knew his patient was going to die, his son was cost me phoning him begging him to put the phone next to his father's gear so he could say prayers and he said he had to stop himself, didn't do it and then in the end when he reflected, he wasn't so glad he had chosen to do that. doctors there in the hospitals, are they still often the hospitals, are they still often the only people there in the and or have hospitals change policy on that? we are doing our very best to

allow families to visit in end—of—life situations. they may not be able to be there at the last moment but we try and get them into visit individuals who are sick and near death in orderfor visit individuals who are sick and near death in order for them visit individuals who are sick and near death in orderfor them to be able to say their final goodbyes. but still it's often a nurse or a physician there at the bedside holding their hands. i know my providers are doing absolutely everything they can to be there for these individuals. it's heartbreaking. but we are doing everything that we can. and doesn't feel relentless? absolutely. it seems to me that the numbers just keep coming and keep coming and nothing has really changed about this virus. we still don't have an antiviral, we don't have a vaccine. all we have is ppe and distance. another we have more masks and more i she is and more gowns and gloves, and makes us somewhat safer in the hospital but i don't think that's going to do... if we don't use them regularly in our regular life, i don't see how we will be able to safely resume regular activities.

emily landon there on the front lines there in chicago. now, we've been following the daily lives of those on the front lines of the fight against coronavirus through video diaries. here, gp dr gail allsopp shares the details of her week with our health correspondent catherine burns. coronavirus has changed working life in so many ways for gp dr gail allsopp — even down to her footwear. she used to wear shoes like this for work. now, they're more like this. i used to meticulously get dressed, choose carefully what i wore, do my hair, put my make—up on — and now i don't. now i want as little of my hair exposed at all, so i scrape it back. there is still the school—run to do. gail says it's now one of the hardest parts of her day. the other children are safe at home with their parents who are working from home, and because of myjob i am unable to keep him as safe as i would like to.

an empty waiting room, but she still got a full list of patients. this is my new way of working in general practice at the moment. video call, something we've never done before. she's tried, and failed, to get hold of medical scrubs — so she's improvised, buying a pair of overalls. it isn't particularly professional, but at least i know it's protecting me and it's the best i can do. gail has brought this patient in for tests. she's been ill for several weeks with suspected coronavirus and is still struggling for breath. she's young and fit. she is not unwell enough to go to hospital, but she does need more tests. one of the things that's really important is that we are still here in primary care for non—covid related things, and we have had someone this morning who has a problem with her lower abdomen. it's essential that we see her to make sure that we are not missing anything. so they split the surgery

into two zones. red for suspected coronavirus cases and green for everyone else. gail has to go out and visit patients who just aren't well enough to come into the surgery. home visits are never very easy because you have to put the ppe on in the car, and you can see i've got a sheet on my car seat to actually protect the inside of the car as well. it's hard to know who's my doctor and who isn't. i'm your doctor, you cheeky monkey! she laughs i have been on my feet now for ten hours without a break. an incredibly rewarding day, but i really now need to go and be a mum again. she wants people to know that gps are a key part of the fight against coronavirus, but that they're still there for all other health problems too. catherine burns, bbc news. well, that's about it for me. thanks

so much for watching, see you next time. next up, it is time for 0utside source. goodbye for now. good evening, 22 degrees today in highland scotland, west wales, and the south coast, and it is likely to be warmer tomorrow because we are losing the brisk easterly wind that we had. it is not been such a feature in scotland, we have had an abundance of sunshine here and rather high cloud making the sunshine hazy in the west but with clear skies and very little changing through the overnight period, temperatures will again fall away. and as i mentioned the winds will continue to ease allowing low cloud to drift back up to the pennines, south east scotland, west wales but some fog at levels potentially as well. the temperatures not as low as they were last night but there still will be a frost in the glens of scotland, chilly first thing thursday morning.

that mist and low cloud, any patchy fog will clear in the strong april sunshine and it looks as though there will be lots of strong april sunshine through the course of the day. and because the winds are lighter, the winds will see a temperature of degree or two up or so. we could see 25 in localities west of london. in other parts of wales and northern ireland and scotland and for the east coast where it has been gently recently it won't feel as cold but high levels of pollen are forecast once again. these are the pollen levels for the day on thursday. as we head into friday though, our high pressure starts to decline somewhat so it is giving an increase for showers developing. subtle changes under way by the end of the week picking up a northerly wind for the northern isles and then a chance of some sharp showers are coming in across southwestern england and wales. still mostly dry with temperatures and more cloud it probably will not be quite as high for many but still only in degree or so down. the high pressure declines further as we go through the weekend allowing the risk of the chance of a few showers coming up the south

and west and from the north as well. the devil is in the detail for the weekend in expecting where those showers will occur. most parts of the united kingdom look dry. more hazy sunshine, temperatures into the high teens and low 20s that could just have the odd shower around. and by sunday we start to pick up that northerly northwesterly more widely across scotland. so it will feel cooler here, the temperatures down a few degrees. as ever, there is plenty more on the website.

this is 0utside source on bbc news for viewers in the uk and around the world. we're covering all the latest coronavirus developments here in britain and globally. a sobering warning from the world health organisation, for those hoping to see the back of the coronavirus pandemic anytime soon. may, no mistake, we have a long way to go. —— make no mistake. this virus will be with us for a long time. in the us, the secretary of state again accuses china of covering up the outbreak.