tonight at ten — a gradual easing of the lockdown in england, but it's all conditional on the pandemic being under control. it's no longer stay at home — but stay alert — as the prime minister outlines a three—step plan — to boost the economy, schools and social life. if there are problems, we will not hesitate to put on the brakes. we've been through the initial peak, but it's coming down the mountain that is often more dangerous. from june, schools in england could see a partial reopening — starting at primary level — but most secondary pupils won't return before september. we report on measures to make the workplace safe,

as the government urges people to return to work if they can't work from home. from wednesday — people will be encouraged to exercise as much as they want — but sports can only be played with members of the same household. we'll ask people what people made of the statement, and whether it provided the clarity they wanted. and amid the talk of passing the peak, we return to one of the uk's busiest intensive care units to see how they're coping. good evening. the prime minister has outlined measures to start a very gradual easing of the lockdown in england, while warning of the danger of a second surge of the pandemic.

in a televised address this evening, borisjohnson said it was the right time to update the government's message in england from "stay at home" to "stay alert". but the new message lacks clarity, according to labour, and the stay—at—home message is not being replaced in scotland, wales, or northern ireland. the prime minister's conditional plan, as he called it, urges anyone who can't work from home to return to work from tomorrow, but to avoid public transport if possible. from wednesday, people will be encouraged to exercise as much as they want, but playing sports can only be done with members of the same household. from june, schools in england could see a partial reopening starting at primary level, in reception, and years one and six. there are no plans for a full return of secondary schools before september, but pupils facing exams next year may get some time with their teachers before the summer. from july, at the earliest, parts of the hospitality industry and other public places

might be re—opened. and there could be some kind of quarantine for air travellers arriving in the uk, but we have no detail on that yet. the prime minister spoke on the day the latest official figures showed 31,855 deaths from coronavirus in the uk, an increase of 269 from yesterday. well, our first report is from our political editor laura kuenssberg. it is now almost two months... 48 days since so many of us tuned in. to hear the prime minister introduce measures not seen in a time of peace. after seven weeks of lockdown, around the country people watching again. from the living rooms and homes where the prime minister told us to stay. thanks to you, we have protected our nhs and saved many thousands of lives. and soi saved many thousands of lives. and so i know, you know, but it would be

madness now to throw away that achievement by allowing a second spike. we must stay alert, we must continue to control the virus and save lives. although lockdown help to control the disease it has crippled the economy, so in england if you can't work at home ministers wa nt if you can't work at home ministers want you to go back to help struggling businesses get going again. we can see it all around us in the shuttered shops and abandoned businesses and darkened pubs and restau ra nts. businesses and darkened pubs and restaurants. there are millions of people who are both fearful of this terrible disease, and at the same time, also fearful of what this long period of enforced inactivity will do to their livelihoods and their mental and physical well—being. to their futures, and the futures of their futures, and the futures of their children. so i want to provide, tonight, for you, the shape ofa

provide, tonight, for you, the shape of a plan to address both fears. that means slowly in england limits on exercise will be relaxed, you can sit in the park and play some sports and a government official confirmed you could meet one person from another household, as long as you stick to the two metre distance. and if you can't work at home you will be actively encouraged to go to work. from june, the ambition is to reopen primary schools for reception, year one and year six, but no full return for secondaries before the summer. they could also before the summer. they could also bea before the summer. they could also be a phased reopening of shops. then injuly the be a phased reopening of shops. then in july the hope be a phased reopening of shops. then injuly the hope is for a limited return of the hospitality industry and opening other public spaces. but this is all dependent on how the disease progresses, and if it flares restrictions might return. no, this is not the time simply to end the lockdown this week. instead, we are taking the first careful steps to modify our measures. if there are outbreaks, if there are problems, we

will not hesitate to put on the brakes. we have been through the initial peak. but it's coming down the mountain that is often more dangerous. we have a root and we have a plan and everyone in government has the all pressure and challenge to save lives, restore livelihoods and gradually restore the freedoms that we need. labour called for an exit strategy several weeks ago but the leader watching carefully was disappointed with what he heard. what the country wanted tonight was clarity and consensus, and i'm afraid we've got neither. this statement raises as many questions as it answers and was see the prospect of england, scotland and wales pulling in different directions. there is a big gap for the government to make up. the uk's new message, stay alert, is designed to cover all sorts of different sectors and advice as the situation evolves. to help save lives, stay

home. but scotland, wales and northern ireland are sticking to the message stay at home. the disease is thought to be spreading faster there. nicola sturgeon obviously unimpressed. i asked the uk government not to deploy their stay alert advertising campaign in scotla nd alert advertising campaign in scotland because the message in scotla nd scotland because the message in scotland at this stage is not a stay at home if you can, the message is, except for the essential reasons you know about, stay at home.. if i say to you now my messages stay alert, and you say does that mean i stay at home or not? i can't give you a straight answer. we have been following this family in wolverhampton coping with lockdown. tonight's message gave them some comfort but questions too. just before lockdown we were due to launch a clothing business and with manufacturing now on the cards that certainly gives us something to think about. disappointingly for me there was no mention of family and when we can see people from outside of the household. i lost my dad

recently and i'm missing my mum and the children are missing their nanny. this emergency first required a rapid response from the downing street desk. this unfolding phase brings pressing questions of detail, and dilemmas not just brings pressing questions of detail, and dilemmas notjust about his decisions but also all of ours. laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. as laura said at the end of the piece, the 3—step plan announced by the prime minister will affect the everyday lives of tens of millions of people in england. and the plan has already triggered lots of questions and demands for more detail. our north of england correspondent, danny savage has been to middlewich in cheshire to speak to three households there. it is now almost two months since the people of this country... at seven o'clock this evening, the nation sat down to watch what the prime minister had to say. ..a road map for reopening society. and then digest what it meant to their lives. what changes should they prepare for? what problems does it cause?

ian has three daughters. the oldest two are not in school years earmarked to return to class but the youngest could be heading back in june. i think we obviously understand the importance of education for the kids and the social aspect but we don't know if it's safe to have one going on and two not. how are the teachers going cope, particularly in the reception that will be the year going back for us? how do you tell four and five—year—olds to be distant from each other? i think it might be quite scary for four and five—year—olds to be sat round with masks on and to have teachers who have masks on, etc. over the road, titch and reg were hoping for an indication of when they could see theirfamily again. i haven't seen the liverpool grandchildren since january. i haven't seen the reading grandchildren since january. but they think restrictions should have been extended and are now worried. we were sort of like, let's have another three weeks, never mind the grandchildren, let's make it safe. i mean obviously reg is in a situation, he doesn't want to get it, do you?

i mean, i'm diabetic and i've had five different cancers. i don't think that people in this country in england will stay at home. they'll start to go out now. but that doesn't mean... and does that worry you? it worries me because i'm more likely to get it the more people go out. their neighbour matt works for a logistics company. sometimes at home, sometimes in the office. the offices we've got set up so anyone who has to come into the office they are at least two metres apart. so i think from that point of view, if you've done what you should have done for the past three, four weeks you will be ok. but there is one big concern. what message do we give our staff tomorrow? you've got to come into work. they can't because they can't use anyone, the kids can't go to school, they can't go to baby—sitters, they can't go to grandparents. so again, it's just confusion. behind the front doors of britain, people are now working out what boris johnson's words mean to them. how will their lives work

with the new guidelines? danny savage, bbc news, cheshire. let's get more from laura at westminster. lots of questions, laura. we heard them on the reports there are about clarity. where do you think this statement fits in terms of the picture of the need for clarity?” think it's very difficult. first and foremost, what this statement doesn't mean is the end of the uk wide lockdown, far from doesn't mean is the end of the uk wide lockdown, farfrom it. despite expectations that may have been raised, or what people were perhaps hoping for, it is not the end of very major restrictions and limits being placed on all our lives and it was never going to be. what it is, though, in england at least, is the beginning of baby steps of many months of gradual starts of life returning to a different new kind of normal. but because the lockdown affected pretty much every aspect of our life, that means for every

single one of those aspects, the government is going to have to come up government is going to have to come up with an answer. and a 13 minute speech from one of the desks in downing street didn't provide, perhaps could never have provided, every single bit of specific information. but i think, if you like, that has tonight created some very real and immediate questions for people. if they haven't heard from their employer, should they go to work tomorrow? should people decide to behave differently tomorrow? should they go out whereas previously they were deciding to stay behind closed doors? it is important to say that tomorrow the government will publish a 50 page document that should give detailed a nswe rs document that should give detailed answers in black and white to many of these kinds of dilemmas. but it feels a bit as if after political pressure to set out an exit strategy, and an understandable desire in government to move towards the next phase, it's a bit like borisjohnson has the next phase, it's a bit like boris johnson has given the next phase, it's a bit like borisjohnson has given us a rough map of where we might go drawn in marker with few of the finer details

and contours in place names there for us to see. laura kuenssberg, with analysis from westminster, thank you. well, as we've been hearing, workers are being encouraged to return to their places of work if they can't work from home. and the government said it was working with employers to establish guidance about making the workplace safe. our business editor simon jack has been looking at how businesses are adapting. hi—ho, back to work we go. manufacturing workers actively encouraged tonight by the pm to return. at ford's technical centre in dunton, so far 600 of 4,000 employees already have. a squirt of hand gel and a temperature check now part of the morning routine. but feeding the ford 4,000 may take a miracle of organisation. the catering firm compass run the staff canteen and the kitchens that would usually have ten chefs on duty. business is slow. communal areas like staff canteens

one of the big challenges, a lot of people think they should be shot. compass who run this thing they can do it safely. but as you can see it's not that busy. it's not so much whether they think they can do it as whether workers feel comfortable. and that applies to kitchen and canteen workers as well. if employees don't want to do anything we're not going to force anybody to do anything. the priority at the moment is to make sure that they've got the right ppe, they've got the right training and that we put the right processes in place that you've seen today. in the yorkshire dales at the game cock inn the food is takeout only. eric and marie served 56 takeaway sunday lunches this afternoon. the prime minister raised hopes that hospitality could partially reopen injuly. but marie worries that opening to soon may be as risky as not opening four months. we have little rooms as dining rooms and it would mean us having one table per room of diners which isn't worth opening for. we just don't have — you know, the overheads are more expensive than what we'd be bringing in. 0r there is also the other way,

that we might not be opening until next year and by then we won't have the funds to be able to do it either. the truth is that businesses big and small are already inching back to work but it's a journey of confidence and unions aren't convinced the government has everyone on board, particularly as the government says workers should avoid using public transport. i'm afraid the prime minister's statement tonight is a recipe for confusion and possibly chaos. withjust 12 hours' notice, people are being encouraged to go back to work but without any answers on what happens on public transport, what happens if you've got children, what happens if you are supposed to be shielded or vulnerable in some other way. would you like the yoghurt dressing on there? no. back at ford, manufacturing managers feel ready to go. in those areas where we have prepared successfully, which we have, we have prepared diligently, which we have, then i think it's time to go back to work. updated guidelines on making workplaces safe

are expected on tuesday. these are tentative moves forward and the government told business groups on a call tonight it would put them back into reverse if it has to. simon jack, bbc news. the move to reopen schools is seen as a key factor in kick—starting the economy by allowing parents to return to work. we'll talk to our economics editor faisal islam in a moment, but first, our education correspondent elaine dunkley is in salford. elaine, what do you make of this package, and what are the questions raised? well, primary school children in england could be going back to school just over three weeks, those in perception, year one and the essex could be going back after the 1st of june, and the essex could be going back after the 1st ofjune, and the prime minister also announced secondary pupil schools who are taking exams next year could be going back to get extra time are teachers but there will be some big may bes and some even bigger headaches, the headache being social distancing within the classrooms. teachers are very concerned, particularly with primary

school children, that they won't be able to maintain social distancing, hand washing, minimising social interactions in the playground, the classroom, the canteen, and this is going to hugely change the classroom environment. and also there is the issueif environment. and also there is the issue if a child becomes ill, what happens? does the whole school then have to go into isolation? the teaching unions have called this reckless. they have asked for clear, scientific evidence for a safe time to return back to school. they say that this doesn't pass the confidence test, with parents, teachers, and whilst there is a need to have children back at school, this is a big lesson in keeping children, teachers and their families safe. thank you, elaine in sa lfo rd. families safe. thank you, elaine in salford. back here in the studio, faisal islam is here, our economics editor. the government dealing with a huge health crisis and has been for months now, but tell us a little more about the economic crisis that they are also having to deal with.

two crises here, as the prime minister says, hopefully the coronavirus has peaked, but if you cut through everything the prime minister said today, what you get is the fact the economic lockdown in essence stays, largely, and indeed is extended in terms of things like restaurants, cafe is antenna mars, we will get the detail tomorrow, intojuly. that's we will get the detail tomorrow, into july. that's another seven weeks. in other areas though, you will have heard the change in tone, the shift of emphasis as the prime minister called it, from stay—at—home to minister called it, from stay—at— home to stay minister called it, from stay—at—home to stay alert. what's that about? now, i think when the original prohibitions and lockdown was brought in, i think the government didn't expect so many businesses and so many workers that did have some discretion to still work not to take it up. the lockdown wasn't watertight, but it felt more watertight than it was. sol wasn't watertight, but it felt more watertight than it was. so i think that in that what they are trying to do is essentially persuade people to

use the discretion in the existing rules. that's what the prime minister's words were about. there's one more thing. if the infection rate goes up, the prime minister has also said that the brakes will be applied. that has economic implications too, and it is why you cannot disentangle the health and the economic crises, for now the health overtaking the economic reopening. thank you. most of today's measures, as we've been hearing, relate to england, while the devolved governments of scotland, wales and northern ireland make their own decisions about easing the lockdown. in a moment, we'll be speaking to our correspondents in belfast, and cardiff. but first, our scotland editor sarah smith is in glasgow. the first minister there really giving her own very firm message earlier today. absolutely, and she was completely scathing about the prime minister's change of message to stay alert. she says she doesn't even know what it means, and that's why she has asked the uk government not to run their stay alert

advertising campaign in scotland. as we are starting to see really quite significant divergence now among the four nations of the united kingdom, because of course it is the scottish government who is in charge of lockdown rules here and they are prepared only to make one minor change, which is to allow people outdoors more often for exercise. 0ne outdoors more often for exercise. one reason is the rate of virus infection may be slightly higher in scotland. that's one reason why nicola sturgeon is being slightly more cautious. she says if she was to loosen the restrictions here, people could die unnecessarily. well, here in wales, the message remains stay at home as well. only very minor changes kick in tomorrow, but there is a very real, practical problem. what about the thousands of people who live alongside the england — wales border, and crisscross it every day, be it for work, to go shopping, the health care, or in normal times to go to school? what should happen to the people who live in wales but live in

england if they were to get a call from the boss, expecting them back in later this week? 0r flowing at the other way, after borisjohnson suggested people can get in their ca rs suggested people can get in their cars to go and exercise, what would happen if they were to go into wales, they would find themselves on the wrong side of the law, because in wales it is an offence, it is against the rules to use a vehicle to go and do your exercise. we have divergence of course because of devolution. it is a political border. the welsh labour government pretty clear on whose advice they think people should follow. well, northern ireland's political leaders are also sticking with the more cautious approach, continuing to tell people to stay—at—home. both the first ministers and deputy first ministers both on the same page with this. the sdlp leader here went so far as to tell borisjohnson sdlp leader here went so far as to tell boris johnson himself that sdlp leader here went so far as to tell borisjohnson himself that he thought the new stay alert slogan was in his view nonsense. so any changes here are expected to be very gradual, but in about a week's time,

further south, where we will see in the republic of ireland is some outdoor work is being returned to work, because dublin has already said it is going to start reopening some outdoor public amenities, like golf courses for example. and when northern ireland publishes its more detailed plans later this week we will see across the island of ireland how the two jurisdictions compare. thank you all. ministers have said that no measures will be taken to ease the lockdown — if there's a risk of the nhs being overwhelmed. a month ago, our medical correspondent fergus walsh and cameraman adam walker visited the intensive care unit at university college hospital in london — one of the busiest in the uk. they've been back to see what's changed, and how staff are coping. coronavirus is still taking a heavy toll in intensive care. it doesn't feel like it is over by a long shot. some patients have been on a ventilator here

for more than a month. brutal is the word, people stay acutely sick for a long period. it's not just their lungs that are damaged. many have kidney failure and need dialysis. when you are not here, you are still thinking about here. you can't get it out of your mind a lot of the time. in the month since we were last year, drjim down has not become any more optimistic. the disease continues to be a horrible disease, even by itu standards. i don't think i am feeling any more positive. i think i am pretty shell—shocked by this disease, if i am honest. these patients don't get better quickly, so we have had a slow and difficult period of trying to help these patients recover. day after day, week after week, staff are working in foal ppe. day after day, week after week, staff are working in full ppe. although patient numbers

are falling, matron elaine thorpe says the psychological impact on staff is rising. i would say in the last week i am starting to see the emotional trauma coming out in our nurses and doctors. everybody, really. you know, me, for one, i can't get this image out of my head, a group of patients all lying face down, prone, they felt faceless. this is a sobering reminder of the devastating impact of coronavirus. extreme caution will be needed when relaxing lockdown measures, or it could lead to a surge in infections. and that would mean many more patients coming into hospital. as covid wards slowly empty, the dilemma is how and when to reintroduce services, like outpatient appointments and planned surgery. part of the problem is, no matter how ill they feel, many patients without coronavirus are hesitating to come in. josephine, who is 83,

passed out at home. when they said you had to go to hospital, were you concerned? i was. my daughter said to me, you mustn't go to hospital, mum, because of the virus. but i really felt terrible. i was in pain. so i've just got to take a chance and go. of course. which i did. non—covid emergency admissions are down 50%. which may be storing up problems. if you stay at home with a heart attack, you may not die, but then you might have a bigger heart attack than you would otherwise have, and end up with heart failure. or if you do not treat your asthma, with adequate treatment in hospital, you may end up in a much more serious condition. one in two patients with coronavirus do not survive intensive care.

but there are successes, like this man that we met at the beginning of april. hopefully you will be able to see your wife again soon? hopefully, definitely. iam hoping i am hoping so, because she is waiting. i will fight this, definitely. i applaud you guys. the 70—year—old bus driver was finally discharged afterfour weeks in hospital. his first follow—up appointment was done via video. i would have thought you are probably feeling a bit weak? i'm feeling quite good at the moment. my life is like it is normal. with his grateful family, so relieved to have him back. thank you, thank you, thank you! thank you, we got him home! all thanks to you. the reality of the challenges in intensive care — our medical correspondent fergus walsh reporting there. much of the detail behind

the measures will be unveiled in the coming days, so there are still plenty of questions about the practical implications of the steps outlined. our health editor hugh pym is with us. a very gradual approach here — the prime minister said this was a conditional plan. what does that reveal? the key thing is monitoring the r value, the reproduction number of the virus. if it is above one, it means someone with the virus is in average infecting more than one person. it needs to be below one. borisjohnson said it was between 0.5 and 0.9, so the margins are pretty tight. another condition is ensuring there is in a protective equipment and testing capability, capacity, to meet future demand. those don't really seem to have been met right now. as we hinted earlier,

there are lots of practical questions, which have been raised by this plan announced this evening, travelling and who you can see, you can spend time with and all the rest of it. what light can be shed on that, and can we expect more detail on it? there is scope for a bit of confusion here. there is a greatly expanded list of outdoor activities permissible in england as of wednesday, so you can go out now for as much exercise as you want, unlimited, you can stop and enjoy the sunshine or have a picnic in the local park, you can drive to take exercise or visit an outdoor site. you can go to a beach for example, you can do any of that with members of your own household, as long as you come back on the same day. so what about friends or your partner, if they live in a different household? well, if they live in a different household ? well, you if they live in a different household? well, you can meet up with one at a time, as long as you keep to the two metre distancing level. that might be a bit difficult ona level. that might be a bit difficult on a visit to a park or a beach. when it comes to family, elderly

relatives for example, who live in different households, nothing has changed there. for social reasons it is not considered acceptable to go and visit them in their homes. thank you very much. it is exactly 100 days since the first coronavirus case was confirmed in the uk. the impact and reach of the disease has been unprecedented in modern times. our special correspondent allan little traces some of the events that led to the statement delivered tonight in downing street. this report contains some flashing images. january 31st was the day britain left the european union. but earlier that day, it emerged that a chinese student and a relative had tested positive in york. people they had been in contact with were traced and told to self—isolate. this was the strategy known as containment, an attempt to stop the virus moving through the population. and for a time, it seemed to work. but by early march, the virus was spreading widely.

the first death from coronavirus in the uk, is the number of cases doubles in just 48—hours. the news from italy was alarming. hospitals were being overwhelmed. 10,50, 60,70, until200 patients in our emergency department... the country went into lockdown. most of europe followed suit. but britain waited. wash your hands to the national anthem. you've got to do two verses. two verses? yeah. # happy birthday to you # happy birthday to you...# mass gatherings, racing at cheltenham carried on. the virus is deadly. yeah, lads. achoo! a few days after that first death, the strategy changed. containment was ended. the government moved to the delay phase to try to slow, rather than stop, the spread of the virus to help the nhs cope with the numbers. government advisers talked about herd immunity.