another support scheme is unveiled to try to help businesses hit by strict coronavirus rules. the government promises to pay two thirds of staff wages, at venues ordered to close — with the prime minister due to announce more restrictions on monday. the spectre now of further closure is really terrifying. the future is very uncertain, and it's quite scary. we'll hear more about the economic impact of the covid pandemic. also tonight: coronavirus infections double in one week in england — and hospital admissions are on the rise. 21,000 jobs at risk as the edinburgh woollen mill chain, the owner of peacocks, plans to call in the administrators. last orders, folks! strict rules are now in force across large

parts of scotland — making many pubs and restau ra nts ta keaway only. and the show must go on — ten pantos could be staged across the country this christmas after an injection of lottery money. and coming up on bbc news, the king of clay, nadal, reaches another french open final as he closes in on federer‘s grand slam record. good evening. just a fortnight after he unveiled his job support scheme to help companies struggling during the pandemic, the chancellor rishi sunak has been forced to expand it. he's announced new measures to help businesses which legally have to close because of coronavirus restrictions. in scotland, some pubs

and restaurants had to shut this evening for at least 16 days — and many more may be told to close in some parts of england next week. the prime minister will make a statement to mps on monday. under the chancellor's latest scheme, the government will pay two thirds of the wages of people in businesses which are ordered to shut. the measures come into effect on the 1st of november across the uk, and last for six months. and for affected firms in england, there's an increase in grants — with up to £3,000 a month, paid every fortnight. but some businesses say they can't survive another period of closure, even with financial assistance. here's our consumer affairs correspondent sarah corker. local lockdowns and reduced opening hours are already hurting hospitality. 0n the edge of greater manchester, altrincham has been under tighter rules sincejuly and the prospect of pubs and restaurants being forced to close in areas with high infection rates has

angered business owners. it's disastrous because the minute the tap is turned off, you've got no ability to generate any income. the hospitality industry is being completely and utterly slated and the spectre now of further closure is really terrifying. there will be more help to cushion the blow — staff working for companies told to close by law will get two thirds of their wages paid for by the government. so, today i'm announcing an expansion of ourjob support scheme, specifically to protect those jobs of people who work in businesses that may be asked to close. if that happens, those workers will receive two thirds of their wages for the time that they're unable to go to work. and listening closely to that is william robinson, whose brewery runs 260 pubs across the north west. i think there is definitely a relief that he's listening. he says if some are told to shut, wage support and an increase

in business grants of up to £3000 a month will take some of the pressure off. the closure of a business and the reopening of a business, when that happens, and if that happens, will be very expensive for small businesses and large businesses. they've a lot of costs and depending on the level of grant they get, will depend whether that will really truly cover their expenses or not. the hospitality sector has a raft of safety measures in place and says it's being unfairly singled out, and the big unknown is for those businesses that may have to close their doors again, will today's extra financial support be enough to help them survive in the long term? the landlady of the bull's head in trafford fears a difficult winter ahead. the future is very uncertain and it's quite scary. you know, we've done a beer order. do i need the beer? don't know. does it need to go down the drain? mayors representing cities in the north of england say the chancellor's measures don't go

far enough, while labour wants more to be done to protectjobs. in other countries, those schemes are working to incentivise employers to keep people in work. his scheme, the chancellor's scheme, is just not doing that sufficiently and we're seeing the impact in the levels of unemployed people. and the extra financial support will only apply to businesses told to close by the government, and all this at the start of what should be the lucrative christmas period. sarah corker, bbc news, in greater manchester. let's talk to economics editor faisal islam. what is your assessment of the scale of what rishi sunak announced today. the treasury says this is not a u—turn, they have listened to the voices of they have listened to the voices of the likes of the northern mayors in changing circumstances. there is a partial reverse. this is a continuation for a smaller number of the originalfurlough continuation for a smaller number of the original furlough scheme that was due to stop at the end of this

month. at the scope is much smaller. we are talking about a few hundred thousand workers. we don't actually know who, because it depends, of course, on which sectors, in which cities and regions, are actually shut down. we will find that out soon. we are talking a few hundred thousand, a few hundred million a month, not billions and billions. that is because the mud wants to target support. its strategy, even though on some metrics we are on the same level of infection as we were in march, when the original lockdown happened, they wanted to deal with that locally because of the economy. and we had more figures today, and another reminder of the sheer impact that this pandemic is having on the broader economy? huge hits on the economy due to the widespread national shutdown in april, let me show you the chart of that. you can see the big cliff, that v shape, in april. we started to get a bounce

backin april. we started to get a bounce back in the economy and it was growing pretty rapidly as the lights are switched back on. that has begun to slow down in august. there were some fears that the recovery is beginning to peter out even before we have the prospect of these new restrictions. thank you. let's talk to our political correspondent alex forsyth. we know tonight, alex, that we will be hearing from borisjohnson on monday? yes, we know there has been concern in downing street about the spread of the virus for some time, which has led to days of speculation about the possibility of tougher restrictions in the worst affected areas, including perhaps some temporary closures of pubs and bars. but there has been no detail, no clarity. critics say it has merely added to confusion and anxiety. i think that is in part why we had that statement from the chancellors today, an attempt to reassure support will be in place for businesses that might have to close. still no detail of when or where that might happen. we will hear from the prime minister, who will address parliament on monday to set out the

next steps. tonight, number 10 has written to some of the mps from the north—west and said it is very likely that certain local areas will face further restrictions. we expect there will be a three tier system introduced, with different measures depending on the severity of cases in each area. downing street is very keen to stress that local leaders will be involved in making those decisions before they are implemented. something of adding knowledge and, i think of the frustration and anger that some local and regional leaders have felt in the way that restrictions have been managed so far. the details will be pinned down, in downing street over the weekend. it's fair to assume at this point that the package of measures that the chancellor announced today will be put to the test pretty soon. well, this is the latest government data about new infections. 13,864 were recorded in the latest 24—hour period — down from just over 17,500 yesterday. it means the average number of new cases reported per day in the last week, is 15,505.

hospital admissions are also up. on average, 561 people were admitted every day over the past week. those figures don't include scotland. 87 deaths have been reported — that's people who died within 28 days of a positive test for covid—19. it means on average in the past week, 59 deaths were announced every day. that takes the total number of deaths so far across the uk to 42,679. the number of coronavirus cases in england has doubled in a week, with the north east, north west and yorkshire & the humber the worst affected areas, according to the latest data. the office for national statistics estimates that one in 240 people in england had the virus in the last week of september, with more than 17,000 people catching it every day. 0ur health editor hugh pym has been examining the figures. more testing, part of the drive to

rein in the spread of coronavirus. here at nottingham university, helping students get a quick result if they have symptoms. a sharp increase in infections in some areas is why the government at westminster are set to announce new restrictions next week. 0ne survey involving random testing of people in the community showed that in a week in the middle of september, there were over 116,000 people infected in england. by the following week, that had nearly doubled to 224,000, meaning one in 240 of the population had the virus. in wales, the figure in the middle of september was about 6500. by the next week, it had come down a bit, with the proportion one in 500 infected in the population. but how well is testing and contact tracing in england functioning? there are fewer people getting results back in 24 hours and fewer of their close contacts being reached.

there are reports the system isn't working efficiently. these kent university students are isolating after three tested positive. that's what they told the test and trace system, but they're frustrated to be getting repeated and unnecessary calls. six, seven times a day i get a phone call, being like, "oh, you know someone who's tested positive, make sure you're isolating", and then it's just the same call, the same kind of phone call every single day, like multiple times a day. none of them seem to be in contact with one another. like telling each other that... there doesn't seem to be a system put in place to tell them that they've already got in contact with us. mm. or that we've even tested positive, because sometimes they call and they don't know that we've tested positive already. there's mounting concern over rising infections in the north west and some of these resulting in people getting seriously ill, with hospitals coming under more pressure. daily hospital admissions with covid—19 in the north west

of england were fairly low and stable until the start of september. then they started rising steadily, with sharper increases in the most recent few days. so, what's happening here? well, this line shows the number of cases per 100,000 amongst the over 60s, and that's been rising at the same rate. we're obviously concerned, as i think everybody is around the country, with the increasing numbers that we are seeing. in terms of that impact on the hospital, we are busy but we have plans in place to cope. at the western general hospital in edinburgh, some patients, thought to be fewer than five, have died in a coronavirus outbreak in a cancer ward. six others have tested positive. it's now been closed to new admissions and discharges. another example of the potentially deadly impact of the virus. hugh pym, bbc news. and hugh is with me. what have we

learned today about how quickly cases are going up? well, jane, a regular survey a week ago was suggesting the rate of growth of the virus mightjust suggesting the rate of growth of the virus might just be suggesting the rate of growth of the virus mightjust be levelling off. but it is saying something very different now. it is the office for national statistics saying that the virus is increasing rapidly, doubling in england over the most recent week. it covered another survey by imperial college london, giving a similar sort of outlook, and saying that these high infection rates in the north of england might possibly be replicated soon across the whole country. now, the thing about these surveys is that they cover a section of the population who don't have symptoms and who have not come forward for tests. notjust those who want to go and get tested. so, that is very important. what does all this mean for the next few weeks? well, it might suggest that restrictions introduced in a few weeks back have not had the desired effect, which is why the government, as we have been hearing, is planning

more for england. the problem is hospital admissions which, as we have seen, are rising rapidly in some areas. they relate to cases going back ten days or more. so anything introduced next week will ta ke anything introduced next week will take a while to take effect. people have already got the virus, and they may well become sick. and that may push admissions up even further. and thatis push admissions up even further. and that is what the nhs is concerned about. hugh, thank you. hugh pym. the high street chain edinburgh woollen mill, which also owns peacocks and jaeger, is close to collapse — putting 21,000 jobs at risk. the company says it will continue to trade while trying to find a solution for the future of the businesses, but it's warned staff of significant store closures. its sales have been hit hard by the coronavirus pandemic. our business correspondent emma simpson reports. edinburgh woollen mill, known for its cashmere for older shoppers and tartan for tourists, but these customers have been thin on the ground.

local lockdowns haven't helped. another high street retailer on the brink. everywhere is closing, aren't they, unfortunately? everywhere's closing and it's just one of those things. it's just a shame for everybody. people will lose jobs and it's a sad thing. edinburgh woollen mill is part of a retail empire, owned by the billionaire philip day. there's peacocks fashion, ponden home stores and jaeger — 1100 shops in all, with 21,000 jobs now at risk. they are a familiar sight on so many of our high streets. this store is open but most have remained closed since locked down because of a lack of shoppers. suppliers have also been demanding payments up front and then there's the end of the furlough scheme this month, just too many problems. it now has ten days to find a solution. in a statement, the ceo said...

certainly in smaller towns where these are important stores and tourist areas, where lots of people come and see them in the weeks and in the winter, as they come to these stores, and they're not easy to replace and i think the big concern here is — how do we replace these jobs? because it's jobs on a massive scale. stores that are open are continuing as normal. a business that lost too many shoppers now battling to stay afloat. emma simpson, bbc news. the merseyside borough of knowsley has one of the highest coronavirus infection rates in england — 602 cases per 100,000 of the population. it's also one of the most deprived parts of the country, and unlike some other areas which have seen big increases it doesn't have a large student population. our special correspondent, ed thomas, reports. i live on the 13th floor and i'm thinking i'm safe up there because it's down here.

as coronavirus cases spike, peter has decisions to make. i've got a 14—year—old daughter in school. some of the students have got it in the school and i'm thinking, should i pull her out or should i keep her in? why don't you just stay at home with her and look after her? because obviously i've got to go to work. i still provide for my daughter. all too real... i've got to keep her safe. a close elderly family member is now ill. her two kidneys are packing in and she has been tested as positive, as covid—19. do you think she's going to make it? no. so, what next for knowsley? shut it down. there's too many people out in the streets. we've done that once before and it's back. we didn't do it long enough. can you cope with another lockdown? no, because, as i say, i've got no other income. what i earn here, i live on. this is real. why has it got so bad here? we honestly don't know and we look at manchester and liverpool, they've got big student populations but here in knowsley, we haven't. so we don't know, we don't

know how it's spread? no. the test and trace we have today, is it fit to bring the numbers down in this area? no, absolutely not. so that can't do it? no. we're seeing the national system failed. so this virus is endemic across this place? yes. so, more than likely, a stricter lockdown is coming. this is the most left behind town in the whole of britain. care merseyside helps feed and support the most vulnerable here. the crisis coming here is going to be a mental health crisis. a poverty crisis on top of a poverty crisis. and so many are already struggling with local restrictions. it's illegal in knowsley for households to mix indoors. ijust really missed home the last few weeks. lily offers mental health support to children and young people. do you have a good relationship, a good support network? she helped britney through the first lockdown. now, it doesn't matter how far it is because i can't go home.

since the pandemic, the number of people contacting lily every week has trebled. hey, lily, you 0k? it's made already big issues into even bigger issues. and some are in real crisis. there are a lot of thoughts of suicide at the minute. and is the increasing? definitely. all the hopes for the future are just gone because they don't know what tomorrow brings, so they can't imagine the next ten years. hi, how are you? the anxiety of uncertainty. how old is she? eight months. bill's 90. he's already shielded for most of the year. when's the last time you hugged her? it's an awful long time. he misses his grandkids the most. you're a moa ny little baby, aren't you? do you remember your granddad? have you been lonely at times? sometimes it is, yeah. but what can you do? you've got to keep going, haven't you? but there are no promises when all this will end. ed thomas, bbc news, knowsley.

pubs and restaurants across scotland are now subject to strict new coronavirus restrictions. in five health board areas in the central belt, which includes glasgow and edinburgh, they've had to close completely until october 25th, although they can still serve takeaways. premises outside this area can serve alcohol — but only outdoors, until 10pm. they can though open for food and non—alcoholic drinks during the day, closing at 6pm. the first minister, nicola sturgeon, said a further steep increase in cases was a sharp reminder of the seriousness of the situation. 0ur scotland editor sarah smith is glasgow. sarah. this is very definitely not what the centre of glasgow usually looks like at this time on a friday night but everything is shut, the streets are very, very quiet. and although this is not a return to a

total lockdown, anything but, it still feels really pretty grim. last orders, folks! calling time at six o'clock in scotland. all bars in central scotla nd scotland. all bars in central scotland are now closed for 16 days. in other parts of the country, alcohol can only be served outside. most of my friends are angry about the whole thing. i mean, they feel as if they're being penalised. you've got to do something. although, i'm not entirely convinced that the pub's the problem. i think it's quite sad. but probably for the best! staff can be furloughed on 60% of their wages and the scottish government will spend £40 million to help the hospitality sector. but many feel the new restrictions are unnecessary and unfair. this is a very safe, controlled environment. we've got measures in place that prevent infection. we've not had any cases of infection in here since we opened injuly and ijust feel that maybe people are being encouraged to go to places

that are not controlled. atan ic at an ic protest by hospitality staff outside glasgow city chambers, social distancing didn't seem to be a priority. now the pubs have shut, it might be more difficult to regulate people's behaviour. in scotland, we are not allowed to visit other houses in our own homes that the off—licences are doing a brisk trade tonight and while the police are on the street, it might be house parties that the problem. the first minister admits the restrictions are and painful. all governments are trying to strike right now almost impossible balances between lives and jobs and speaking for the scottish government, we are trying to do that as best we can. in aberdeen and elsewhere outside the central belt, alcohol can be served outside but many venues do not think it is worth staying open. cafes can open until 6pm. somewhere, at least, for people to socialise

but there has been much confusion over what constitutes a cafe. the police have extra officers, highly visible on patrol across scotla nd highly visible on patrol across scotland this evening. crowds of people who didn't have anywhere else to go were told they couldn't gather in the streets. inevitably, jobs will be lost and some businesses may close. a gloomy mood has descended ona close. a gloomy mood has descended on a nation deprived now of drinks and also of cheer. let's take a look at some of today's other news. an inquestjury has criticised police for using restraints on a schizophrenic man who later died while in custody. southwark coroners court heard that kevin clarke repeatedly told officers that he couldn't breathe, when they put him in handcuffs and leg restraints to take him to hospital in london in 2018. a jury has heard how some of the 39 people who died in a shipping container last october had recorded farewell messages to their families. the vietnamese nationals,

who were aged between 15 and 44, suffocated as they were transported from belgium to essex. four men are on trial at the old bailey in connection with the deaths. the foreign ministers of armenia and azerbaijan have been holding ceasefire talks about the disputed territory of nagorno karabakh. it's the countries' first direct negotiation after nearly two weeks of renewed fighting. the russian president, vladimir putin, has urged both sides to end hostilities. premier league games not selected for broadcast in october will be made available on a pay—per—view basis. each game will cost nearly £15, with clubs calling it an interim solution to allow fans to continue watching their team live. a hospital trust is being prosecuted, following the death of a week old baby in its care. an inquest found that the death of harry richford following treatment at the queen elizabeth the queen mother hospital in margate

in 2017, was "wholly avoidable". england's independent regulator, the care quality commission, has said east kent hospitals university nhs foundation trust is charged with exposing the child and his mother to significant risk of avoidable harm. michael buchanan reports. we were failed. harry was failed. we've really had to suffer and we will have to suffer for the rest of our lives. harry richford should be approaching his third birthday, but a catalogue of serious failures at birth led to harry's death at just seven—days—old. today, the nhs trust that should have cared for him was charged over his avoidable death. i think we're really happy with the cqc decision. it just shows that from day one that we were put in a pretty terrible situation at the trust and the care that sarah and harry both received was completely inadequate at the time. the problems occurred at this hospital in margate. staff delayed arranging a caesarean section, didn't carry out the operation properly, then made errors when

resuscitating him. an inquest in january concluded that neglect had contributed to harry's death. we both blamed ourselves and we didn't know why this had happened and the more we realised the trust were at fault, the less we blame ourselves and the more we can look at them as an organisation that failed us. the east kent trust is one of england's largest and these criminal charges are the first time an acute nhs trust has been charged with poor patient care. today, it accepted it had failed to provide safe care and treatment to harry and his mother and apologised unreservedly. i think we wanted people to be held accountable for what happened and for some sort ofjustification for what happened and i feel like we have got answers from the inquest and we are being heard and harry didn't die for no reason. harry richford's death has been the catalyst for an independent inquiry into maternity care

in east kent, giving real hope of lasting improvements. michael buchanan, bbc news, kent. donald trump is to go back on the campaign trail for the first time since testing positive for coronavirus. he'll speak at a rally in florida on monday. there's less than a month to go to the us election — and much will depend on whether president trump can hold on to closely contested states like arizona, which he won four years ago. from there, sophie long has been looking at how his handling of the pandemic has gone down with voters. this is what the republican campaign looks like... ..and this the democrat. in the same state, on the same day, two opposite visions of america and what it should be. the pandemic has dominated this campaign. four more years! but will it change the way people vote?

absolutely, because the news has made an impact on the election. 100%. unfortunately, yes. i think they have got people to be extremely afraid. and for months now they have been telling them to stay home and that it's trump's fault. i loved trump before he had the virus. i love him after he has the virus. woo! yes! whilejoe biden may be campaigning quietly, his supporters are making themselves heard and they have different thoughts on the president's response to the pandemic. it's a slap on his own face. it's coming back to bite him. he made it like it was nothing the whole time, and now he has it. so, that made him look like he was treating our country like it was a game. like it was a joke. our current president doesn't know how to manage a major issue for the country, or a health issue for the whole world ? arizona used to be a ruby—red state that any republican candidate

could rely on but it's been changing, fast. there are now more young people, more latinos and, with an influx of people from more liberal leaning states, more democrats. president trump will have to work hard to hold it. if he can't win here, you have to worry. joe biden may be riding high in the polls, but at the annual arizona bike week, there is deep scepticism, of them, of how coronaviruses are counted, and even votes themselves. they going to use fear to sway the election, they're going to make people so afraid of the virus, they're going to keep them home, away from the polls. and i think that the mail—in voting is going to be manipulated. do you think he'll win the white house? i'd like for him to. i think so. i think the people that... that are just tired of the bs, are people that don't really get heard. they're tired of the nonsense. this world has gone batshit crazy. both president trump and joe biden know whoever wins here could ride all the way to the white house.

sophie long, bbc news, arizona. there's not been much to laugh about in 2020, but some relief is on hand, after the national lottery announced a scheme to help theatres stage pantomimes this christmas. it means the curtain will rise on up to ten pantos around the country, with as many as a quarter of a million tickets available. 0ur arts editor, will gompertz, reports. so, it turns out there is going to be pantomime this christmas after all. oh, no, there's not! oh, yes, there is. after the national lottery stepped in to the breach and effectively offered to subsidise about ten different pantomimes around the country by purchasing the seats that have to remain empty because of social distancing. it wasn't financially viable for producers to put on shows to half—empty theatres due to reduced capacity because of covid. but now the national lottery is paying for those unsellable seats, marked with an x, the show can go on.