secondly, why have official travel advice from the fco been so slow to match what is happening on thepeaker, when the dust settles on this crisis, as we all hope it eventually well, we will reflect on what has been a chronic failure of global leadership and coordination in which our own government has sadly been one of the parties. instead of every country working together to agree best practice and apply common standards, on testing, tracking, travel restrictions, quarantine, self isolation and social distancing, we have instead seen a global free for all, and every country has been going it alone. instead of the international community coming together, to pull its experience, and work together to develop a vaccine and a cure, we have seen individual companies and countries working in silos, and the shameful attempt by donald trump to buy the german company when it comes to discovering a vaccine, not just to steal the glory of a vaccine for himself, but to hoard it for the americans alone, mr speaker, the challenges posed by coronavirus are fearful enough for the world without our le

the fco will always consider the safety a nd the fco will always consider the safety and security ofonals and so i have taken the decision to advise them against nonessential travel globally for initial period of 30 days and of course subject to ongoing review. from now everyone is advised to avoid public transport unless essential and when possible to work from home, to avoid gatherings with family and friends, and in pubs, cinemas, theatres and restaurants. those over 70, with underlying health conditions or pregnant are advised to follow the guidelines. ba rs advised to follow the guidelines. bars and clubs that would have anticipated busy st patrick's day celebrations are now preparing for the opposite and for summit means uncertainty. what they have done is landed me with the guilt. i have the rock and a hard place of remaining open so i do not invalidate my insurance, all closing and not having anything to pay my staff. cinema chains including 0deon and cineworld announced they are closing until further notice. ministers cineworld announced they are closing untilfurther notice.

fco teams around the world are working urgently to ensure that governments have sensible plans to enablellers and crucially, to keep borders open for sufficient periods to enable returns to take place on commercial flights whatever that is possible. in cusco, and other parts of peru, british tourists like lauren are stuck. i cannot get out of peru, they've cancelled all flights to get out of peru. the country is in lockdown. it's very scary, mainly for the fact that if it's just a 14—day lockdown, it's not pleasant, but we can get over it. but then it's not knowing what's going to happen and the fact we can't leave the hostel. stephen is in the capital, lima. we're worried about potential social unrest, we don't have any food, we're going to go to a supermarket shortly. we're young and healthy but of course we are also worried about what would happen if we get sick. tom burridge, bbc news. much more you —— much more for you on all the news on our website. reach me in the team on twitter. coming up right now, sport today. hello, i'm maz farookhi, and this is sport today, live from the bbc

fco teams around the world are working urgently to ensure that governments have sensible plans to enablely, to keep borders open for sufficient periods to enable returns to take place on commercial flights whatever that is possible. in cusco, and other parts of peru, british tourists like lauren are stuck. i cannot get out of peru, they've cancelled all flights to get out of peru. the country is in lockdown. it is very scary, mainly for the fact that if it's just a 14—day lockdown, it's not pleasant but we can get over it but then it's not knowing what is going to happen and the fact we cannot leave the hostel. stephen is in the capital, lima. we are worried about potential social unrest, we do not have any food, we are going to go to a supermarket shortly. we are young and healthy but of course we are also worried about what would happen if we get sick. tom burridge, bbc news. bt sucks, leo varadkar, has said the and people who have long—term illnesses may soon have to stay at home for several weeks. —— the taisoeach. in his saint patrick's day address he wants the country would be deal

we were allowed to come here, the fco told us it was safe to come here.elled if they thought it wasn't. we feel for you and we hope this is resolved as quickly as possible. do keep us up—to—date with how things are going there and we wish you all the best, thank you. in the uk, the government is stressing that there is more than enough food to go round and people have no need to stockpile. the environment and food secretary, george eustice, said people should think of others, especially health workers who needed to shop at the end of their gruelling shifts. 0ur political correspondent, nick eardley, has this report. it is a sight many of us have got used to over the last few days. queues of shoppers this morning, people waiting to stock up on food and supplies. anotherfamiliar scene inside, empty shelves, which have meant some of us haven't been able to get the essentials. so this afternoon, a plea from the government — don't buy more than you need. be responsible when you go shopping and think of others. buying more than you need means that others may be

that applies to every one's the fco will advise on their travel, then, if you cancel now, thinking thatwill lose any money you have paid. this is within scotland. not one for the foreign office. well, no, there is no alert in scotland. that would be down to scotland. and this, a five hour stopover in miami, flying from cancun. can they still travel there to transit if they don't intend to leave the airport? speak to the travel agent, see if they can change it to a direct flight they can change it to a direct flight because the chances are everything is changing, the us may say only flights in transit, there is no definitive. something that is fluid. a transit through the us. ali says, if you are in a country imposing a ban on incoming flights, can you get home when you are already there, will they send an empty plane? that will depend on guidance and the airlines. again, we are not short on the exact situation. no, not sure. john asks, i am on a ca rava n no, not sure. john asks, i am on a caravan site in spain, what can i do to get to the eurotunnel in calais, will i be allowed to trave

fco teams around the world are working urgently to ensure that governments have sensible plans to enableally, to keep borders open for sufficient periods to enable returns to take place on commercial flights whatever that is possible. in cusco, and other parts of peru, british tourists like lauren are stuck. i can't get out of peru, they've cancelled all flights to get out of peru. the country is in lockdown. it is very scary, mainly for the fact that it isn'tjust a 14 day lockdown, it is not pleasant but we can get over it but then it's not knowing what is going to happen and the fact we cannot leave the hostel. stephen is in the capital, lima. we are worried about potential social unrest, we do not have any food, we are going to go to a supermarket shortly. we are young and healthy but of course we are also worried about what would happen if we get sick. tom burridge, bbc news. this evening, it was announced that no newjury trial in england and wales should start unless it is expected to last for three days or less, because of the dangers posed by coronavirus. all cases estimated to la

fco teams around the world are working urgently to ensure that governments have sensible plans to enablelly, to keep borders open for sufficient periods to enable returns to take place on commercial flights whatever that is possible. in cusco, and other parts of peru, british tourists like lauren are stuck. i cannot get out of peru, they've cancelled all flights to get out of peru. the country is in lockdown. it is very scary, mainly for the fact that it isn'tjust a 14 day lockdown, it is not pleasant but we can get over it but then it's not knowing what is going to happen and the fact we cannot leave the hostel. stephen is in the capital, lima. we are waiting for potential social unrest, we do not have any food, we are going to go to a supermarket shortly. we are young and healthy but of course we are also worried about what would happen if we get sick. tom burridge, bbc news. despite all the turmoil — schools and nurseries remain open — but for how much longer? the prime minister said he was keeping it under continous review. the largest education union is urging the government to clos

instructions of their travel operators which have all too often in recent weeks been at odds with the official fcoiven by the fear of insurance claims and bankruptcy, not by the needs of our citizens. the government cannot keep passing the buck to others especially when it comes to repatriation. yes, it's difficult, yes it is expensive, but that is the nature of the crisis that we face. when the dust settles in this crisis as we all hope it eventually will, we will reflect on what has been a chronic failure of global leadership and coordination which our own government has sadly been one of the parties. instead of every country working together to agree best practice and apply common standards on testing, tracking and travel restrictions on quarantines myself isolation and social distancing, we have instead seen a global free for all when every country has been going it alone. and instead of the international community coming together to pool its experience and work together to develop a vaccine and a cure we have again seen individual countries working in silos, and the shameful attempt by donald

most airlines and insurance companies ta ke airlines and insurance companies take their cue from the fco & commonwealth office, so the moment that advice is given, you shouldn't fly to that place, flights definitely are not going, then that is fine. you will get your refund or at least you should get your refund in all but the most exceptional circumstances. the more difficult one is when you do not want to go somewhere, you one is when you do not want to go somewhere, you are one is when you do not want to go somewhere, you are what is known as disinclined, to use the jargon, because frankly what is the fun of, say, going to japan if everything is closed down, disney world there is closed down, disney world there is close down, all the museums are shut, i am afraid to say that you are very unlikely, a travel insurance policy is very unlikely to pay out just insurance policy is very unlikely to pay outjust because you, understandably, do not want to go. you need to wait for the government toissue you need to wait for the government to issue the specific warning that you cannot travel to

my colleagues in the fco, dominic raab and others, are working night and day to make sure we can getd the world. in the first instance through commercial means, but also through repatriation flights in exceptional circumstances, for example by chattering. as you know, a british airways charter flight arrived back from peru yesterday and the fco are working to get more flights confirmed in the coming days. did you want to add anything? yes. nhs staff are obviously critical, and like any member of the public, there isa like any member of the public, there is a possibility that they will get the virus. we keep them protected at work, but they will also have to self—isolate and quarantine if they develop symptoms that are compatible with covid—19. 0f develop symptoms that are compatible with covid—19. of course, in the work we are doing to increase nhs capacity, we have to take into account that some staff will be off for those reasons and i can assure you that we have been planning for this since very early on injanuary, even before the world health organization called it a pandemic. we

battling the coronavirus is the public health workers, as well as the exceptional support is abided by the fcoto help uk businesses and households manage through an economic shock that could prove large, but will ultimately be temporary. the bank will take all necessary steps to support the uk economy and financial systems. we are monitoring the situation closely across all our functions and ensuring that all necessary contingency plans are in place. the mpc is assessing the policy implications of various policy scenarios, including the extent to which supply disruptions have consequences by a fax on cash flow, the cost and availability of finance, as well as confidence effects. the treasury has confirmed that the budget has been redrawn to protect the economy. later this afternoon we will be answering your questions on coronavirus. that is coming up at three 30p and bbc news. —— at 3:30pm. bishop auckland in county durham with its 25,000 residents used to be the heart of coal—mining country, but the gradual demise of the industry has brought with it decades of economic decline. so with clarks

worth going onto the fco website to look in detail.over to the premier league and here more about the decision there. laura, fill us in. a massive decision has been made this morning to suspend all elite football in england until the 4th of april. that is the intended date to resume, but obviously no guarantees at this stage. in scotland, they have suspended all professional and grassroots football. no decision made yet on grass roots in england, but this is an unprecedented situation. it is quite hard to emphasise the scale of the decision that has been made and the ramifications of it. of course it will present questions about when the season will be finished and whether they will be able to fulfil all of the fixtures, but at this stage they have said that for three weeks they will be no elite football in england. i suppose, given that we know the government doesn't expect the virus to peak for another ten to 14 weeks, the question that you raise about how to finish the season is going to be very low lying for the next few months. ex

if the fco advises brits to return, does that negate travel insurance perhaps for stu d e nts negateling around the world who have not got a return flight, so they don't have a contractual relationship with a private company, so what do they do? and that is one of their problems. and then they buy a ticket and the flight is cancelled and they have given a credit voucher and they have given a credit voucher and are told they will come home a couple of months and in the meantime they have no means in which to live. and they cannot work in australia any more because the jobs are gone and we don't want to see british people being destitute. so these... and insurance is negated if the foreign office has advised him to return? i don't know is the honest a nswer return? i don't know is the honest answer but i do know there are people whose insurance has run out because they have overstayed so they only had insurance until the end of their holiday and now they don't have insurance because it is gone. so what did they do? if they had insurance to the 24th of march but have not been able to ge

i have spoken to the fco today. they confirmed the flight booked for tomorrow evening.n airport would be, and my concern was, if everyone would be tested, would they —— before they got on the flight. would they —— before they got on the flight. my mum has been in quarantine for five days now and i would imagine they should test everyone before they get on the flight everyone before they get on the flight or else they would be cooped up flight or else they would be cooped up in an air—conditioned plane furtherup to 12 hours, up in an air—conditioned plane further up to 12 hours, and that's my massive concern now, nobody can tell you. i want my mum home but i wa nt tell you. i want my mum home but i want her home safely as well. that is perfectly understandable. margaret, you must be aware that older people are more at risk from this virus. is that concerning passengers on the ship? presumably thatis passengers on the ship? presumably that is what you want to get off as quickly as possible. that is what you want to get off as quickly as possiblelj that is what you want to g

the fco said they will be flown back to the uk this evening, arriving back in the uk sometime tomorrowng uk time. but beyond even the ship there is a real feeling the american authorities are trying to get a handle on how to deal with this crisis. here in san francisco there have not been particular problems, there is a feeling they will try to stop large gatherings of people, there will be sports events that may be stopped from taking place to ensure that people do not gather and as far as president trump and vice president mike pence, who has been put in charge of leading the task force trying to deal with this problem, they are trying to ensure that health insurers give people access to tests to try and get a real sense of just how access to tests to try and get a real sense ofjust how widespread the coronavirus is within the us. that is one of the key things. some would say they have been slow to respond particularly with the lack of testing kits but they are trying to grapple with it and get a grip on that before there is a real problem in this country. chris, many thanks for the

public health officials and volunteers across the country as well as the exceptional efforts of the fcok citizens abroad. the bank of england's role is to help uk businesses and households manage through an economic shock that could prove large and sharp, but should be temporary. that is why the bank is announcing today a comprehensive and timely package of measures to help uk households and businesses bridge across the economic disruption caused by covid—19. these measures will help keep firms in business and people in jobs and they will prevent a temporary disruption from causing longer lasting economic harm. maximising the effectiveness of our response requires coordination across all the bank's policy committees. that is why all policy committees. that is why all policy committees are simultaneously acting today, maximising the effectiveness of our response requires working in concert with her majesty's treasury. that is why were acting on budget day, when the chancellor will announce a series of government initiatives to support uk households and businesses. and maximising the effe

watching the programme, it is important that they do contact the foreign & commonwealth office, the fcod check it, but also if you need to travel for some reason, you need to travel for some reason, you should absolutely check on the new checklist in the foreign & commonwealth office website. what are you you saying about concerns of the british government being out of step with other countries? in germany, they asked shutting some borders and in scotland, they are stopping mass gatherings of over 500 and there seems to be some criticism that the government here is out of step with other parts of the world. there are two things on this was up on is, we are absolutely, read —— religiously, if you like, following the advice of medical and scientific offices. we think the best way to handle this is not to do what politicians think is the right thing to do but to do what the experts, the scientists, the medical experts tell us needs to be done. that is the first thing and that is been the hallmark of the way that the british government has been handling this. the second thing i would say is

should the worst happen, should the fco decide to ban travel to that particular country, you will gete seeing is this delay. people are waiting to see what is going to happen. nick, this is from paul hazlewood in scarborough. i have returned from rome on the 5th of march. i do not have any symptoms, do not believe i have any symptoms, do not believe i have come into contact with anyone with coronavirus. should i self—isolate? it with coronavirus. should i self— isolate ? it is with coronavirus. should i self—isolate? it is a confusing situation because the situation changes very quickly. the latest information from the foreign office is people returning from anywhere in italy should stay indoors and avoid contact with other people, even if they have not developed symptoms. that is only from people who returned from italy on or after the 9th of march. for phil, he is fine because he was there on the fifth, i came back on the 5th of march. those who have visited other regions in northern italy, that advice goes back two weeks. i would advise people to look at the department of health we

you need the fco to advise against travel. very straightforward.tioning safe on ferries? it is a very good question. i have not seen any communications from brittany ferries about it apart from brittany ferries about it apart from the usual, your health is paramount to us. it's a good question. we need to dig into that a bit more. brian asks whether, in light of the prime minister advising the over 70s, for example, not to go on cruises, does that apply to river cruises or just oceangoing cruise is? it does apply to river cruises actually. viking have cancelled all cruises right up until may. in those cases, all shipping lines now, there are so many of them, all these ocean liners as well, they are offering refunds but they don't really want to give you your money back. they would much rather you postpone your cruise until another date. they might give you a credit note app to about 100%, 125%. i don't know if people will go for that. i think cruising has been dealt quite a toxic blow. another cruise question, it has been suggested anyone over 65 w

at that point there was no fco guidance not to travel.ng? how are you and your wife doing, are you ok? we are perfectly fine. there's nobody in the hotel showing any signs or symptoms of the virus, but the streets here in pathos are virtually empty. there no restau ra nts pathos are virtually empty. there no restaurants open, no bars, cafes, only take aways during takeaway coffee, that's it. it's like a ghost town. thank you for spending a bit of time with us on the programme this morning, i hope you and your wife and some of the others we were talking about get home safely at some stage and i hope you're well looked after. thank you, james. thank you, take care. seems very calm in the face of lots of tricky things and situations. when you try to get in contact with the airline and the travel read, and you're not getting the advice you require, all you want to do is get home. there's some things we do know about and it is mostly cancellations, isn't it, jane? there's been a platter of them. it's a long list. easier to tell you what is goi

if that situation does change at all, the fco are updating their website around 2pm everyday.and anyone who has been to italy in the past two weeks is going to be unwelcome in an increasing number of countries. that then raises the question, if you have an eq passport, it may not be stance, so how would they know? but need to be aware of those bands coming into effect. i'm 69, booked a flight coming into effect. i'm 69, booked a flight to paris for the 28th of march, my partner's 65, should we go ahead and travel? a couple in their 605? if i ahead and travel? a couple in their 60s? if i can ahead and travel? a couple in their 60s? ifi can reinterpret that, is it safe to go to paris, of course not, there's all kinds of risks... you can occur to is safe, you can say is a tolerably low risk, and i would say for even people in the older age bands, it is tolerably safe to go the risks are tolerably low. you can decide not to go to this party if you want to, but frankly, i'm not sure you would be travelling from, but will be risks abounding wherever you're so just don't panic, everyb

well, yeah, look at the fco and see where not too many cases and see where not too many cases and see so i think it is, you know, we can still go away but we have to be a little more mindful of not necessarily ourselves but other people we may impact and let's not forget how important the tourism industry is to all of these communities and without it, everyone faces financial ruin as well which is really not conducive for the whole world. quite, thank you very much indeed. the tourist industry being really, really badly, understandably quite affected. what we're doing across bbc is answer questions you this morning, at ten past eight specific to care, a lot of people are worried about what will happen in care homes with their loved ones who they may be look after on a regular basis and helen whately became minister is joining us at ten minutes past eight so issues around that and please get them to us and then just after nine o'clock, we are putting together one of our panels, a doctor, psychologist and someone who is knowledgeable about cleaning because a lot of questions about, you