Chancellor Rishi Sunak vowed to “do whatever it takes” to support the economy as he promised £330bn of business loans during the coronavirus pandemic.
The government also offered cash grants of £25,000 to help pubs, restaurants and shops who face closure after Boris Johnson urged the public to stay at home.
And health secretary Matt Hancock unveiled details of emergency legislation which gives police power to detain people and place them in isolation.
As the UK death toll rose to 71, the country’s top scientific adviser said Coronavirus may have already infected 55,000 people and the foreign secretary warned Britons against travelling outside the country.
In the US, where entire states have closed public schools and ordered venues to shut, Donald Trump said the “new normal” may last until August.
Meanwhile in Europe officials have unveiled plans to block the non-essential entry of all foreign nationals for a 30-day period in the face of “huge pressure” on healthcare systems. France’s Emmanuel Macron has instituted what he called an unprecedented peacetime clampdown, restricting movement for 15 days and telling citizens: “You will no longer be able to see your loved ones or continue your daily routine.”
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All new trials in Crown Courts lasting longer than three days will be postponed, the Lord Chief Justice has announced.
The decision applies to cases listed to start before the end of April - although the situation is being "kept under review", says the Lord Chief Justice.
Some good news for at least one person in the UK during the coronavirus pandemic - they have won £57m in the National Lottery Euromillions jackpot.
The winning numbers on Tuesday were 05, 07, 08, 16 and 20 - while the Lucky Stars were 02 and 12.
One player in the UK managed to match all five numbers and the two Lucky Stars to bag a prize of £57.9 million.
Camelot's Andy Carter, senior winners' adviser at The National Lottery, said, "It's a brilliant result for a UK ticket-holder who has scooped tonight's massive £57 million jackpot.
"Players are urged to check their tickets to see if their wildest dreams have come true."
Coronavirus is "very likely" to lead to an increase in marriage break-ups because of people being confined together for long periods in self-isolation, a leading divorce lawyer has said.
Baroness Shackleton of Belgravia, whose previous clients have included Sir Paul McCartney, the Prince of Wales, Madonna and Liam Gallagher, revealed the view of the profession as a growing number of households go into voluntary lockdown in a bid to curb the spread of infection.
Lady Shackleton told peers at Westminster: "The prediction amongst divorce lawyers is that following self-imposed confinement it is very likely that the divorce rate will rise.
"Our peak times are after long exposure during the summer holidays and over Christmas.
"One only has to imagine what it's going to be like when families are sealed in a property for a long period of time."
Tom Hanks says his coronavirus symptoms are the same as they were a week ago when he was diagnosed with the illness.
The actor and his wife Rita Wilson, both 63, were initially admitted to hospital while working on an Elvis Presley biopic in Australia. They are now self-isolating in a rented home in the country.
Hanks wrote on Instagram: "Good news. One week after testing positive, in self-isolation, the symptoms are much the same. No fever but the blahs. Folding the laundry and doing the dishes leads to a nap on the couch."
Estonia and Latvia will send ships to bring back hundreds of their citizens stranded on the border between Germany and Poland, officials said.
It follows the decision by Polish prime minister Mateusz Morawiecki to shut the country's borders in response to the coronavirus outbreak.
The three Baltic countries - Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia - have criticized Poland for preventing their citizens from returning home.
Ursula von der Leyen, president of the EU Commission, told a news conference after a videocall of all 27 national leaders that Poland had promised to let the citizens pass through the country.
"It is absolutely necessary that something happens but I am positive that there will be movement and positive change in the next few days," von der Leyen said.
In cash terms the bank bailout was larger, writes economics editor Ben Chu.
But these new loans will go to a far broader range of industries.
How does this coronavirus fiscal package compare to the bank bailouts of 2008?
Is it fair to call this financial rescue package unprecedented?Tunisia will impose a 12-hour curfew from 6pm to 6am every day from Wednesday, the president has said.
The country has already closed mosques, cafes and markets, closed its land borders and suspended international flights, having so far confirmed 24 cases of Covid-19.
Four Brooklyn Nets players test positive for coronavirus
A statement by the NBA side read: “Four Brooklyn Nets players have tested positive for the Covid-19 virus.”The prime minister has displayed a lightness of intellect and his father showed himself up even more, our sketch-writer Tom Peck concludes.
The Johnson family can’t help but add some drama to the coronavirus show | Tom Peck
This was the second emergency press conference in as many days in which the prime minister made a fool of himself, but he was only the support act this time.The environment secretary is in "urgent talks" with supermarkets about ensuring food security, the chancellor says.
Tory former minister Harriet Baldwin asked whether supermarkets could be supported in boosting home deliveries.
She said: "Many of my constituents are worried because they rely on those home deliveries from supermarkets.
"Can the chancellor update the House on what he is doing with his colleagues to talk to the supermarket industry about increasing capacity for home delivery?"
Rishi Sunak said George Eustice was in "urgent talks with supermarkets to ensure the security of our food supply and to improve accessibility particularly for those who may now be at home".
Shelves have been stripped bare across the UK because of panic-buying.
Saudi Arabia has announced that mosques would no longer receive worshippers for the customary five daily prayers or the weekly Friday congregation.
It has so far reported 171 confirmed cases and is attempting to limit the further spread of the virus.
Neighbouring Oman, with 24 infections, also closed mosques, restaurants, coffee shops, tourist sites and traditional markets and malls, except groceries and pharmacies. It barred foreigners from entering and nationals from leaving, state TV said.
Qatar, which reported three new cases, bringing its total to 442, likewise shut shops not selling food or pharmaceuticals, and closed part of an industrial zone for at least two weeks, a government spokeswoman said.
Restaurants and pubs will be able to operate as takeaway and delivery businesses immediately under emergency measures unveiled by the government to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.
Downing Street said the plans would include relaxing planning regulations to allow social venues to start providing food delivery services, without any applications.
Emergency planning rules to allow UK restaurants and pubs to operate as takeaways
PM advised public to stay away from social venues to stem spread of covid-19Police able to detain infected people under new emergency laws brought to parliament
Here's Lizzy Buchan with our full story on the emergency legislation allowing police and immigration officials to temporarily detain people infected with coronavirus.
The Emergency Coronavirus Bill, which will be brought to the Commons on Wednesday, also allows the home secretary to shut transport hubs in the event of border staff shortages and grants ministers powers to ban mass gatherings and close schools.
Phone or video hearings will be used more frequently in the courts to allow people to self isolate and to limit the hit of the outbreak on proceedings.
Police allowed to detain infected people under emergency coronavirus laws
Retired NHS and social care staff will also be able to return to work temporarily under Emergency Coronavirus BillMcDonalds has confirmed from 5am on Wednesday morning, all restaurants in the UK and Ireland will close seating areas and temporarily move to being takeaway, drive-thru and delivery operations only, to deal with the coronavirus outbreak.
He says he wants to show the public what he is going through to help them with their own situations, and is answering questions from his fans.
The coronavirus bill gives the government, police and immigration officers extra powers in a bid to reduce the risk of infection spreading quickly.
It reads: "The bill will enable the police and immigration officers to detain a person, for a limited period, who is, or may be, infectious and to take them to a suitable place to enable screening and assessment."
Further measures include:
1) allowing the government to restrict or prohibit events and gatherings during the pandemic in any place, vehicle, train, vessel or aircraft, any movable structure and any offshore installation and, where necessary, to close premises
2) providing a temporary power to close educational establishments or childcare providers
3) postponing the local, mayoral and Police and Crime Commissioner elections that were due to take place in England in May this year until May 2021, as well as any other elections this year.
Here's some more detail on the coronavirus bill proposals for sick pay.
It anticipates a significant increase in the number of people off work, including those who are self-isolating as a precaution.
"We want to ensure the Statutory Sick Pay (SSP) provisions support people in complying with this request and that they have retrospective effect from 13 March 2020," the government statement reads.
"By ensuring that people receive SSP from the first day that they are off work, we will ensure that those who are unwell or have been instructed to self-isolate can do so without the fear of losing pay. This will be an important measure in the event of a severe outbreak. By refunding small businesses, we hope to alleviate the significant financial burden on employers through increased SSP costs."
At present sick pay only comes in after the third day off work.
Police to get new powers to arrest people under emergency coronavirus law
Police will be given powers to arrest people in order to protect public health under emergency coronavirus legislation published by the Government.
The Emergency Coronavirus Bill also allows for more phone or video hearings in court cases to stop the spread of the virus in the court system.
It will enable recently retired NHS and social care staff to return to work without any negative repercussions or their pensions.
It also allows for statutory sick pay to be paid to those self-isolating from day one, with small businesses able to claim them back from HM Revenue and Customs.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: "The Emergency Coronavirus Bill this week will only be used when it is absolutely necessary and must be timed to maximise their effectiveness, but crucially they give the government the powers it needs to protect lives."
Here is a link to the details of the bill on the government website.
Tesco is set to reduce the hours for hundreds of stores from Tuesday night as it copes with the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic, according to Press Association.
They will now open only between 6am and 10pm.
Staff were informed of the changes on Tuesday afternoon. It is unclear at the moment how it will effect workers' shifts or wages. Tesco has refused to comment.
Panic-buying 'getting worse', say supermarkets
Boris Johnson's appeal for calm does not appear to have worked so far, as shelves and frozen food aisles continue to be stripped bare.
"It's getting worse," a source at one of Britain's major supermarket groups told Reuters news agency, while a second at a different group commented: "The level of panic buying is definitely not getting any better."
Trading levels have been close to those only usually seen at Christmas, the busiest time of the year, and online grocery operations are running at full capacity.
Queues at Ocado are lengthening, with many customers unable to book delivery slots, as we reported earlier today:
