Boris Johnson has urged everybody in the UK to work from home and avoid pubs and restaurants to give the NHS time to cope with the coronavirus pandemic.
The prime minister gave his first daily briefing to the public after chairing an emergency Cobra meeting to decide new measures to tackle Covid-19 in Britain.
It came as the UK death toll rose by 20 over the last 24 hours to 55. There are now 1,543 confirmed cases, though it is believed 10,000 people have already been infected. Among those recently confirmed was the actor Idris Elba.
Spain, Italy, Bulgaria and Hungary have all clamped down on citizens’ movements and Germany and Canada have introduced a string of border controls, while the EU is considering closing its borders to all non-essential foreign travel.
Worldwide, central banks including the US Federal Reserve have made emergency rate cuts to shore up tumbling stock markets in moves similar to those taken after the 2008 financial crisis. In the US, New York City has shut all public schools and ordered bars, restaurants, theatres and other venues to close from Tuesday, as have the states of New Jersey and Connecticut. Globally, 6,513 people have died and 169,000 have been infected.
Please allow a moment for the blog to load
Tom Hanks leaves hospital after coronavirus shock
Tom Hanks and wife Rita Wilson have left hospital and are self-isolating in Australia after testing positive for coronavirus.
The pair, both 63, stunned fans when they announced they had been diagnosed with Covid-19 while working on an Elvis Presley biopic.
A representative for Hanks confirmed he and Wilson, who have been married for more than 30 years, are out of hospital and self-isolating at a rented home in Australia.
Rishi Sunak is expected to outline further support for businesses at a press conference tomorrow.
According to reporters briefed by "a treasury source", the chancellor will appear alongside Boris Johnson at the next daily coronavirus briefing on Tuesday.
Businesses are already counting the cost of the new government advice to the public to avoid pubs, restaurants, theatres and other places reliant on social contact and mass gatherings.
The president of El Salvador, Nayib Bukele, has suspended all air travel, claiming that 12 people with coronavirus had been allowed to board a flight due to leave Mexico City at 4pm local time (10pm UK time).
He said on Twitter: "The Avianca flight from Mexico to San Salvador, which leaves at 4:00 pm and would arrive in our country at 6:50 pm, brings 12 confirmed cases of #COVID19.
"The plane will not be able to enter the country.
"I ask all the people who think to board that flight, DO NOT DO IT."
He also accused Mexican authorities of being "irresponsible", adding: "Those patients should be isolated, not circulating at the airport."
French interior minister Christophe Castaner has announced the mobilisation of 100,000 police officers to carry out checks on the public's movements during the lockdown.
It came after the president Emmanuel Macron ordered people to stay at home and only go out for the "bare essentials".
Gatherings with family and friends will be prohibited and workers should only commute to their jobs if working from home isn't feasible, he added.
"We are at war," Macron said repeatedly in his address to the nation.
The Grand National, due to take place on 4 April, has been cancelled due to the coronavirus pandemic, with staging the event behind closed doors “no longer considered a viable option”.
A decision to call off the Aintree meeting, which hosts the sport’s most renowned race, was taken after Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced mass gatherings could no longer be supported by emergency services due to the escalating Covid-19 outbreak.
Grand National 2020 cancelled over coronavirus outbreak
Staging the event behind closed doors was ‘no longer considered a viable option’ by organisersThe new feature will be available upon checkout. If selected, delivery riders will leave food by customers' doors, waiting nearby until it is collected.
Staff will also have the choice to make orders contact-free.
"This is a worrying time for everyone, and we want to acknowledge the incredible efforts of all our riders who are working hard at this time and who are committed to helping the communities in which they work," the firm said in a statement.
"We hope that this new tool provides you and our riders with greater safety during this time."
"As Covid-19 has spread, we’ve recently seen an increase in people shopping online. In the short term, this is having an impact on how we serve our customers,” Amazon wrote in a blog post.
"You will also notice that some of our delivery promises are longer than usual. We are working around the clock with our selling partners to ensure availability on all of our products, and bring on additional capacity to deliver all of your orders."
Amazon sells out of essential items amid Covid-19 panic buying
Covid-19 outbreak prompts panic buyingThe government is taking an enormous risk with its “herd immunity” strategy – and our lives hang in the balance, writes cardiology registrar and author Dominic Pimenta.
Today, Mr Pimenta and over 1,000 NHS frontline healthcare workers sign an Independent Voices letter calling on the government to abandon its “herd immunity” strategy and attempt – as the rest of the international community is doing – to contain the virus.
My NHS colleagues and I won’t stand by while the government gambles with lives. We must change our coronavirus strategy
Leaked Public Health England documents suggest up to 80 per cent of the population could be infected, meaning tens of thousands hospital admissions every day. We simply don’t have the beds.Serbia's state Election Commission has postponed the parliamentary election due on 26 April.
"All the deadlines regarding the election process will be set after the end of the state of emergency," it said.
Ireland predicts 100,000 workers could lose their jobs due to pandemic
Prime minister Leo Varadkar has said that 100,000 workers could lose their jobs over the next couple of weeks because of the pandemic.
However he said he was confident banks will be able to offer relief to mortgage holders during the crisis.
Mr Varadkar also predicted that the number of confirmed cases would rise from 169 today to as much as 15,000 by the end of the month.
"We would expect that by the end of the month there would be maybe 15,000 people who would have tested positive for Covid-19, most of those will not need treatment but a proportion will need to be hospitalised and we need to make sure that it doesn't happen at the same time," he told a news conference.
Trump tells US to avoid social gatherings, bars and restaurants
Donald Trump issued new guidelines on Monday including a recommendation that people avoid social gatherings of more than 10 people, discretionary travel, and going to bars, restaurants and food courts.
The US president said the new guidelines from his coronavirus task force applied for 15 days and were meant to slow the spread of the virus.
Here's our breaking news story on the announcement:
Trump gives new coronavirus guidelines for Americans to follow
Donald Trump has issued toughened recommendations for Americans in the hope of limiting the spread of the coronavirus, recommending home-schooling and avoiding restaurants, travel and gatherings of more than 10 people. More follows…Ukraine has announced some of the strongest measures any eastern European country has introduced in an effort to slow down infections.
From midnight tonight, most public spaces including churches, sports centres, cafes and restaurants will be closed.
From noon on Wednesday, most domestic travel will also be shut down. That means no domestic aviation, intercity trains or metro in Kiev, Dnipro or Kharkiv.
Speaking in a televised address to the nation, President Volodymyr Zelensky also announced public transport within towns and cities will also be restricted: up to 10 ppl in minibuses, 20 in trolleybuses, trams and buses.
Ukraine has only tracked 5 coronavirus cases nationwide. But given low levels of testing, this is unlikely to be reflective of real numbers. On Friday, the country registered its first death from the infection.
UKHospitality, which represents pubs, coffee shops, nightclubs and other leisure venues has called on the government to offer immediate support following the latest advice to avoid all social contact.
The trade association's chief executive Kate Nicholls said: "This is catastrophic for businesses and jobs.
"The Government has effectively shut the hospitality industry without any support, and this announcement will lead to thousands of businesses closing their doors for good, and hundreds of thousands of job losses.
"Over the past few weeks the industry has suffered unprecedented drops in visits and many business are already on their knees. This latest advice leaves the industry in limbo, with no recourse to insurance.
"The Government must act now to stop them going under and protect the people's jobs. These venues play a unique role as community hubs and it's in all our interests to protect and preserve them so they are still there once we emerge from this crisis.
"We need immediate and far-reaching support from the government, and meaningful business continuity measures."
He told reporters on Monday: "We can still slow the spread of this virus ... It is time to take every precaution to keep people safe."
To Canadians abroad, he said: "It's time to come home."
Canada closes borders over coronavirus pandemic
American citizens still allowed to travel into country despite growing number of US cases in thousandsFrance has ramped up its response to the Covid-19 coronavirus pandemic, banning all public gatherings and social contact, French President Emmanuel Macron has announced.
"Never before in history has France had to take such exceptional measures in a time of peace," Macron said. "You will no longer be able to see your loved ones... or continue your daily routine."
France imposes 15-day lockdown throughout country as part of emergency coronavirus response
The Independent'Never before in history has France had to take such exceptional measures in a time of peace,' French president saysPresident Emmanuel Macron has ordered citizens to stay at home and only go out if it is essential, under a partial lockdown beginning at midday tomorrow.
He is announcing more details of the plan live right now:
After Boris Johnson advised the public to stay at home and avoid pubs, restaurants and theatres, some venues are already taking action.
Russia will ban the entry of foreign nationals from 18 March to 1 May in response to the coronavirus outbreak, the government said.
Russia closes borders until May amid coronavirus pandemic
The IndependentRussia will ban the entry of foreign nationals from March 18 to May 1 in response to the coronavirus outbreak, the government said on Monday. More follows…The actor Idris Elba has announced he has tested positive for Covid-19 - but says he feels "OK".
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said that 53 people in the England have now died after testing positive for the coronavirus.
It brings the UK total to 55, with one death in Wales and one in Scotland.
Here's our developing story on the announcement:
.png?w=600)
