Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News 20200319

And at 11 30pm, well be taking an in depth look at the papers with our reviewers, kate proctor from the guardian, and the broadcaster, John Stapleton. Stay with us for that. Good evening. Welcome to bbc news. The Prime Minister says hes confident the country can defeat the coronavirus as long as everyone takes seriously the governments restrictions and instructions on how to live our lives for the next few months. Borisjohnson said he thought it would take 12 weeks to turn the tide on the virus in the uk. But he said that depended on the public following government advice social distancing, working from home where possible, and washing our hands. Today, the bank of england slashed Interest Rates to an historic low to try to shore up the economy. The number of confirmed cases in the uk rose to 3,269 today, and the death toll now stands at 144. And there was a message today from the queen. She praised the work of scientists, medical staff and the emergency services, saying the uk was entering a period of great uncertainty. Political editor Laura Kuenssberg reports from westminster. This is still a very precarious situation. The Prime Minister set out a more optimistic message to the country, but if everyone does their bit then perhaps the worst could be passed within three months, but there is so much still but we just dont know, so much that the government scientists cant be sure of. There is no clear guaranteed certain path through all of this. Its a fight for the health service, a fight for the economy but a fight for morale and resilience too, with m essa 9 es for morale and resilience too, with messages tonight from downing street but from Buckingham Palace too. The Royal Standard lowered marking the queens departure for Windsor Castle, urging the nation at a time of great uncertainty to come together as one, leaving the Quiet Capital where the governments frantically trying to manage an unknown future. What is now a regular routine, the Prime Minister talking to the public at 5pm, but no immediate sign of drastic new action today. We can turn the tide within the next 12 weeks, and im absolutely confident that we can send coronavirus packing in this country. But only if we take the steps, if we all take the steps that we have outlined. You told the country yesterday you wouldnt hesitate to take extra measures. People are worried about what that might mean. Yes. Can you tell people what might be next . Will you, within days, seek to shut pubs, cafes, clubs . As long as we think that people are actually staying away from places where they may transmit or pick up the disease, if we feel that that is working, then we just want to say thank you to everybody for their extraordinary efforts and encourage everybody to do likewise. If we feel that it isnt working, as i said yesterday, we need to bring forward tougher measures, then of course nothing is ruled out. There is no prospect of us wanting to stop public transport in london, stop the tube or the buses. Were not going to be telling people that under no circumstances if they really need to go to work can they go to work. More limits on our lives would hit some firms hard. The laws been relaxed to make it easierfor supermarkets to work together. They say theres just no need for queues like this. The concerns are real. Unless we give a guarantee of wages and income to everyone, particularly those that cannot work, then were all at risk as a result of it, and i dont think the government has sufficiently addressed this. Some form of that could come tomorrow, but its not clear exactly what will come on top of the treasurys plans. Any business who needs cash to pay salaries will be able to access a government backed loan on attractive terms. You can hear the disquiet. What about people losing jobs now . If the government does not act immediately, large numbers of people will be unemployed. And can i urge the government to Say Something today to give people an assurance that the help will come . Where can they get answers because they are so worried . Ministers are putting forward this afternoon a long list of emergency laws, from giving the home secretary the power to close the borders if needs be, forcing business to share information about food supply, making it easierfor retired doctors to get back to work. This, the coronavirus bill, is an encyclopaedia of Emergency Powers that ministers think they might need to manage the crisis in the coming months. Huge new powers the state hopes it might never need. But a disease the country are struggling to control a change in the face of this place right now. Laura kuenssberg, bbc news, westminster. The queen and the duke of edinburgh are both at Windsor Castle tonight, having issued that message of solidarity to the nation. Royal correspondent Nicholas Witchell sent this update from Buckingham Palace. The queen left Buckingham Palace this morning a week earlier than had been planned, shes now at windsor with the duke of edinburgh, whos travelled from sandringham, they will be until after easter. This afternoon this message from Buckingham Palace from the queen, not a broadcast as many heads of state have done, but an exceptional message at an exceptional time. She talks about the world entering a period of great concern and uncertainty in which we are all being advised to change our routines and patterns of life for the greater good of the communities we live in. At times such as these, the queen goes on to say, im reminded our nations history has been forged by people and communities coming together to work as one. She ex presses together to work as one. She expresses thanks to all those on the frontline. We are enormously thankful to the expertise and commitment of our scientists, medical practitioners and emergency and public services, but now, more than at any time in our recent past, we all have a vitally important part to play as individuals. She finishes by saying, you can be assured that my family and i stand ready to play our part. Nicholas witchell at Buckingham Palace. London is proving to be a hotspot for coronavirus the number of cases and deaths is rising faster in the capital than anywhere else in the uk. The Prime Minister said theres no prospect of the government wanting to stop public transport in london but he urged everyone to take the advice and restrictions seriously to avoid tighter restrictions. Home editor mark easton has been gauging the mood among londoners in a quieter city. The sirens are screaming, stay at home, stay well, protect the nhs. For the most part, london is empty. But not everyone is listening. If i need to go somewhere, im going to go somewhere. What about other people, you might infect other people . Well, then, they should stay inside. Its hard to change your habits and routines. The instagram generation wants to show the world they were there. And the threat is invisible on deserted streets. Just wanted to see how busy it was. And it really is very unbusy indeed. Yeah, same. Im his wife and im doing the same, just taking a look at london and then head back before totalisation isolation, which i think is whats coming next, total lockdown. Just make the best of the last of the few days of freedom. The plea is not to go out to bars, cafes a nd restau ra nts, but some people are clinging on to their normal lives, in an increasingly abnormal situation. I live on my own, so ive got no family or anything. Its just me there. You can have too much of tv, you can have too much of anything. So, to get over the road and buy a paper and come in here and have a couple of pints. At the regency cafe, the full english will soon be off. The owner is shutting up shop. Theres very little reason for being open now, and the risk factor, and people also are frightened, arent they . Absolutely. I live on my own. I need a support system. If the Prime Minister says ive got to stay indoors, it looks desperate. Its quite frightening. Londons big shopping streets have been almost abandoned, but neighbourhood supermarkets, hairdressers and market stalls were doing brisk business today. People can feel that life is about to change. Theyre searching for supplies, theyre getting ready. Im out to get some vital supplies. Ive just filled up my car with petrol. I live on my own, so ive only got myself to rely upon. Just around the corner from the shoppers, a temporary mortuary is being assembled, a blunt reminder of why some want the politicians to order us to close the door on our social life. Mark easton, bbc news, london. Interest rates are now at their lowest level in history the bank of england slashed them to just 0. 1 today. Economics editor faisal islam explained what that meant. That lowers the cost of borrowing across the economy for those businesses that want to invest. Probably the bigger mood is the £200 billion theyve announced of government borrowing that the bank of england will now purchase. How does that help . It low those Interest Rates over two, five and ten yea rs Interest Rates over two, five and ten years as well but it also provides space for the government to borrow a bit more in order to tax a bit less and spend more. Thats the key difference here. It also means we have some pretty hairy moments in the markets yesterday in terms of styling falling, in terms of the cost of borrowing going up, but that space for the government is important. I understand there is negotiations going on into the night with unions and businesses about the details of a wage sub that the package that could be modelled on some of the things weve seen in europe where a proportion of peoples income might be paid, the 12 week period the Prime Minister talks about, that white beaky. Faisal islam. That might be key. The government says it is going to look after the people who suffer the economic consequences of the coronavirus. Measures will be announced tomorrow. Those on zero hours contracts and those who work in the gig economy are particularly vulnerable. Heres sarah corker. Demand for rides has plummeted as britons self isolate. Uber drivers like steve from birmingham are worried theyre at heightened risk of infection, but say they cant afford not to work. You can come out and do an eight hour shift and youd be lucky to take £40, £50 home, before deducting expenses. Were unsure of how were going to pay our bills, how were going to pay my rent this month. Its just very disturbing. Companies like uber and deliveroo have hardship funds for those diagnosed with the virus or told to self isolate. But workers need documentation to prove it before they get any cash. Unions are calling for emergency measures from the government to help millions of workers in the gig economy and the self employed. Those who arent entitled to sick pay have been told they can claim benefits quickly, but that money could still take weeks to come through and many dont have a safety net. This issue, the approach to it, sick pay, has been piecemeal. Its also shown us the close proximity of work to health and the importance of focusing on health as the ultimate goal, notjust for individuals but also for the economy. Leanne is self isolating. She works as a carer and is entitled to sick pay of £94. 25 week. But as a renter on low pay, that wont go very far. Im really stressed. Ive gone to anger to fear, i think. People in my position, if youve got no savings, youve got no back up, what is going to happen to us . And when it comes to businesses, some are confused about how to access new government grants. Many cafes, like this one in salford, are trying to adapt. Now we are looking at contingency plans, what can we get in place for deliveries or more Takeaway Services . But we as a business, weare an independent company, we cant afford to close. For workers on the lowest pay and many small companies, this is fast becoming an economic emergency. Sarah corker, bbc news, in manchester. Its emerged tonight that the armed forces have been told to be on an operational footing by mid april to help deal with the crisis. Defence correspondent Jonathan Beale explained what that meant from whitehall. Well, this is a message with god and from the armed forces, essentially a call to arms putting them in a campaign footing, say they are going to have to do their normaljob detecting the nation but also fighting the virus for the nation too. We know that 20,000 military personnel are on standby to help civil authorities. Here he gives more details. This is for example they may have to help in the organisation of temporary hospitals and other medical facilities and also makes clear this is going to be for some months ahead. He says, we are to be prepared for our collective posture to be on an operational footing by midday oil, recognising this could endure for six months or so. He ends with this rallying cry, this is the time for the leaders to step up and deliver. We need to be prepared to fight the war we may have to fight. And its now clear, he says, that moment has arrived. The headlines on bbc news as the death toll in the uk increases to 144, the Prime Minister says it will take twelve weeks to turn the tide on coronavirus here. The queen leaves london for Windsor Castle, issuing a message of solidarity to the nation amid the coronavirus outbreak. As medical chiefs warn the young that theyre not immune to this virus, one patient tells people to pay attention. Young people are being warned not to be complacent about the coronavirus. Englands chief medical officer professor chris whitty said the vast majority of people in all age groups would recover but it was a mistake for young people who are healthy to think they would all just breeze through the pandemic. Meanwhile doctors and nurses working on the frontline are calling for nhs staff who have symptoms to be tested quickly so they can return to work. Our Health Editor hugh pym reports. Coughing. A patient whos coughing sees the gp at the bridgwater surgery in watford. Its a specially organised service for patients with respiratory problems, on a different floor to the rest of the practice. This may or may not be coronavirus, you know, we cant say for certain, because youve got underlying asthma. The gp sends her onto hospital to decide whether a test is needed. Many doctors and nurses themselves say they want Virus Testing for nhs staff, so if they develop symptoms and they dont test positive, they can return to work more quickly. We are very much on a war footing at the moment. Alan is an Emergency Care doctor, who was frustrated that testing isnt readily available. For lots of people, not being tested means they are getting hit by a compulsory time off work, and that, you know, leaves a lot of stress for them, and a lot of stress for the workforce still in work. Its an issue i put to the governments chief medical adviser. How quickly can you roll out more testing for nhs staff who feel they want to be reassured that they might be able to come back to work, or be at work . For the nhs, the ability to test their staff, ourstaff, iam an nhs worker myself, when people are actually unwell and self isolating, particularly if theyve got mild symptoms that mean they could normally go back to work is absolutely critical. The Welsh Government has started testing for nhs staff. In england, the nhs has announced an increase to 25,000 tests a day for hospital patients. As if nhs workers didnt have enough to worry about, theyre confronted by this after a tiring shift. Theres no fruit, theres no vegetables. Ijust dont know how im supposed to stay healthy. And those people who are just stripping the shelves of basic foods, you just need to stop it because its people like me that are going to be looking after you. For those younger people who are continuing their social lives as normal there was a stern message. They may be less vulnerable than others but they must still follow the guidelines. The mixing, in pubs and restaurants and so on that we have said is really a part of allowing the disease to spread, needs to stop, and it needs to stop amongst young people, as well as older people. Tamoor, whos 30, has contracted the virus. Please think about where you are going, who you are mixing with and the impact it might have on you, because it can lead to getting this virus which is quite painful. Its quite difficult to manage and it takes everything out of you. Most people who get the virus wont feel many symptoms. The worry is for those, whatever their age, who become the sickest. Hugh pym, bbc news. Pupils will get more detail tomorrow about how their gcse and a level results will be awarded after this years exams were cancelled. The education secretary in england, gavin williamson, said he would do everything he could to ensure that grades would be available in august. It was confirmed today that school exams wont take place in scotland either. Instead qualifications will be awarded on the basis of course work, Teacher Assessments and mock exams. Heres our education editor bra nwen jeffreys. Injust a day, their life has changed. Now, instead, coursework, predicted grades and Teacher Assessment are likely. Today, majda and ewan were struggling to take it in. Its definitely very upsetting. Because ive been in this school for, like, seven years and this might be my last day in the school, or tomorrow might be my last day, so i might not see any of these people and my teachers ever again, and that does make me sad. It was almost like a shock, that i kind of expected it to happen. Here ijust felt like a lot of my hard work had been sort of, like, not put to waste, but it just feels like, it is so uncertain whats going to happen. After years of studying for exams, having them just cancelled has left many teenagers with a massive sense of anti climax, and theyre notjust missing exams, theyre also missing out on saying goodbye to their School Friends and goodbye to their school. Head teachers are working out who they will let in. Vulnerable children and those of key workers. Sorting out exam grades will have to wait. I think there is an issue around examinations and we will deal with that, but that is probably not the priority over children saying goodbye to friends, for now. A bit sad, honestly, because, you know, it may be the last time im here, so. Sally is a primary teacher. She intends to go on working as best she can, knowing it will help others doing life saving work. 0bviously, my mum is in the very at risk category, and i want all the nhs workers to still keep going to work. How much has changed for them. No exams, no proms, no celebration of results. Branwen jeffreys, bbc news. The death toll in italy is now higher than anywhere else in the world including china. Another 427 people have died in the past 24 hours alone bringing the death toll to more than 3 thousand 4 hundred. Mark lowen reports from rome. In this theatre of war, the heroes hardly rest. Brescia in northern italy is seeing one of the highest rises in daily cases. The hospital is overwhelmed but resilient. Translation there is a strong commitment from all doctors and nurses. Sometimes they come in even when they are not on shift, or after they are on at night they come in the morning after to help us out. Some of them have cried but i have never seen anyone complain. More than 8 of cases in italy are medical staff, almost double that of china. The 13th doctor died today. One of the patients here is a doctor, she says, born in 1982. He was in the emergency room, fell ill and tested positive. Now hes been intubated. Thousands of medics have been recalled from retirement and rushed in from university to help, but still theyre desperate. Translation i think our hospital is reaching breaking point. We dontjust need more beds, but we need workers. We need equipment to protect our staff. We need ventilators. The spread of the virus is too fast for us to keep up. In this outbreak, not even the dead are left in peace. 0vernight, the military moved coffins from nearby bergamo to other areas ease pressure on bursting crematoria. From one town thats cut cases to zero through mass testing and quarantine, a warning to britain over its slower response. I feel very, very sorry, because ive been living in england for over 25 years, and i left my wife and my son there, so for me its very sad to see they are doing exactly the same mistake as they did in italy. It will lead to an outbreak which will be the same size or even worse than the one were seeing in lombardy. Restrictions on movement here are now set to be extended, with most venues remaining closed and schools shut well into april. Italys lockdown is the model being adopted elsewhere. Public transport and traffic are still running, but people are only going out in urgent need, and its orderly, with measured queues for the supermarket as people are allowed in one by one. The fruit and vegetables are stocked as normal. Theres very little sense of panic buying here. And with the loo rolls, well, some brands are down, but with this level of outbreak, italians are behaving, on the whole, rationally. The virus has left this wounded, ageing population isolated, from each other and from the outside world. The book she reads is called fear. Mark lowen, bbc news, rome. And well be taking an in depth look at the papers with our reviewers the broadcaster John Stapleton and kate proctor, Political Correspondent at the guardian. Thats coming up shortly after the headlines. Over the next days, weeks and maybe even months, many of us are going ot have to get used to the idea of entertaining ourselves at home. But, as more and more and of us self isolate, or are forced into quarantine, there are also those who try and spread a little light. One of those people is Nathan Finkel who, every morning since going into isolation a week or so ago, has broadcast a little soothing guitar, live online for anybody who wants to listen. Hes a member of a Facebook Group called im stuck at home but still want to have fun which has nearly 4,500 members. Might have a few more after we speak to him. Nathan, welcome to bbc news. Im going to ask you to play ricin a few moments but how did this idea come to you . Well, i sort ofjoin the Facebook Group through mutual friends, im a musician and i thought it would be a nice way to sort of keep myself calm in the mornings and also people seem to really enjoy it. Im not surprised. What sort of music do you tend to choose . Its my own sort of compositions. They are not generally fully formed in the morning. Acoustic, instrumental and i also play more electronic stuff which i will be playing on saturday night but it seems nice guitar seems to go down very well. What sort of responses have you had on people . People seem happy to hear some nice music in the morning . Im not sure people are watching the video but they seem to be liking it. At least you cant see them, thats a good thing. How do you broadcast . Just on facebook, in the event group, we just do a live video on facebook and it seems to work really well what happens when you come out of isolation and you are a slightly more free man . Well, i guess it would be nice to be playing to people in person again. You will carry on. You get requests . I mean, people can requested but i dont really sing so i dont really play any songs that people would request generally. Also play with my partner and she sings very well but we havent got around to doing that. There is a bit of a Development Idea for you. Im delighted you have joined us. Im going to ask you to lay us out into the weather. What are you going to play for us . Is going to play a combination of one of my instrumental tunes. It doesnt really have a name. Perhaps we can help you out and offer ideas via the website. More than happy to accept them. Nathan finkel, thank you very much, take, if you would. Hello there. The last few weekends have been dominated by heavy rain and damaging gusts of wind but it does look likely this weekend will see a quieter spell of weather with High Pressure dominating the story. We could have chilly mornings. A real nuisance through the week. That means some subtle differences. Its starting to drag in, and its a pretty cool source that will have an impact on field full of chilli in comparison to the last few days and temperatures struggling. Weve still got that weather front, we get there by then. The odds spotter itll drizzle. A very chilly start for some, temperatures will recover and we stay dry, settled with some sunshine coming through. Lets move towards the start of the weekend. There is that front finally using away. The High Pressure set to move across the uk and that means its going to be another chilly start or saturday morning, could be a frosty one across scotland and Northern England as well. It will be a dry and sparkling one with some sunshine coming through. It