And is also facing questions because next week we are supposed to start to see some nonessential shops opening up in england and again we know that businesses have been getting guidance on that from the government but ministers have not been talking about it much in recent days so i will not be surprised if there are also asked about that. The chief executive of the health and safety executive is going to be the press c0 nfe re nce safety executive is going to be the press Conference Attendee to date may be suggesting that the government feels they have still some reassuring to do after that schools announcement. We knowjust 5296 schools announcement. We knowjust 52 of schools will open two more pupils, opened last week when they we re pupils, opened last week when they were able to do so. They may be some reassu ra nces were able to do so. They may be some reassurances that the government thinks it may have to give to workers in those nonessential shops and to all of us to make sure we feel safe to go back and do some shopping. There was talk about the pubs
opening . Yes, there had been chatter about beer gardens opening up in england to allow some people to sit and have a pint or a glass of wine outside. The signs from downing street at the moment are that plan is not being brought forward, it is seen is not being brought forward, it is seen as is not being brought forward, it is seen as the next phase of the opening up plan. That is the one after that is due to start next week, which will not be until the start ofjuly. As things stand, if you are looking forward to having a ring outside a pub, it is probably still going to be another two or three weeks at least before that happens. Even then it is likely to be outside. On a day like today, it would be ok but with some of the weather we have had recently, might not work all that well. We have also had the latest death figures which are 286, 286 people have died from coronavirus. An appalling death toll
once again but the figures are, in the governments words, going in the right direction. The main indicators are going down . The 286 figure is slightly higher than it was for the last couple of days. There is often a lag at the weekend were not all debts are people who have tested positive for coronavirus are reported. It is the seven day rolling average which we keep an eye on which still suggests things are on which still suggests things are on that downward trajectory. We had the figures from the office for National Statistics today, which look at people who have tested positive and unfortunately died, but people who have had coronavirus mentioned on their death certificate. It is over 50,000 now for the whole of the uk. Although there is the sign we hear from ministers that things are moving in the right direction, the seven day rolling action of deaths of people testing positive going down, there
are the shocking figures coming out every day. As the government is keen to emphasise, behind each of those deaths is still an individual story. Although things might be going in the right direction there are still some appalling tragedies. Thank you very much indeed. And the downing street briefing is about to start. Good afternoon and welcome to the coronas virus coronavirus update. I would like to update you on our continued work to reopen the countrys economy. I know this matters greatly to everyone. Before idosoi matters greatly to everyone. Before i do so i want to go through the latest daily coronavirus slides. Can i have the first slide. The first slide shows cases confirmed with a
test, and 506 tests for coronavirus have been carried out or posted in the uk. This includes 102,000 carried out or posted yesterday. 289,140 people have tested positive, an increase of 1387 cases since yesterday. The graph shows a steadily falling number of identified cases on a seven day rolling average despite the increase in testing. The second slide, please. The second slide show is the latest data from hospitals. 446 people were admitted to hospital with coronavirus in england, wales and Northern Ireland on the 6th of june, down from 624 a week ago and down from a peak of 3400 and 41 on the 1st of april. 513 coronavirus cases are currently in mechanical ventilation beds in the uk, down
from 653 a week ago and down from a peak of 3301 on the 12th of april. Third slide, please. This shows what is happening in hospitals across the country. There are now 6348 people in hospitals with coronavirus in the uk, down 17 from 700 and 7622 a week ago and down from a peak of 20,698 on the 12th of april. As this shows, whilst there is some variation, most nations and regions of the uk are broadly following a similar pattern. This shows the daily figures for those who have sadly lost their lives after testing positive for coronavirus. Across all settings, the total number of deaths now stands at 40,883. That is an
increase of 286 fatalities since yesterday. When measured by a seven day rolling average, the daily number of deaths currently stands at 216, down from a peak of 943 on the 14th of april. Fifth slide. This shows the deaths were coronavirus was confirmed or suspected, reported by the office for National Statistics. These figures take slightly longer to compile than the daily figures as they are drawn from death certificates. They include, not just deaths death certificates. They include, notjust deaths confirmed with a positive test of covid 19 but also those confirmed by a doctor without a test and those where covid 19 was suspected, but not confirmed. The first chart shows that up to the 29th of may the ons reported a total of 50,107 deaths in the uk where covid 19 was mentioned on the death
certificate. This compares to the figure of 38,593 deaths confirmed with a positive test previously reported by the department of health and social care over the same period. The second chart shows deaths by place of occurrence. Since the start of the outbreak, 62 of registered covid 19 deaths have occurred in hospitals and 31 have occurred in hospitals and 31 have occurred in hospitals and 31 have occurred in care homes. At the start of this crisis, we took the nursery steps of closing vast numbers of shops, all but those we regarded as essential, to try and stop the spread of coronavirus and protect the public. That was the right decision. Even though there is no escaping the hardships it will have caused for businesses and their staff. To support those workers and businesses, we put in place an unprecedented package of support, including Small Business grants, loa ns,
including Small Business grants, loans, thejob including Small Business grants, loans, the Job Retention including Small Business grants, loans, theJob Retention scheme including Small Business grants, loans, the Job Retention scheme and the self employed scheme. Now, thanks to the efforts of the british people in following social distancing rules, we have succeeded in reducing the number of infections and getting the r rate under control. That is why we can carefully begin to open parts of the economy which were required to be closed in a phased and careful manner. On the 1st ofjune, we allowed car showrooms and Outdoor Markets to open. Thanks to the ongoing, enormous efforts of people across the country we continue to meet the five tests set out in the Prime Ministers road map. The r rate continues to stay below one. I can confirm today that retail outlets, which have been required to be closed, will be able to open their doors again from monday the 15th ofjune, so long as they comply with the covid secure guidelines republished on the 25th of may. This
is the latest step in the careful restarting of the economy and will enable high streets up and down the country to spring back to life. Of course, many shops have remained open throughout the pandemic, ensuring we were able to buy the essentials we need. I would like to thank those workers at supermarkets, pharmacies, post offices and other essential retailers for their dedication during this period. Many of these businesses are rapidly adapted to introduce social distancing early on. Including special Opening Hours for vulnerable people, perspex screen at checkouts, floor markings to guide shoppers and limiting the number of customers allowed inside a store at one time. The new normal, we have all got used to shopping with social distancing. Now is the right time to apply these principles more widely to more shops as we continue our cautious
reopening of the economy. To support this, on the 25th of may my Department Published update covid secure safer working guidance for people who work in or run shops or branches in the retail sector. This has given Retail Businesses enough time to make sure their premises are covid secure. This will allow workers to return safely back to stores and welcome back shoppers on monday. This guidance was developed in close consultation with both national and independent retailers, business representative groups, trade unions, Public Health england and the health and safety executive. Shops should reopen once they are able to follow the covid 19 secure guidelines, giving confidence to both their staff and customers that they are opening safely. This means any business that is opened must com plete
any business that is opened must complete a covid 19 specific Risk Assessment and take the necessary steps to manage those risks, as is their legal obligation. As part of their legal obligation. As part of the guidance, we have provided a notice that businesses should visibly display in their shop window or outside their door to show their customers they have read and taken steps to follow the guidance. If shop reopens without putting in place responsible steps to reduce the transmission of the virus, we can takea the transmission of the virus, we can take a range of actions, including issuing enforcement notices. Local authorities and the health and safety executive regularly carry out checks and respond to concerns from the public regarding risks in the workplace. But of course, there are businesses which still remain closed. As soon as we can, we will publish further safer working guidance for restau ra nts, pu bs safer working guidance for restaurants, pubs and bars, as well as hairdressers, barbers, nail bars and related services. These documents will provide practical
steps to allow those businesses to reopen in a manner that is as safe as possible for workers and their customers. I know there has been a lot of speculation about when we might be able to reopen this part of the economy and i completely understand why we are also keen to get them back up and running and they actually share their enthusiasm. But we continue to follow the road map which sets out our ambition to reopen the sectors from the 4th ofjuly at the earliest. In the meantime, we will continue to protect livelihoods and support businesses so they are ready to bounce back and play their part in the economic recovery. And as we consider measures are needed to support our economic bounce back, we will be redoubling our efforts to listen to and work with the Business Community. We want to build an economy which is fair, greener, more dynamic, more innovative and a tt ra cts dynamic, more innovative and attracts investment from all over the world. Starting this week, i am
leading five new recovery round ta bles leading five new recovery round tables bringing together businesses and business representative groups and business representative groups and leading academics. They will consider measures to support economic recovery and ensure we have the right skills and opportunities in place for our workforce. These sessions will feed directly into the governments work on economic recovery and we will help deliver the commitments we made to the british people only last december. These now take on an even greater sense of urgency and importance. Because whilst we have a laser like focus on the immediate Public Health challenge in front of us, we recognise our debt to businesses which have played such a vital role in combating coronavirus and keeping our economy moving. And we will work shoulder to shoulder with our businesses as we get ready for our economic fightback. We will now move to questions from the public. Can we
have the first question from alison from london . At the moment people can go on day trips to exercise or meet family following social distancing rules. When can people and families but uk holidays and stay overnight . Self catering camping and cottage hire, for example . Alison, thank you for your question. I understand why people wa nt a nswe rs question. I understand why people wa nt a nswers to question. I understand why people want answers to those questions, but what i have said and what the government has said all along is we wa nt to government has said all along is we want to open up the economy in a phased manner, in a careful manner and that is what we have done. On the 1st of june we and that is what we have done. On the 1st ofjune we reopen parts of the 1st ofjune we reopen parts of the economy, we are now saying for other retail, they will be able to open from the 15th ofjune. It is important we continue to support the sort of businesses that alison has talked about so we had the furlough scheme in place and the grant scheme
in place and we will continue to support businesses. The next question is a written question from someone in manchester. There have been various support packages for existing businesses during the uk locked out. As we start to ease out of the lockdown, the economic recovery will be vital in helping like to return to normal. With this in mind that the government commit to support new start ups in the coming months . Thank you for that, a very good question. The chancellor announced a £1. 25 billion package and is part of that we also had the future fund and we will be making further announcements in terms of how we get the economy going in terms of these green innovative firms. I will be leading a set of conversations with business and academics in the next few days and weeks and we want to get precisely
those answers because we do want a dynamic economy and a Green Economy and to make sure it is also inclusive. We move now to questions from the media. Vicki young of the bbc. Many businesses including pubs and bbc. Many businesses including pubs a nd restau ra nts bbc. Many businesses including pubs and restaurants say that the two metres rule means it is impossible for them to make a profit. The World Health Organisation has recommended one metre, have you been arguing for that to change . What i would say to you is that the two metres rule is currently in place and of course we ta ke currently in place and of course we take advice from our scientists and of course when it is safe to do so we will see if you can move to a shorter distance but ultimately we keep all these things under review. He made the point that there are other countries in the world that have moved from two metres to closer
distances and of course they are further along in terms of their road map in terms of opening up businesses but as i say we keep these matters under review. How soon your opinion could that happen . cannot answer that question, what were doing is opening up the economy in a phased manner and i think that the right approach. We are taking a cautious view on this because the last thing we want and i have conversations with businesses ona have conversations with businesses on a daily basis and what they recognise is the worst possible thing that could happen is we have a second peak and we lose all the games that weve got so far and that would set back confidence in the country but also in the Business Community as well and we do not want that to happen. I completely understand why for economic reasons businesses will want to have a look at this two metres rule and as i say with all these matters we keep it under review. Thank you for your
questions. Can we move tojill hills from itv. Good afternoon, continuing the same theme, youll actually promised a review on the social distancing rule in good time, the Prime Minister said, for the reopening of shops on the 15th of june so what is the result of that review and will it be reduced . Well asi review and will it be reduced . Well as i said we are at two metres and that stays in place for the moment but as ive also made clear as has the Prime Minister we keep all these things under review. I do get why businesses in a range of sectors make the economic case why you would wa nt to make the economic case why you would want to move closer than two metres but ultimately it is about what is safe. As i say we will keep this under review and only make changes when it is safe to do so. But
businesses do not understand the rationale of two metres in the uk, germany has done rather well getting on top of this virus and it is 1. 5 metres and the wealth the World Health Organisation rules are one metre. Restaurants and pubs are warning they would be barely profitable at two metres. Has government privately decided that job losses unfortunately are inevitable and if so would not be advisable to say so publicly . As i say we keep this issue under review and we will continue to do so. We will only change when we think it is safe to do so. Ultimately. Sorry, is joel answering a question . You promised an outcome by the 15th of
june, the Prime Minister gave that undertaking at the Liaison Committee a couple of weeks back so where is the outcome of the review . What is the outcome of the review . What is the government decided and can you please explain your reasoning . Let me explain the reasoning, we are keeping the matter under review and frankly i completely understand the commercial rationale for this and as business secretary these conversations i have on a daily basis with businesses. But this is about keeping safe and you talked about keeping safe and you talked about support for businesses and there is a huge range of support with made available for businesses. If you compare on an international basis it is incredibly favourable. understand that, minister. One last question, not could be publishing the advice in good time for the 15th ofjune so can you now permit and give a deadline, when will the government published its review of the two metres social distancing rule. He also promised to publish
the advice and it has not yet been published, when will it be published . Will give you a commitment to keep this under review and this will only change when it is safe to do so. Thank you very much for the victory at channel 4. On an entirely different subject, last week a report from Public Health england was published which we hoped would shed light on why people from black, asian and minority ethnic background seem to be disproportionately affected by covid 19. Part of that report was missing, this was the Community Engagement section which had thousands of contributions and weve spoken to some of the contributors who are dismayed it has not been published. Can you tell me why this was missing, who decided not to publish it and can you guarantee that this section of the report will be published . That this section of the report will be published . Victoria, i think the
report was published and it was comprehensive, it had a set of conclusions in it and one of those in terms of the disparities issue was around people from black and asian minority ethnic groups being at higher risk than white groups and it also made the point that the key determinant of risk is age. I did say that if you are over 80 70 times more likely to be at risk than someone under 40. It also made the point that men are two times at higher risk than women and it made a commentary on the fact that there is who live in deprived areas are u nfortu nately who live in deprived areas are unfortunately at higher risk as well. It also went on to talk about co morbidity so it was an expensive extensive report. This work will be
taken extensive report. This work will be ta ken forward extensive report. This work will be taken forward and we will look at any policy changes that come out of that. Most of that was already known so the bit that i was specifically referring to was the Community Engagement part of this which we we re engagement part of this which we were led to believe was led by professor kevin fenton and that is the bit that is missing and that has dismayed the many contributors. Well i think the report is very comprehensive and there is work which has been taken forward in a follow up to this. The terms of reference a re follow up to this. The terms of reference are available, they are public and the key thing is to make sure that where we learnt there are changes that need to be made in terms of policy then of course we will look to do that. Thank you very much. Francis elliott from the times. Business secretary, you gave nonessential shops three weeks
notice from the sidelines, can you commit to giving restaurants and other hospitality sectors at least three weeks notice which would be pretty imminent for the july the three weeks notice which would be pretty imminent for thejuly the 4th deadline. And chris whitty said last week the two metres rule would stay until the end of the epidemic, was he wrong to say that and you said repeatedly that you would lift it when it is safe. Is a of numbers of infections or the letter or number . Tim isa infections or the letter or number . Tim is a publication i can tell you that were having a consultation right now in terms of this further safety working guidance and that work is ongoing and we will make sure we publish that ahead of time. I know it is important for business to be able to prepare. In terms of the r factor, we will continue to keep this under review as i said earlier and this will depend on safety considerations. Sorry, not
the r factor, the two metres distance, and we will of course keep this under review. We will only make changes if it is safe to do so. Is there a follow up . There is, people will want to nail against which metrics you will make thatjudgment. Just saying what is safe to do so, the chief medical officer says he wa nts the chief medical officer says he wants it until the end of the epidemic and ultimately this is a political decision, is that right . will ask sarah if she wants to come in on this as well. One thing i would say is if you look at what other jurisdictions would say is if you look at what otherjurisdictions and would say is if you look at what other jurisdictions and countries have done their look to see what has happened in terms of the rates and looked to see how those particular issues are moving before theyve made that decision is. We will continue to look at the five tests and at the r eight and from our disc
back from my perspective those will be the key determinants. Ive been privileged to work closely with colleagues from Public Health england developing these guidelines and looking at these issues and talking to my own chief scientific adviser and i think it is very much as alex armah said, what you need to ta ke as alex armah said, what you need to take into account, the science is clear that where someone has a covid 19 infection, the chance of them passing that on at two metres distance from other people is significantly less than perhaps 1. 5 metres or one metre. So it requires if you both of the chance of the infection being passed on but also the prevalence in society because that kind of mix of how many people in the population have got this illness combined with what is a safe distance gives you the probability of something being passed on. It is
that complicated kind of series of considerations that will cause the scientists to give advice to government about the time when it is safe to make a shift. Just to add another point if i may, if you look at the workplace guidance we put out, we address the issue around two metres distance and also say that it is safer to work side by side than it is facing a shadow and theres a range of these other measures that we have recommended in our guidelines in terms of safer working. Do you have a followup . Restau ra nts working. Do you have a followup . Restaurants where you eat side by side, is that the sort of thing you can do . Is there a specific infection level below which the probability is that acceptable . You must already know what infection rate needs to get down to before you can unlock . I think in terms of the
guidance of how people conduct themselves in restaurants and pubs, thatis themselves in restaurants and pubs, that is something we will publish and once published we are happy to come back and go through that with you. In terms of the issue around the two metres rule ijust want to say once again that we will keep this under review and only when it is safe will that change. Thank you very much. The next question from joe mays at bloomberg. Business secretary, in light of the pandemic many of your conservative colleagues are worried about the extent of chinas involvement in Critical Infrastructure including telecoms and Nuclear Power and how that might grow so will the National Security and investment bill address these concerns and do you promise to introduce that legislation before the summer recess . Of course we had the summer recess . Of course we had the enterprise act currently that we can draw upon in terms of calling in
mergers and acquisitions, we are committed to a bill set out in the queens speech, i will not give you a kind of timetable on any of that but i would say that we are committed to bringing that in. But i would say that we are committed to bringing that inm but i would say that we are committed to bringing that in. If i may, when you make it harderfor Chinese Companies to invest in key uk assets . What i will not do is pre empt what may or may not be in a forthcoming bill. What i would say to you is i think it is important that we protect our critical assets, that we protect our critical assets, thatis that we protect our critical assets, that is what we do through the enterprise act currently and of course we will look to see through the forthcoming bill when it comes through how we might improve upon that. The last question is from laura at the sunderland echo. The first question is are there local town by town, city by city r rates being
calculated . Will they determine any lockdown is . And as local businesses look towards economic recovery what support packages go places like sunderland, that has high levels of deprivation and have experienced high infection rates, large numbers of deaths and a peak in unemployment, what packages can they expect to see from Central Government . Thank you for that question, laura. We have the test and trace up and running and it will help to contribute in terms of identifying any local areas where there are flare ups. You will see there are flare ups. You will see the action we have taken in weston super mare. But right now, given where the r rate is, we are taking a countrywide approach, a National Approach to this and we will continue to do that until much
more detailed information is available. In terms of support packages, as in sunderland and elsewhere, we have provided support in terms of bounce back loans, over £21 billion has now been approved on that. We have provided support in terms of almost 9 Million People across the country, including people in sunderland he will have been supported through the furlough scheme and the self employment scheme and the self employment scheme as well and a range of other measures we have put in place. We will continue to do that. I am starting these detailed conversations with businesses and academics and business representative groups to see how we can actually have an innovative economy across our country. Even though one of the key themes of the general election and what the Prime Minister is absolutely keen to make sure we do, which is level up, level up sure we do, which is level up, level up across the country, level up in regions and communities. That is what we will do over the coming
yea rs. What we will do over the coming years. Did you have a follow up . Pa rt years. Did you have a follow up . Part of this levelling up, will there be Additional Support for areas which have been more harder hit . What i dont want to do is to pre empt anything that may come from the chancellor in the future, or the Prime Minister in the future. What i would say to you is, we are absolutely committed in terms of the levelling up agenda and that is what we wa nt levelling up agenda and that is what we want to make sure happens. And as pa rt we want to make sure happens. And as part of the conversations i have over the days and weeks, levelling up over the days and weeks, levelling up is going to be one of the key things. Thank you very much indeed for that, laura. That brings us to the end of this press conference and thank you forjoining us. And we wa nt to thank you forjoining us. And we want to make sure people continue to stay alert and stay safe. We have now announced that from monday we are going to be opening up further pa rt are going to be opening up further part of the economy. We are doing this ina part of the economy. We are doing this in a gradual way and we will
continue to do that so we continue to stay safe and meet the five tests and we keep the r rate down. Thank you for your help. Studio that is the business secretary ending the latest downing street briefing. Lets go through some of the main point that came out of that. Another 286 people have died in the United Kingdom over the last 24 hours after testing positive for coronavirus. That brings the total number of uk deaths with the virus to 40,883. Alec sharma confirming nonessential shops in england will be able to reopen on the 5th ofjune, if they comply with social distancing guidelines. Lets go to our Political Correspondent who was listening to that at westminster. The key question coming at the business secretary about the two metre social distancing rule and whether the government might reduce that to one metre . I am not sure we
got much clarity on that at all from the business secretary. But there are ministers and conservative mps who were worried that the two metre rule is going to be really damaging to business and that actually you could reduce it to 1. 5 metres, even down to a metre to allow some pubs and down to a metre to allow some pubs a nd restau ra nts down to a metre to allow some pubs and restaurants more of an opportunity to bring punters back in a few weeks. But also to allow shops a few weeks. But also to allow shops a bit more room to get people in when nonessential shops open in england from monday. But i am not sure we got much further forward on that, beyond the answer from the business secretary that it is being kept under review. It wont be changed until ministers are sure it is safe. We know the Prime Minister has asked scientists to take a look as to whether that might be reduced, but no clarity on that. It is worth emphasising that most of what alok sharma talked about was for england. The fact that nonessential shops will open if they are safe from
monday is a measure that will only apply in england. We dont know when that will happen in scotland and wales. It is slightly earlier in Northern Ireland, this friday. But anyone who was hoping the business secretary might be able to give as a hint whether we can get a haircut or head back to the pub, it is still the earliest the start ofjuly for that next phase of things moving forward. At the same time, the figures on coronavirus seem to be going in the right direction, although 286 deaths, a horrific death toll but the statistics are moving ina death toll but the statistics are moving in a downward direction . That is why we look at the seven day rolling average for the number of deaths for people who have tested positive for coronavirus because often there is a lag at the weekend. We saw some low figures on sunday and monday and it has gone back up again today. We are often told it is
for the simple reason people are not reporting at the weekend as much. Every death is an individual and personal tragedy for a family, it does still suggest, and the government does still seem confident it is moving in the right direction. They still think the five tests they set foot starting to gradually reopening the economy are being met and that is why were seeing that box ticked today that nonessential shops in england can from monday. There is some glimmer of hope. But an emphasis from the government they dont want to move too quickly. We keep hearing it every day from number ten and from ministers, that if things start to change and the r rate goes back up again, some of this will be slowed down or perhaps even this will be slowed down or perhaps eve n reverse. This will be slowed down or perhaps even reverse. Our Primary Schools, something of a volt fast from the government . This is something head
teachers have been warning about for a few weeks. The idea of getting all Primary School children back to school before the summer break was going to be too big an ask, because the reduction in class sizes to a maximum of 15 basically meant there wasnt enough space in most schools to get the children back. Today the government confirming that plan or aspiration to have all Primary School children back before the summer break in england has been scrapped. They are still encouraging schools to come back but it is now being done on a school by school basis and there is an admission in government that we will not see massive amounts of Primary School children back in the next few weeks. A lot of that is going to happen in september. Although that is an england measure, wales and scotland are doing this in different ways. And in Northern Ireland. The school year is different, it will be august before you see any children go back. But there is some caution, we did see again from the business secretary, that attempt to urge us all it was safe to do a lot of this stuff. He was flanked by the health and safety chief executive to talk about the two metre rule, talk about some of the measures being brought in in england in nonessential shops to make sure they were safe as the government tries to gradually take some of these moves to open things back up again. Many thanks for all of that, nick eardley our Political Correspondent from westminster. Lets go to oxford because there is a big demonstration in the city of oxford. You can see it from the air. These protesters for an antiracist demonstration in the wake of the death of george floyd in the United States two weeks ago. This is specifically a demonstration calling for the removal of statue in oxford
of the imperialist cecil rhodes. There is a Group Calling for that statue to be removed. It follows the removal in bristol, of edward colston, the slave trader and his statue was pulled down and thrown m into the water. In oxford,