Plans for social distancing for the elderly and the vulnerable will be discussed at the governments emergency meeting on coronavirus this afternoon. Downing street is to hold the first Daily Press Conference on the crisis in which the next steps in the uks plan will be outlined. As the pressure grows on the nhs, there are concerns about the health of front line workers. The immediate priority, from my end, representing the nations doctors is to keep them protected, keep them free from infection. Because if they fall sick and they arent able to work, we wont have a workforce. Well bring you all the latest from developments at home and abroad, where markets are plunging and borders closing. British airways, virgin and easyjet all say they are grounding the vast majority of their flights, as customer demand plummets. Germany becomes the latest country to close borders, as europe tightens up its response. Global markets dipped dramatically amid continued concern about the economic impact. And the bbc delays its plans to charge some over 75s for the licence fee, because of coronavirus. And coming up on bbc news. The International Olympic committee will hold a meeting with fellow International Sport organisers tomorrow in response to the coronavirus outbreak. Good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. Downing street says the governments next emergency cobra meeting
on coronavirus this afternoon will discuss social distancing measures for the elderly and vulnerable after a cabinet minister said yesterday that people over 70 could be asked to self isolate in the next few weeks. It also said the government was not recommending schools be shut at this time. It comes as restrictions were tightened across europe due to the crisis. Germany has become the latest european country to limit peoples movements, closing the border it shares with france, austria and switzerland. Global stock markets have plummted. The ftse 100, thats the top 100 companies, plunged more than 7 in early trading. As restrictions come in and passenger numbers drop sharply, airlines have been cancelling thousands of flights. The owners of British Airways, iag, say they will be cutting at least 75 of flights in april and may. Virgin atlantic say staff will be asked to take eight weeks unpaid leave. And easyjet said it may have
to ground most of its planes. In the us, Interest Rates have been slashed again to 0. 25 . In new york, schools are closing, and the city, along with los angeles, is to shut bars and restaurants, to try to control the spread of the virus. The government is to hold the first of what will now be daily news briefings on the measures its taking to deal with coronavirus. With the first of our reports this lunchtime, heres our Health Correspondent sophie hutchinson. The Health Secretary arriving at number ten today ahead of another emergency meeting on the coronavirus pandemic. At the entrance to downing street, a small group of campaigners echoed more widespread concerns about whether ministers should implement a major shut down like other countries. And those on the front line, treating patients, say
they need more information. We need to know much more from the government about the preparedness. We have real concerns about the number of doctors. We are already short of doctors in the uk and the immediate priority, from my end representing the nations doctors, is to keep them protected, keep them free from infection. Because if they fall sick and arent able to work, we wont have a workforce to look after acutely ill patients. And there are growing concerns about whether enough is being done to protect elderly people and those with underlying conditions. Ministers have said those over 70 could be asked to stay at home in the coming weeks. But some have already taken action themselves, staying away from other people are doing online shopping. Staying away from other people are doing online shoppinglj staying away from other people are doing online shopping. I feel extremely vulnerable. And because i am alone and i have no family, i just dont want to be in that position where i dont know what to do andl position where i dont know what to do and i cant breathe. Ive had
pneumonia several times and asthma all my life, which is regulated, i know what it feels like to not be able to breathe and i dont want to be then feeling that i might die and im all alone. So im trying to do my best to avoid it. I want to make sure Everybody Knows how to wash your hands. Schools across the uk are still open, despite blanket closures in other european countries. The education secretary is meeting head teachers later to discuss their concerns. Some universities have halted classes and moved all their lectures online. In scotla nd moved all their lectures online. In scotland today, measures came in advising gatherings of more than 500 people to be cancelled. 0fficials warned it could be in place up to 400 months. Its not clear when similar measures will be introduced in the rest of the uk. We are absolutely, religiously, if you like, following the advice of medical and scientific officers. 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 and needs to be done. And following a clamourfor more needs to be done. And following a clamour for more information, needs to be done. And following a clamourfor more information, Boris Johnson and ministers will now hold daily televised briefings to update the public on how to stay safe. 35 people have now died in the uk from the virus and there are nearly 1400 confirmed cases but the true figure is believed to be many thousands more. Sophie hutchinson, bbc news. Im joined now by our health editor, hugh pym. A lot of people concerned and confused about the plans for the over 70s . Yes, after yesterdays announcement that over 70s in due course might have to isolate for months. Im told there will be more clarity provided under the cobra meeting and press conference. Lots of people want that clarity and we will hear that this guidance doesnt mean that if you
are 71, fit and well and still going out to work that you should suddenly stop doing that. It is about taking precautions to avoid large gatherings of people. There will be something there to reassure people it is possible to leave the house if you are over the age of 70. But if you are over the age of 70. But if you have an underlying condition, it will be different, they will be a warning that it is prudent to stay indoors and that will apply to people of all ages. Maybe someone with cancer or compromised immune system. That those people may have to stay at home for a certain period of time because of the risk posed by the virus. We will also learn a bit more about her in isolation for the families of people who have contracted the virus or showing symptoms and are not well. That the government would really rather the family stay away if they are in the same household. And looked after that person but stayed away from that person but stayed away from that workplace or wherever they go each day. More clarity will be provided and it will be much scrutinised and watched by many
people. Many thanks. Hugh pym. Norman smith is in westminster. 0ur assisted political editor. Daily briefings on coronavirus from the government are to start this afternoon, and that comes after a lot of criticism of their methods. And their messages . It does. There is an awareness that has to be a clear, consistent and coherent messagejust to clear, consistent and coherent message just to reassure a frankly rather due nation. They have been a few communication missteps over the past few days, slight lack of clarity about whether the government was in favour of banning big events 01 was in favour of banning big events or not in favour of it. Then we seem to get a slightly contradictory m essa 9 es to get a slightly contradictory messages from the chief scientific 0fficer messages from the chief scientific officer and the Health Secretary over whether the government really was pursuing the so called herd immunity, allowing some fitter people to contract the virus, to build upa people to contract the virus, to build up a national unity. There is 110w build up a national unity. There is now a sense that theyve got to get their act together when it comes to
communications. And an awareness that this is a very rapidly developing situation almost day by day. They constantly have to fine tune the advice and measures, which means daily briefings. And, of course, if there isnt that constant sort of engagement by the government, the Public Discourse is dominated by social media, which, im afraid, does tend to perpetuate fears, anxieties and rumours. There isa fears, anxieties and rumours. There is a premium on the government getting out on the front foot and also i think there is a hope to try and present this crisis almost as a national endeavour, not something which government alone can solve but something we all have to take responsibility for. Whether its washing hands or self isolating if we co ntra ct washing hands or self isolating if we contract the virus or responding ata we contract the virus or responding at a community level. People do organise in their own streets visits to the elderly and vulnerable. 0r think about organising delivery of food to those who cant get out. And the hope is that by having these
Daily Press Conferences, often fronted by the Prime Minister, that will help build that sense that this is something we are all really in it together. Norman, thank you. Norman smith at westminster. Across europe, borders are closing, with germany the latest country to restrict movement from france, austria and switzerland. In france, the head of the Health Service said the situation there was deteriorating very fast. But the European Commission says closing borders is not the best way to make sure the eu contains the virus. Jenny hill has the latest. Another day, another country tries to slow the spread. Travellers from france and austria and switzerland turned away if they have no valid reason for their journey. Translation commuters are excluded from these measures and the movement of good. For now, we have to rely on people telling us the truth. In future, they will have to present a
document from their employer if they have to cross the border even if they have no symptoms of the disease. Paris is under a shadow. The speed of the spread has alarmed the authorities. Translation the epidemic in france is very worrying. Its getting worse very quickly. Its getting worse very quickly. Its a very fast moving epidemic. We see the number of cases doubling every three days now. Shops and restau ra nts every three days now. Shops and restaurants have closed and most anticipate an end to their time in the sun. A complete lockdown is expected. Translation we are worried that we port our bicycles. Today it is sunny, we felt like going out, but we are careful, we are not touching other people. Translation at the moment, our schedules have become completely broken because we have no more classes and we have two to three added to our school holidays. How do you make the most of this time . What do we deal with all this time . Do we
just stay home . Already, in spain, empty streets, a state of emergency. People have been ordered to stay at home, allowed out only to go to work at the supermarket, the pharmacy or the hospital. In the last 24 hours, spain has reported 1000 new cases. But its switzerland which has, per head of population, one of the highest infection rate in europe. The ski season here cut abruptly short for many ethnic government the closure of lifts and gondolas the skiseason closure of lifts and gondolas the ski season here cut. It is annoying because i am out of work. We will see what is decided that i will do what is the best. The crowds disappeared from italys tourist traps, too. The country the epicentre of the outbreak in europe, situation considered so desperate that even china, where the outbreak began, sent a plane to take its citizens home. Singing
virus is spreading. Daily life disrupted. But it hasnt silenced this florentine opera singer. As europe mourns its dead, heal it sick, in communities, people are doing what they can. Jenny hill, bbc news, berlin. In a moment, well get the latest from sima kotecha in rome, and Hugh Schofield in paris, but first to our correspondent in madrid, damian grammaticas. Im just outside the capital, madrid, in the region surrounding madrid, in the region surrounding madrid, a few miles outside the city itself. Over the weekend, we had a state of emergency decreed across the country. Under the powers that
Prime MinisterPedro Sanchez has under that state of emergency, he has Restricted Movement of all spaniards, nobody allowed to leave their home in sa have a specific reason, nobody can leave their home u nless reason, nobody can leave their home unless they are buying food or medication, for example. Police are patrolling the streets, and you can be fined if you are found out on the streets without a good reason. Ive been to the supermarket today and things were very quiet, people were keeping a distance between each other in the queues and other people we re other in the queues and other people were Wearing Masks and gloves. It is a very unusual situation for spaniards today. Alarming figures here in italy. Again, 368 more deaths over the last 24 hours. Almost 25,000 cases of coronavirus. Most of those cases are in the north of the country and there is now concerned that the outbreak could move from the north to the south, because in recent weeks, people have travelled from
the north to the south. The south is a lot poorer, hospitals are not as well equipped, so the government is concerned about that. The Prime Minister has given an alarming message in the papers today. He says italy hasnt even reached its peak yet. Worse to come. The stringent measures are still in place, restricting peoples movement. People not allowed to go to work unless absolutely essential. They are confined to their homes. Difficult times. A sense of trepidation. How long is this going to go on for, for people here in italy . We are we are seeing the wave beginning to break, the words of a senior doctor in a paris hospital this morning. That is the feeling. That the wave is beginning early now to crash down, and the urgent measures, drastic measures, which have been put in place here in france are maybe not enough, that more may be needed. Weve had the school closures, the closures of
bars, restaurants and cafe is announced over the weekend, and all shops that are not essential, but there are still a sense of inflammation and anger in the medical profession that the french still dont get it. You may have seen those pictures in the report a minute ago of people over the weekend in france are run together in parts, enjoying the sun, apparently heedless of the warnings that have come over the past few days, to keep contact with other humans to a minimum. Thats why theres lots of speculation in paris that when the president appears on television this evening, he is going to announce a ratcheting up, up to spanish and italian leathers, of confinement, maybe. Italian levels. Major airlines are now announcing that they will largely ground their fleets of aircraft through april and may. Iag, the owner of British Airways said it would reduce its capacity by 75 in those months. Virgin Atlantic Staff will be asked to take eight weeks unpaid leave,
and easyjet says its likely to see the grounding of most of its entire fleet. Sarah corker reports. With an increasing number of International Borders on lockdown, airlines are slashing more flights, as demand plummets. British airways owner iag is cancelling 75 of flights in april and may. Easyjet has warned it could have to ground most of its planes. The uk Aviation Industry wants more help from the government to survive a long term travel freeze. There are lots of different ways to do that. One is to prevent those flights from having to take off nearly empty, those ghost flights that we have been dealing with, then theres things like time to pay, facilities through hmrc. Be in no doubt, we understand the severity of what is going on. And other operators, including ryanair have warned that the grounding of entire fleets cannot be ruled out. So Many Airlines are cutting
capacity. Some are also laying off staff. Its not just capacity. Some are also laying off staff. Its notjust the airlines but the other businesses that rely on them to get customers around. Its a crisis of unprecedented scale, and the industry are struggling to get his head round it. Meanwhile, on the railways, monday morning rush hour was much quieter than usual. More companies are asking staff to work from home, overfears about the spread of the virus. Passenger numbers at train stations across the uk have dropped considerably in recent days. And like in the Aviation Industry, rail bosses wa nt like in the Aviation Industry, rail bosses want the government to put emergency measures in place. Options could include running fewer services and also some flexibility on the payments that Train Companies make to the government. And transport companies have stepped up their cleaning regimes, including using hospital grade antiviral disinfectant. Virgin atlantic is the latest
airline to announce mass cancellations. From tomorrow, it will cut 80 of its flights and staff will be asked to take eight weeks of unpaid leave. Global stock markets have plunged again despite Central Banks around the world making a co ordinated effort to ease the effects of the coronavirus. The new governor of the bank of england, andrew bailey, in his first day in the job, sought to reassure people. The economic effects that materialise during the period of covid then get extended onwards by virtue of, effectively, the damage thats done to the economy. And thats something we want to minimise and stop. And thats why you saw prompt action last week. Thats while you will see prompt action again when we need to take it. You can be assured, the public can be assured. Our economics correspondent andy verity is here with me now. Tell us more about the action that Central Banks have been taking. They are seeking to calm down the
markets. The ftse 100 they are seeking to calm down the markets. The ftse100 is now below 5000, it was at 7700 in october so it has lost one third of its value. They want to calm down the markets. We are hearing about airlines and retailers running into trouble. One of the ways they want to do that is by saying that there will be money available. Andrew barely made it plain that dollars will be available. The bank of england can swa p available. The bank of england can swap pounds 4 from the us federal reserve, their central bank and laying them on to banks here who need them, and that adverts the thing we had in the credit crunch, where banks dont want to lend to each other because they are not sure how much each has lost in this economic calamity. The hope is that by making sure theres enough credit available, that banks can lend to each other, that you prevent permanent economic damage, resulting from the covid 19 outbreak. We are bound to have some temporary damage and possibly a recession but what you want is to prevent that turning into a more prolonged slump and that is why the overnight action was
done, but it did not completely reassure the markets. They are wanting to know how much less money the companies they hold shares and will make and until they worked that out, you will not see this market panicking. Our top story this lunchtime the government to discuss plans for social distancing for the elderly and the vulnerable as fears for the safety of front line medical staff grow. An immediate priority from my end representing the nations doctors is to keep them protected, keep them free from infection, because if they are off sick and unable to work, we will not have a workforce. Coming up on bbc news. Englands rugby premiership is set to postpone their League Season due to the coronavirus, with some clubs saying a three month suspension is necessary. As we mentioned earlier, in the us, two major cities, los angeles and new york, are now taking drastic steps to try to contain the virus, shutting schools, bars and restaurants. Our north america correspondent david willis reports. Life in many major cities here will soon resemble that of europe. Restaurants, bars, and other Public Places are about to start shutting their doors and the government is recommending that gatherings of 50 or more people either be cancelled or postponed. Amid the looming prospect of a Global Economic meltdown, americas central bank, the federal reserve, announced it was cutting Interest Rates and buying bonds in an attempt to flood the economy with cash. It was their toughest move since the financial crisis of 2008. And music to the ears of a president unnerved by the recent market volatility. Thats really good news. Its a really great for our country. Its something that we are very happy. I have to say this, were very happy. Travellers from europe found themselves crammed into just the kind of crowded spaces that Health Officials have been urging people here to avoid as they rush to beat the trump administrations travel ban. That ban widens on monday night to include passengers from the uk and ireland. And it did save the economy. But social distancing was on full display at a closed doors democratic president ial debate involving joe biden and bernie sanders. The discussion dominated by questions about the coronavirus. As a result of the virus here, the coronavirus, what we have got to do also is understand the fragility of the economy. And how unjust and unfair it is that so few have so much. And so many have so little. People are looking for results, not a revolution. They want to deal with the results they need right now. And we can do that by making sure that we make everybody whole who has been so badly hurt. With panic buying gripping stores in many parts of the country, President Trump is urging calm, insisting americas supply chains remain strong. Relax. We are doing great. It all will pass. Night clubs, cinemas and other Entertainment Venues are to close in new york as well as restaurants, at the order of the citys mayor, who, in a statement warned residents of the big apple that the coronavirus that calls for what he described as a wartime mentality. David willis, bbc news, los angeles. British retailers have again insisted theyre not short of supplies, in response to long queues at supermarkets over the weekend, despite calls not to panic buy. Our Business Correspondent emma simpson is with me now. Some extraordinary scenes this weekend. They were extraordinary. We have been reporting on stockpiling for a few weeks. What we saw at the weekend took things to a different level altogether. People will not just buying tins, rice and pasta, they were buying everything and it felt like in some stores that entire aisles were emptyjust after being stocked. The message from the supermarkets all along is that there is enough food, and the problem is a demand one. We have seen this huge increase in demand, and because of this spike it has taken a bit longer to replenish the shelves, putting supply chains under a lot of pressure, and shop workers, of course, getting it in the neck from customers. Today there is another regular meeting between the government and the retailers. The supermarkets now are focused on the next steps. Firstly, how do they cope with this demand if it
continues . There are things they can do. They can close delicatessen and fish counters to get more staff onto the shop floor, and finalise worst case planning. How will they cope when staff get sick . They need drivers to get stuff to the shops. They may be getting to a point where retailers need to think about how they work together. Ideas, data, and so on, to help the most vulnerable people, but that will mean the government will have to relax competition laws, so the message is, the retailers say that they are as ready as they can be, they are agile and creative, but the message is, we just need to buy what we need. Organisation makeuk to discuss plans for companies to produce thousands of ventilators after warnings that industry wasnt ready to meet demand for essential medical equipment. We have a lot of volunteers, as well, coming forward
from industry, manufacturers saying they could re purpose their manufacturing capacity to be able to build these kinds of units. And you have to remember, they are electro mechanical type of units, its that kind of production. And we have a thriving sector in contract manufacturing, which is very used to taking a design from one particular company and being able to build it for them. More now from our business correspondence. Simon, just remind us what is needed given the situation. A ventilator is what you need to get oxygen into the lungs if you are having breathing difficulties. They will be important in the most serious cases. The nhs has thousands of them, and it can re purpose what they have got, so they are looking after people having routine operations at the moment. Those can be used for coronavirus cases. However, the department of health has said they need another 20,000 ventilators, to be up to
speed with the sort of worst case scenario. That is a huge increase on what we have at the moment. So how to fill the gap . We have one Small Company that builds them in the uk. We will need to somehow build more, and that is why the government has been talking to big manufacturers like jcb, been talking to big manufacturers likejcb, car been talking to big manufacturers like jcb, car companies, rolls royce, the Aeronautical Company as well but it is not so much then who would do it, it is these contract manufacturers who ta ke these contract manufacturers who take onjobs these contract manufacturers who take on jobs for other manufacturers, following a plan on how production lines are set up for that. I know of one who is talking to the government about doing that. The challenge here is to get them up to speed first of all, to get the agreement of the people who own the designs, but most important to get the parts, the complicated electronic parts, from the other parts of the world, and we are hearing that it could take weeks to get that under way. The bbc is to delay tv licence fee changes for the over 75s
until august in light of the coronavirus situation. Our media editor amol rajan is with me now. What are they saying . This was something that came out of the last negotiation between the bbc and the government where over 75 sue had got used to getting the license fee for free, but the bbc was always required to work out whether it would continue to fund them, it conducted a review and said only those on pension credit would receive free licenses and that it be the case from june. It has pushed it back to the start of august. There area back to the start of august. There are a couple of things being borne in mind. These changes would always be controversial and generate negative headlines and the bbc does not want to do something that might seem cruel, taking away a service or so people rely on. Huge numbers of people are coming to the bbc right now. A record week for traffic for bbc news online, up 36 on the previous record. For people staying at home there will be additional demand for bbc tv and radio
services. These changes will come in on august one, and may be delayed further depending how the virus develops. It is worth saying that there will be a cost, tens of millions, and that cost will be borne by the bbc, rather than the government. For all of the latest developments on the coronavirus outbreak, including what symptoms to look out for, and how to reduce your risk, just visit our website at bbc. Co. Uk news or go to the bbc news app. Now its time for a look at the weather with nick miller. It may have been actually start this morning but it was sunny across much of the uk. That is now changing. The closer you are to this weather system, that means Northern Ireland and scotland, not just system, that means Northern Ireland and scotland, notjust cloud but rain moving in and especially for western scotland through the afternoon into the evening, becoming very wet, with a strengthening wind. Some rain for Northern Ireland, the more persistent the further west you are. Across england and wales,
although some