The Prime Minister chairs his first Cabinet Meeting since returning to work with the lockdown top of the agenda. Testing remains crucial to easing the restrictions with the government likely to miss its target of 100,000 daily tests by today. Nhs leaders call for a new approach. What we need to know is what are we going to do in terms of the testing regime over the next six, eight, ten, 12 weeks, as we come out of lockdown, and as we ensure we protect patients and staff in hospitals, Community Health and ambulance trusts . Well have the latest with our medical correspondent about the governments strategy. Also this lunchtime when we go back to this, can cameras help detect who has the virus . Is thermal imaging, to spot High Temperatures, the key to getting transport moving again . Caring for the caring profession the quiet corners of a hospital where nhs staff take a break from the frontline. And an raf fly past for captain tom moores 100th birthday a special thank you for raising £30 million for the nhs. Im absolutely delighted with all the people like you who have come to wish me a very happy birthday. It really is absolutely awesome, the amount of people who have been so kind. Well hear more about the military career the military career of the World War Two veteran who the pm has described as a light in all our lives. And coming up on bbc news,
tributes paid to another player from the great leeds team of the 19705 trevor cherry, who has died suddenly and unexpectedly age 72. Good afternoon and welcome to the bbc news at one. The Prime Minister has chaired his first session of cabinet since returning to work, as the government considers how its lockdown measures might be relaxed. Borisjohnson is expected to explain at todays Daily Briefing how hell decide what restrictions could be eased without the infection rate accelerating. Testing will be a crucial part of the strategy, but a senior minister has conceded that the government is unlikely to meet its target of carrying out 100,000 daily tests in england by today. The most recent figures show about half that
number being carried out as our Health Correspondent, Anna Collinson reports. Its deadline day for testing. 100,000 daily virus tests by the end of april is what the government have promised. Thousands of kits have been ordered online, while the army have been brought in to help with some drive in sites. All of these measures will play a key role in exiting lockdown. As you start to ease, you want to know exactly where transmissions are likely to be happening, and of course its likely to be happening when people are infected. How do you know people are infected . You test them. A senior minister has admitted the government may miss their 100,000 daily target, but hospital chiefs say thats a red herring and testing needs to be part of a wider strategy including Contact Tracing and regular checks of front line workers. What we need to know is what are we going to do in terms of the testing regime over the next six, eight, ten, 12 weeks, as we come out of lockdown and as we ensure that we protect patients and staff in hospitals,
community Mental Health and ambulance trusts. Prime minister Boris Johnson will now attempt to answer some of those questions. Todays Daily Briefing will be his first since returning to work, and one focus will be the so called r number, which reflects how infectious a virus is. At the height of the outbreak, the r number was around three. This means anyone affected could pass it on to three people. Since then, restrictions have brought that number down to around 0. 7. Crucially, thats below one. However, there are fears that if you ease restrictions too much, the number could jump back up again. The need for caution is clearly something that we are bearing very much in mind here in the uk. The key for us, i think, is to avoid an awful second spike in this virus. Wouldnt it be terrible, after all the huge efforts the british people have made, to find that we were laid low by a second spike just at the wrong moment for our economy and indeed for the wellbeing and the health of our nation . One way to save lives and ease
the lockdown would be a cure, and an area of hope is the repurposing of current drugs. Trials involving drugs used for hiv and malaria are currently being tested to see if they can stop the coronavirus replicating in the body. Results arent expected untiljune. Then theres remdesivir, a drug originally developed to treat ebola. Us Officials Say theres clear cut evidence that it can help people recover from covid 19. But theres a warning that, even if its successful, it can only go so far. The medicines being tested are unlikely to give much more than, say, a 20 improvement in the number of deaths from people in hospitals. Now, of course, 20 is a big advance, but we mustnt think that this is a total positive, that it deals with the problem. Even once the governments testing hurdle is passed, levels will need to be ramped up further, particularly in hospitals and care homes. Without a vaccine, some form of social distancing will be with us for the foreseeable future. Anna collinson, bbc news. Ministers are focused on containing the so called r rate the rate the so called r rate, the rate of people being infected. 0ur medical correspondent, fergus walsh, is here. You can explain more clearly than me what it is and why it is so important. The reproductive rate is simply the number of people on average that each infected person goes on to infect. If it is over one, then you have an increasing infection, it will increase exponentially. If you can get it down to below one, then eventually an outbreak will die out. At the start, about a month ago, it was up to somewhere between three and four. It is now below one. We have a graph
that can help illustrate this. You can see on the 12th of march self isolation was brought in for those with symptoms. It was an r rate of nearly four. Then after lockdown and the social distancing measures, the virus was not able to transmit between people is effectively because we were all keeping our distance and it fell off a cliff in terms of the r number. In care homes where there are big outbreaks, the r number will be different. It can va ry number will be different. It can vary from town to town and street to street. And a quick thought while you are with those as well about the potential for drugs. We you are with those as well about the potentialfor drugs. We have made reference to it, there is some possibility there. There have been some promising results from the us with this ebola treatment called remdesivir. It seems to have reduced the average length of time that
people have symptoms from 15 to 11 days, but very early data. Another thing, it is not a licensed drug, and if it does get licensed by the fda, there is then the question of how much it would cost because most of the other drugs in trials are quite cheap, so it will be a real question on access if this has some benefit, but it is not a magic bullet. Fergus walsh, for now thank you very much. Lets discuss the politics of it all with our chief political correspondent, vicki young, is in westminster. It will be interesting to see what emerges in the tea time briefing. Yes, and borisjohnson has talked about the difficult decisions ahead and talk too about wanting to be transparent with people, but dont think that means he will give details of how or when lockdown measures might be eased. It is much
more about starting to inform people how they will make these decisions and what evidence the decisions will be based on. A lot of the focus today will be on the way the virus is still transmitting around the community. They want to be very sure about that before they make decisions. We have had hints in public, ministers talking about a possible phased reopening of schools, about businesses that can operate outside, how they might start to reopen. 0ne cabinet minister saying today it is far too premature to think about all of that, so do not expect all of the a nswe is that, so do not expect all of the answers today. Vicki young, thank you very much. As weve heard the government is struggling to meet its testing target, but many say even that level would be nowhere near enough. The World Health Organization has warned that widespread testing is essential to contain the pandemic. 0ur Health Correspondent, nick triggle, has this assessment of the governments strategy. Test, test, test,
the World Health Organization recommended should be the key strategy for tackling coronavirus. The uk, though, has struggled to do this. But, today, its hoping to achieve 100,000 tests. Thats a significant improvement on where we were at the start of the pandemic. In february, when the first cases started to emerge, we were able to test 1,000 people a day. This was carried out at eight small labs. All were run by Public Health england with support from Health Officials from the rest of the uk. Over time, hospital labs were brought on board, with growing numbers of patients being admitted for treatment for coronavirus. Because of this, testing was only widely available to hospital patients even nhs staff were struggling at times to get them. By early april, over 10,000 tests a day were being carried out, and a target of achieving 100,000 was set. To help achieve that, a network of drive through testing centres have been opened. There will be 48 by the end of the week. People can also book online for home
testing kits to be sent out. Meanwhile, the military is running over 70 mobile testing units. Three mega labs have been created in milton keynes, glasgow and cheshire, to process the tests. Support is also being provided by the private sector. So, has the 100,000 a day target to be met . Target been met . We wont know for a few days, as tests need to be processed. The latest figures showjust over 50,000 tests being carried out, although there is capacity for many more. Eligibility for testing has also been expanded this week. Now, anyone who needs to leave home to work should be able to get tested, all over 65s, hospital patients and care home staff and residents, even if they dont have symptoms. It is one step away from whole population testing. That will be crucial to help us gradually move out of lockdown, as part of the test, trace and track strategy to contain local outbreaks. When that happens, the uk will finally have achieved what the World Health Organization recommended. Our Health Correspondent nick triggle. The government in germany says it wont consider any further relaxation of its lockdown until at least tenth may. Last week, some small shops were allowed to open, but the Authorities Say they need time to study how that has affected the spread of the virus. Our correspondent, jenny hill, is in berlin. What is behind the German Government thinking now, jenny . what is behind the German Government thinking now, jenny . I think a great deal of caution. It is two weeks since this country said it had the outbreak under control and it has been gradually easing some restrictions ever since. This morning we heard from one of the government leading advisers who said he is pretty happy with the situation at the moment. Every day this week, the number of new daily infections has been rising, but if you look at the numbers they are
significantly lower than they were last week and indeed in the weeks before that. Having said that, the authorities here are keeping a very close eye. They say it is far too 0011 close eye. They say it is far too soon to assess the impact of the current relaxations, and thats why Angela Merkel has made it clear that she doesnt want to make any major changes until at least the 10th of may. We will probably hear a bit about what the changes might be. We will probably hear about some minor adjustments to current restrictions, also later this afternoon after she meets with leaders of states, but it will be a very cautious approach. She and they are under huge pressure of course, not just she and they are under huge pressure of course, notjust from the hospitality sector which once bars and hospitality sector which once bars a nd restau ra nts hospitality sector which once bars and restaurants and hotels to open as soon as possible. The economy is sliding into the worst recession since the second world war, but Angela Merkel has made it clear she wa nts to ta ke Angela Merkel has made it clear she wants to take it slow, carefully, and if the polls are to be believed
the majority of the public are behind her. Jenny hill in berlin, thank you. And you can watch the Daily Briefing which will be led today by the Prime Minister live on bbc one with coverage from a. 30pm. An raf fly past took place over bedfordshire this morning to mark the 100th birthday of captain tom moore. The tribute marks his remarkable achievement of raising more than £30 million for Nhs Charities by walking laps of his garden. The World War Two veteran has been promoted to honorary colonel to mark his centenary and the Prime Minister recorded a special message, describing him as a point of light in all our lives. David sillito reports. Happy birthday to you happy birthday captain tom daddy grandpa. Happy birthday to you i never, ever anticipated ever
in my life anything like this. It really is amazing. And i would say to everyone, thank you very much to everyone, wherever you are. Captain tom moore. It began as a little challenge on his back garden. 100 laps to try to raise £1000 for Nhs Charities. And, today, he was being honoured with an raf birthday fly past, as the total reached £30 million. This is the culmination of an extraordinary few weeks. A celebration of how one mans cheerful determination has inspired people and. Raised a huge amount of money. Happy birthday to you. And amongst those celebrating todays birthday, the staff of a nearby care home. Captain tom has become a local hero. One of the birthday boys, bless him, he actually saw the flight, and he said he felt like he was back there in the army,
because he was in the army in his days, bless him. He was a little bit emotional, to be honest. Itsjust so poignant, you know . The whole day, for our residents. Theres a lot of things to be worried about, a lot of negativity. But this is nice, something to be happy about. And these birthday celebrations go far and wide. Jersey. Tamworth. And downing street. Captain tom, i know i speak for the whole country when i say we wish you a very happy 100th birthday. Your heroic efforts have lifted the spirits of the entire nation. But perhaps the most startling sight is in the village school. This is where they are displaying the birthday cards, all 140,000 of them. Very emotional. Its amazing. Im really proud, because ive known my grandad for all my life. Ive lived with him my life. Ive lived with him all my life. And hes always been there for us. Hes made us think you can be whatever you can be. And there was more. Captain tom is now an honorary colonel. There was also today a letter from the queen, and the congratulations and birthday greetings from around the world continue to arrive. It was quite a day for captain tom. Im absolutely delighted with all the people like you who came to wish me a very happy birthday. It really is absolutely awesome, the amount of people who have been so kind, to make those remarks. Thank you all very much. David sillito, bbc news, marston moretaine. And well have more about tom moores life and army career later in the programme. Our top story this lunchtime. Borisjohnson chairs his first Cabinet Meeting after returning to work, as the government considers
how to ease the lockdown. Ministers how to ease the lockdown. Remain under pressure their ministers remain under pressure over their testing strategy, with nhs trusts demanding more clarity. What are we going to do in terms of the testing regime over the next six, ten, 12 weeks, as we come out of lockdown and we ensure we protect patients and staff in hospitals, communities and islands trusts . Coming up on bbc news, its expected that crickets new 100 ball competition, which was due to start injuly, will be delayed until it can potentially be launched in front of crowds. Airports, fast food chains and Public Transport bodies say they could use thermal imaging cameras to try to stop the spread of the virus. The technology spots people with a High Temperature who may be infectious. Tom burridge has been to bournemouth airport, where they already use the technology. When we go back to this, can cameras help detect who has the virus . So, as i approach the thermal imaging camera, it picks me up and it can see that my temperature is 3611 5 degrees. But if i put a bottle full of hot water onto my head. Beep bingo it thinks that ive got a really High Temperature. And thats the alarm sounding, alerting staff. And as you can see, the cameras over here, and its linked up to the computer over there. This systems being tested on staff here at bournemouth airport and at some hospitals. Larger airports have shown interest. Other businesses and organisations have, too. Weve had Significant Interest from the nhs for a e departments,
were talking to a number of restaurant chains throughout the uk, were talking to construction companies. It would give you a different view, a different set of eyes that you simply cannot have without technology. The airport here has become a parking lot for planes. Passengers are noticeably absent. But theyre preparing for the day when theyll return. Theyre putting these perspex screens up at a check in. Temperature checks would be just another measure. I think its a very useful tool to have in our armoury. Early days, and thats why were testing it, to make sure what we can plan for. We spoke to someone whos written an academic paper on how effective this type of technology is. One of the big challenges in using thermal scanners for detecting people with coronavirus is that prior to the onset of symptoms, so a presymptomatic infection,
or in the absence of symptoms, an asymptomatic infection, you cant actually pick up a fever, because they dont have one. I think it is useful to look at them as a way of catching some people, but we need to be careful not to fool ourselves into thinking that this will catch absolutely everybody. The Company Behind the product admits its not a silver bullet. They say when restrictions begin to lift, checks could reassure us when venues become busy again. Tom burridge, bbc news, in bournemouth. The nspcc says calls about suspected child abuse have risen by nearly a fifth during the lockdown. The charity fears neglect and mistreatment are less likely to be spotted at the moment, because schools and social spaces are closed. Tomos morgan reports. Im worried about the children now, that theyll be at home all day due to the coronavirus pandemic. Last night i could hear the mother
screaming and shouting aggressively. This has been happening almost daily since the lockdown. These are just some examples of the types of calls the nspccs helpline has been receiving in recent weeks. For some children, their situation may have gotten worse as they have been forced to remain at home. I think the emotional side of it was a lot worse than the physical side, and it went on quite a few years. Bethann, which isnt her real name, is from north wales. Since she was six years old she says she suffered abuse from her father. I mean, anywhere from a slap to a push down the stairs. He wouldnt think twice about holding a knife up to you. When its happening, sort of on a daily basis, youre just accustomed to it. Its just normal. As the lockdown continues, bethann fears for any child that may be in a similar situation as she was. To be stuck inside at, you know, a point like this, its got to be terrifying. And itjust gives me chills to even think about being back in that position. New figures from the nspccs
childline, seen exclusively by the bbc, show that theres been almost a 20 rise since the lockdown of adults calling with concerns that children may be subject to neglect, physical abuse or emotional abuse. The longer lockdown goes on, the more intense and at risk children are, if they are invisible to the outside world. At the front line, safeguarding children are social workers. But unions say that staff sickness, patchy provisions of ppe across england, scotland and wales and social distancing measures are all having an impact on the way the profession is able to function. Social workers should not be missing out on face to face contact visits because of a lack of ppe. The three devolved governments in westminster, scotland and cardiff bay say theyre working hard to make ppe available for all front line staff in social services. Every other person thinks their home is a safe environment,
and thats what a home should be. And bethann hopes that any child in a vulnerable situation at this time can get the support they need. Tomos morgan, bbc news. Doctors and nurses are under extraordinary strain as they treat patients with covid 19. Some say theyre unable to put the thoughts of the virus out of their mind when they go home. Lorna gordon has been to one hospital in ayrshire, to find out how staff are dealing with the stress. Welcome to our Staff Wellbeing suite. In a quiet corner of a busy hospital, a place of respite away from the heat, the noise, the stress. Again, this is our kind of quiet corner, where people can come and rest. A little over a month ago, this was an outpatient clinic, but as the numbers becoming sick increased, so too did the realisation that it wasntjust the patients who needed help. This emergency medicine consultant saw anxiety among colleagues mounting. We said we will have to do something to support our staff because we,
you know, this is a fairly new experience for all of us that were all anxious about. We dont know the answers to it all, and we nearly need to support each other going through this. Crosshouse has more than doubled its intensive care capacity. Covid and the new procedures for those being treated has led to new pressures on those treating the sick. This respiratory consultant is one of a network of clinicians in here providing peer to peer support. Many of them facing the same challenges as those colleagues they are helping. Unfortunately, we see people and patients who are very unwell, some of them are dying, and normally we would spend quite some time to sit down with the person and the family and the nearest loved ones. In the current situation, that is not possible, so it feels like a huge disconnect at a very human basic level. And i, as a clinician, struggle with that. Medics, he says, were not emotionally or mentally prepared for what has happened. I cant leave it behind completely. You have flashbacks. At the end of the day, you dream about it at night. You wake up in the morning and start thinking about it. You cant escape it entirely. Its so intense, and so present all the time. So this has become an area where staff can go to to get a break from that intensity, to get support. Open to everyone working at the hospital, it is a place for rest and reflection, and, if needed, help. In icu were very busyjust now, so coming along here were just getting five, ten minutes, quiet time. Nice to get out the unit and. Cos its quite intense. Also on offer is what is called here psychological first aid. A light touch now, but if needed, the chance to explore in more depth with Mental Health professionals the extraordinary challenges staff on the front line are facing. As we move through this pandemic, will some people potentially feel more mentally scarred by some of their experiences . Thats possible, but what were hoping is the wellbeing suite will give people the opportunity
to try and diffuse some of that in the earlier stages, that may go on and prevent further psychological problems in the future. A hospital notjust treating the sick, but caring for those who care for us in these unprecedented times. Lorna gordon, bbc news, at Crosshouse Hospital in east ayrshire. The veteran bollywood actor rishi kapoor has died in mumbai. He was 67 and had been diagnosed with cancer. Rishi kapoor was known for his romantic roles, and was part of Indias Kapoor acting dynasty. The Prime MinisterNarendra Modi called him a powerhouse of talent who was multi faceted, endearing and lively. Well, this mornings celebration of captain tom moores achievements marks the culmination of a life dedicated to public service. During the second world war, he served in burma, in a conflict often overlooked. Robert hall looks back at tom moores role in the war, and the struggles faced by those
fighting in the far east. He wears the burma star, the medal Marking Service on some of world war iis most challenging battlefields. These are the men of what has been dubbed the forgotten army, fighting on the other side of the world, and denied the press coverage given to battles in europe and africa. Tom moore might have expected to fight his war in the regiment hejoined. But he arrived in india in a very different role. The decision was made in 1941 to convert, eventually, 33 infantry battalions to become tanks. And thats what happened to the 9th battalion duke of wellingtons regiment. So, 1941, they set sail to go off to india, in about august. And they arrived at the end of october 1941. And on arrival, they converted to become a tank regiment, equipped initially with valentine tanks. For the next three years, toms job was to keep his tanks and his crew is ready to fight
the japanese and the hostile environment of burma. Those who survived the bullets and the shells often fell victim to the jungle itself. We lost almost as many men through disease as we did through the actual japanese. Because you were always wondering where so and so was. And hed been sent back to hospital because hed got ulcers on his legs, or hed been bitten by mosquitos. Archive regiments from every part of britain, from the highlands to the home counties, and the warrior soldiers of india, the gurkhas. Every survivor from the forgotten army knows that they are lucky to be able to tell their stories. Tom, at the end of his life, has emerged from the shadows. He was a man even in his career, from the sound of it, who was perhaps not in the limelight butjust quietly doing a very important job . The members of the 14th army, the forgotten 14th in burma,
like tom, never received any other accolade other than the medals they were awarded at the end of the war. And its absolutely right that we should hold tom up as an example of those people and say, lets not forget them in the way that we did in the past. And lets celebrate our unsung heroes. And, as the hours ticked down to the big day, tom moores regiment gave him their recognition. He is now an honorary colonel, and hell wear their medal. An old soldier, just doing his duty to us all. Robert hall, bbc news. Time for a look at the weather. Thank you very much. Good afternoon. It was the last day of april today, and april has finally shown the usual weather we are supposed to see of heavy showers, all thanks to this area of low pressure sitting right on top of the uk. Lots of showers spiralling around, particularly across southern areas where we have some strong winds. Some of the
showers have been