Transcripts For BBCNEWS Coronavirus 20200424

And, medical experts criticise President Trump, after he suggests injections of disinfectant might kill the coronavirus. Hello and welcome to viewers on bbc one as we build up to todays Coronavirus Briefing from the government today led by the transport secretary, grant shapps. But first, the newly launched government website which allows key workers in england to register for a coronavirus test has stopped taking bookings, just hours after it went live. It was announced yesterday that up to 10 Million People and members of their household will be able to request a test, and the Scottish Government has said it wants to put a similar system in place very soon. But a message on the website in england is already asking people to try again later. A total of 19,506 patients have now died in uk hospitals after testing positive for coronavirus up 684 on yesterday according to the department of health. The figure does not include those who died in care homes or in the community. The coronavirus lockdown caused uk retail sales to fall by more than 5 last month, the biggest drop since records began. And the makers of disinfectant products lysol and dettol have issued a warning not to use their products on the human body, after President Trump suggested they could potentially be used to treat coronavirus. More on those stories as we build up to todays government briefing, but first, this report from our Health Correspondent jane dreaper. Testing is vital for tackling coronavirus. Individuals need to know whether they have it and government scientists need a detailed picture about the spread of the virus. Now all essential workers such as supermarket staff and care workers in england are being told they can register for a test if they or a Family Member have coronavirus symptoms. The government is trying to meet an ambitious goal to massively increase the level of testing within days. We have had this ramp up incapacity to test in advance of the 100,000 target at the end of next week. Currently just over 50,000 tests are available but not as many people have been coming forward as we had expected. Now of course, that was a problem, but its a good problem to have because it means we have been able to expand who can get a test faster. But this morning the government website quickly ran out of slots and anyone trying to register for a test got this message. Ministers apologised and said more spaces would be available tomorrow. There are around 30 centres set up for testing if workers are able to drive to them, but there has been criticism that they are often too far away. Mike is a teacher who feels unwell and he applied but didnt manage to get a testing slot this morning. It was very easy to log on and register. Itjust said that you would then receive a text which would take a few minutes but it might take a bit longer if its busy. And ive still not had a text yet so im assuming that they are very busy. Pop up testing stations like these ones run by the army are also part of the push against coronavirus. There are already plans to expand testing to critical workers in wales. Private sector front line workers will be included in the Northern Ireland programme. And the Scottish Government also wants key workers tested. We are working through today that system becoming operational in scotland, theres one or two practical issues we have to make sure we understand here in scotland so that it fits with our approach to testing and the systems we have in place but certainly our intention is that that will be up and running here too. The testing strategy in england also includes sending nhs staff swab kits they can use at home, and expanding that to wider groups of workers. The government has faced criticism over testing, with accusations that its plans havent been sufficiently quick or comprehensive. Efforts to meet next weeks target will be watched closely. Jane dreaper, bbc news. 0ur Political Correspondent, Jonathan Blake is at westminster. Yes, jonathan, the government continues to be plagued by issues over testing . Yes, there is no huge surprise that the latest phasing of that which is to offer testing for coronavirus to all essential workers, is deemed so by the government, has been met with significant demand as the department of health and social care in england has described it. When you open it up has described it. When you open it up to potentially 10 Million People and members of their households, when you look at the number of tests available, 5000 home testing kits issued within the first two minutes of that website going live this morning and a further 15,000 appointments a drive through testing centres a re appointments a drive through testing centres are located, then it is no surprise that demand is outstripping supply at this stage. A few key things to bear in mind to put those numbers in context, these tests are only for people who have symptoms of coronavirus and are worried they may have the virus itself. So it is not a test for anyone who thinks they might have had it at some point or wa nt to might have had it at some point or want to check they have had in the past. And also, the government has been clear that it is taking this and trust that those applying for the tests are key workers themselves 01 the tests are key workers themselves or members of their households and they have symptoms of coronavirus. Downing street has said there are no eligibility checks in place. So this could be a free for all. But the government is taking it on trust that those applying for the tests are infact that those applying for the tests are in fact key workers and have symptoms. A few caveats to put this in context, but nevertheless, labour are among those asking questions about whether ministers should have seen this huge demand for tests coming and asking the government to a nswer coming and asking the government to answer the question over whether it can put a robust workable system for continual testing of key workers in place in the future. I think what we are seeing is a glimpse at the beginnings of that with these daily offerings of tests online. Jonathan, as we wait for todays Daily Briefing from downing street, among the questions the minister grant shapps might be asked is about lockdown. Because we had the first minister of scotland yesterday, Nicola Sturgeon, talking about the easing of restrictions in the future, as she sees it. We have had Mark Drakeford in while speaking in those terms today. Do you imagine they will come under pressure . those terms today. Do you imagine they will come under pressure . I am sure they will, that pressure will only continue as frustrations grow with the lockdown restrictions and the understandable clamour for clarity as to how long they will be in place and how and potentially when the government will go about lifting those restrictions. As you mentioned, there are potentially slightly different noises coming from the different devolved governments. The Scottish First minister, Nicola Sturgeon, talking about a phased reopening of those restrictions and the welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford sketching out a rough timeline of when the lockdown could be eased there. Those things will only add to the pressure on the uk government to give some further details of how that process is going to work. But i wouldnt be surprised if we dont hear any more about that from grant shapps, the transport secretary, who is leading the News Conference at the government continues talking about being at a critical phase and not wanting to detract from the central message of asking people to stay at home. Jonathan, for the moment, thank you very much and we will be back with you shortly when the News Conference is about to get under way. The first minister of wales has outlined his plans for bringing the country out of lockdown. Mark drakeford has published a framework that sets out how he will begin relaxing the stay at home regulations when the time is right. He has said he hopes that some restrictions on everyday life could begin to be eased at the end of the current three week lockdown period. Well, we can speak to Mark Drakeford now. Thank you forjoining us on bbc news. We spoke about a traffic light style system, run through briefly what you mean by that . What we mean is, as we begin to come out of lockdown we will, only in the first phase be able to do the most cautious of lifting of the measures and we are calling that the red zone. So in the red zone, people will see some differences between the current arrangements and what will happen then. But they will be modest and they will be very cautious. We will then track there isa cautious. We will then track there is a make sure they are working in the right way and if they are we would move into the amber zone. In the amber zone, we would put other things into the repertoire of things that people would now be able to do. In the amberzone, that people would now be able to do. In the amber zone, you have to be careful, put Public Health first, track the impact of those measures and if we succeeded we would end up in the green zone. In the green zone, life begins to look a little bit like it did before the crisis began. Iam bit like it did before the crisis began. I am talking about it in that way to give people in wales a sense of the journey that we may be on, how we could embark upon it and how it might impact on their lives. And you have said that it is possible some restrictions on daily life could be eased at the end of the current three week lockdown period, so that is effectively in two weeks time. Would you envisage the red zone being implemented in wales in a couple of weeks time . zone being implemented in wales in a couple of weeks time . I am going to be clear, my preference is that we have a common way of doing this across the United Kingdom. That we agree on a common set of measures and we implement them to a common timetable. But todays framework is to generate a conversation with people here in wales about the things that they would like to see change in the future. To explain to them tests we will use to decide whether or not those are the first set of measures, there is cautious, first steps that we might take and how we will put measures in place in the community to identify whether or not even those measures lead to some new flare ups of coronavirus so that we can get on top of them early and make sure we dont end up back in the position weve just worked so ha rd to the position weve just worked so hard to get out of. Of course. But would you, if you felt you had to, implement an easing of restrictions in wales even if england didnt . My preference is not to do that, to work on a four nation basis. We have already done things differently in wales. We were the first nation in the United Kingdom to offer testing to Health Care Workers. We have put the two metre distancing into law here in wales. It is guidance only in england. Here, it is part of the regulations and there are a series of other ways in which we have made changes that are right for wales to adapt the system so that it works here. So if we have to, our framework will give us a pathway to doing things in wales for wales alone. Butjust to repeat, my preference, my strong preference is to do this on a uk basis and publishing our framework is a positive contribution to getting that for away, uk wide conversation going. In essence, are you trying to push the westminster government into some sort public position . push the westminster government into some sort public position . I would like a private conversation with the uk government. I wrote to michael gove on monday of this week, suggesting either of them to these three weeks in which we have a regular pattern of engagement between devolved administrations in the uk government so that we could share information, pool ideas, craft a common way ahead. I have published the framework as the first minister of scotla nd the framework as the first minister of scotland has in scotland. As a contribution to that conversation, i very much hope we will be able to embark on it in earnest next week. 0k, we are going to have to leave it there. Thank you forjoining us on bbc news. Mark drakeford, thank you very much for your time. Thank you very much for your time. Thank you very much. Its exactly one month since the Prime Minister announced the current lockdown measures, which are designed to save lives and protect the nhs. But are people following the rules . The National Rural Crime Network says confusion about the exercise guidelines is contributing to a rise in the number of people heading to beauty spots, and the organisation says its resulted in increased tension in rural areas. Police say they will use discretion and judgment in deciding how to respond, as Claire Marshall reports. Polzeath in cornwall yesterday. It could be on a postcard. But look through the lens of a world locked down by a global pandemic, and you may see something very different. These kayakers had to be rescued last week, drifting out to sea, the lifeboat cleaned and disinfected. We dont want our lifeboat crews, who once they are launched on a shout, once they respond to their pagers, have no choice of social distancing, they have to come together, sit together in a small lifeboat, in a confined space, to rescue anybody, whoever that might be, with whatever disease or infection they may have. But these days, exercise is so vital for physical and mental health, the guidance has been relaxed, its confusing. I think its pretty vague. Like government guidelines have said you shouldnt be allowed in the sea, however, the council and everyone else know this is a community. When youre in the sea, you can easily keep a safe distance apart from everybody. Most people do seem to be respecting the key message to stay at home. The tourist honeypot of scarborough is still quiet. But could this be changing . We are seeing increased numbers of vehicles on the roads. And we are definitely seeing more people out and about in communities, creating i think, enhanced tension in communities where communities are saying, actually, we thought this had been resolved. Residents of a little parish on the somerset levels definitely feel its not being resolved. 200, 300, 400 people a day come through. Valerie naughton, whos lived here for a0 years, says shes recording more and more people choosing to come here. For them, they are getting away from it all. We do not know how its being spread, we dont know whos got it and who hasnt, and with all these people, not only for theirselves, but us in the parish, we are an older generation, and we do feel very strongly that were isolating ourselves, and we feel why are they not . In one hour, we recorded at least 60 people exercising. But duncan believes hes not hurting anyone. If i was walking, id have to pass people, so what do you do . How do you get your exercise, then . You tell me. Were all so different. We have different needs and priorities, and our view of whats reasonable is different. And trying to write rules that are seen as being fair to everyone in such a short space of time is almost impossible. And it does seem that the clarity of that stay at home message is being blurred, just as everyone gets sick of the lockdown. It looks like it will be another lovely weekend. The question is, will the lure of freedom and fresh air be too much to resist . Claire marshall, bbc news. Health secretary matt hancock says it is too soon to set out more detail on how and when lockdown measures to tackle the coronavirus pandemic will be lifted. Yesterday Scottish First minister Nicola Sturgeon said the lifting of the coronavirus lockdown is likely to be phased in scotland, with some measures remaining in place into next year or beyond. Well, to discuss how the lifting of a lockdown might work, im joined by lord 0donnell, who was cabinet secretary and head of the Civil Service from 2005 to 2011. Its a thank you so much forjoining us, youll have had a great deal of experience at the heart of government, cabinet secretary to three Prime Ministers, and you have just been conducting some research into how to lift the lockdown and when, what did you conclude . Well, we concluded that whats missing is a framework for the government to bring together all the different elements, so you will see plenty of information about the number of deaths and the way that is spreading, the evolution of the covid virus, but we eventually, when we have control of this, need to balance out the problem is that we are creating by having the economy basically in lockdown future unemployment in the millions, which we are likely to have, those factors need to be brought together, and thatis need to be brought together, and that is quite a complex task, and so you need a rather comprehensive framework. We have suggested doing it in terms of the impact on quality of life of all these different factors, well being, bringing that together. So it is not that people are asking the secretary of state for health to come up with an answer now, we are not. What we are trying to say is, lets look at the factors that are really important. He has got his five tests, but i dont quite understand how, once you have the pandemic under control and you are thinking there will not be a bad second wave, but every month that goes past, the economy gets worse, how do you try that off against even better odds in terms of a second wave not coming back . So you are weighing up versus the costs of this is the benefits of the lockdown. That is exactly right, and when the cost of the lockdown exceed the benefits, that is the point where we come back out. All we are really asking is that we lay out what the costs a nd asking is that we lay out what the costs and benefits are. We dont need decisions yet. It is good for people to analyse, you know, the different weights they want to put on them. So you are not in government any more, not running the government any more, not running the government any more, so you can go out on a limb did you come to some sort of conclusion as to when the lockdown could be lifted . Well, any conclusion is very sensitive to the assumptions that you put in, so we did put in some assumptions, particularly things about how you value extra life years. We came up with an answer of around mid june, but i stress that is very dependent on the assumption is that we put in. You could very differently come up with a different answer. The key is to have a framework that encompasses all of these things, then government and politicians can make the trade offs, but it is a debate we should be having more widely. So you think the government needs to start addressing it, because ministers have been reluctant, uk government ministers have been reluctant to engage in it at all . Yes, we have seen some moves in scotland and wales, but i think it would be good. They dont have to come up with answers or anything, just what kinds of things. You know, if they look at that five test framework, well, where do the economic factors come into that . Where did the gains in air pollution seen factor into that . The problem is that could come from prolonged lockdown on mental health, exercise, domestic violence, you know, there are lots of different factors, they all have to be weighed up, and i think we could have more of a grown up debate about this. And i suppose a lot of public behaviour, i mean, it depends on people cooperating, doesnt it . The public is overwhelmingly at the moment, but as time goes on, do you worry that cooperation might start to disappear . Well, exactly, so that is why it would be good to have some transparency about who the experts are around the table. We need some behavioural scientists in there, because i have heard people saying that we cannot say anything because it depends on behaviour. Well, actually, that is something the government influences. They have had very clever behavioural campaigns to make us wash our hands, they have amazing compliance from the public on the lockdown. So i now think we need to think about the next stages, you know, how do we make sure that we keep this compliance . Now, one way of doing that would be to give people hope about the fact that there will be a rational and open process which helps decide when it is best to come out. I think that would really reassure people. The risk is that it looks endless and it is not clear what the criteria are that we are using, and then we risk that we are using, and then we risk that compliance starts to fade away. Are very good to talk to you, gus 0donnell, lord 0donnell, many thanks. More now on the coronavirus tests for essential workers promised by the government. The new online site for booking those tests in england has stopped taking requests just hours after opening. Downing street says the 5,000 daily capacity for home testing kits was reached two minutes after the website went live this morning. Around 15,000 tests were also requested at drive through sites. Dame Donna Kinnair is the general secretary and chief executive of the Royal College of nursing. Shejoins me now live, thank you so much forjoining us on bbc news. I wonder, Donna Kinnair, how do you feel about the plans to test all essential workers . Do you think Health Workers should be given priority . 0r Health Workers should be given priority . Or do you think this is right . So we need a stage where Health Workers are given priority, because actually it is Health Workers that have been providing the care, so if ijust take my example today, i have been at the Nightingale Hospital, and in order for us to go there, we do have to be tested if we are showing symptoms to be able to not take time off and to be able to not take time off and to be able to deliver the right care for our patients. Butjust in reference to your earlier conversation about lifting the lockdown, we note that we havent infected enough of the population with this virus, so for any lifting of the lockdown to be successful, we need not only to be able to test Health Care Workers but also track and trace patients and people outside of hospital, or people that are coming into hospitalfor various other reasons, not just are coming into hospitalfor various other reasons, notjust for call with. And, really, we do need far more testing capacity, and so it is great that we have reached 51,000, but you can see how much more we need both for the community but also to make sure that the population in general is tested so that we can see why second peaks are coming from in order that we can monitor patients in any lifting of the lockdown. We have heard repeatedly that the capacity for testing is increasing, but those tests arent being taken up. What are you hearing from your members . Are they still having difficulty getting to places to be tested . Difficulty getting to places to be tested . So there is some of that, but we know that in the last week or so, the government, alongside Public Health england, has ramped up the testing, and we have mobile testing thatis testing, and we have mobile testing that is going into care homes, so it is fine if you are working in a hospital and you can get tested at the hospital if you are developing symptoms, but we must recognise, you know, it is not easy for somebody to travel to some of the new sites, and what we were hearing is that, you know, if you have got to drive for three hours, that is not feasible, particularly if you are feeling unwell. So it is welcomed that we have now got more sites opening up, it is welcome that we have got mobile testing going into care homes, and actually because we know that some of those resident in care homes cannot get out to any testing site, we need to go into them to understand how to test them, but also to make sure that, actually, we are cracking what is going on in ca re are cracking what is going on in care homes so that we can set up some different areas, so if you have got coronavirus in a care home, you might need to have patients, differently. And what about the other issue of personal protective equipment . Our nursing staff still having problems getting enough supplies . Well, our latest survey shows that half of the nursing staff that responded to it, and i was working in some high risk areas, have felt pressure to carry out work without the right level of protection in the official guidance. So it is true that they are struggling, and this is without looking at all health care settings, really. And what we do know is that if they do not have access to the right personal protective equipment, they are in fear of their own safety, but also that of their patients, because one of the things that protective equipment is is not just protecting you, but stopping the spread wherever you are working. 0k, dame Donna Kinnairfrom the Royal College of nursing, thank you so much for your time. We are waiting for the Daily Briefing from downing street, and in the meantime we can talk toJonathan Blake, who is at westminster. What do you expect to come up this afternoon . The transport secretary, grant shapps, is leading the conference, andi shapps, is leading the conference, and i would expect he will talk about the announcement made by his department today, a package of funding and support to help cross Channel Freight Services continue through the coronavirus crisis, and also services between the british mainland and Northern Ireland, the isle of wight, the isles of scilly as well, so they have announced some measures today, funding and Logistical Support for Companies Operating Freight Services on those roads who have seen their trade suffer during the lockdown restrictions that have been put in place, the government talking about those as essential roots which need to continue, and they are also recruiting several thousand volu nteers recruiting several thousand volunteers from within the transport sector as well, so i expect we will hear more detail about that as well from grant shapps. Christians, i am sure, about the governments testing strategy. Questions. The Health Secretary yesterday announced the testing regime was being opened up to all essential workers, around 10 Million People eligible in the uk, although the programme at the moment is only for those in england. Key workers and members of their households with coronavirus symptoms who want to get tested can now go online and apply to do that. But as we have seen today, and as we have been reporting, that website went live this morning, it was closed after just a few live this morning, it was closed afterjust a few hours when capacity was reached with 5000 at home testing kits and around 15,000 slots for drive through appointments. That may well be questions about whether the Testing Available at the moment, which is there because the initial u pta ke which is there because the initial uptake from Health Service workers and others wasnt as high as expected, is enough to meet the demand. And perhaps also questions about the lockdown, as you have been hearing in the last half an hour or so, the Welsh Government and the Scottish Government as well putting forward a bit more detail than their cou nterpa rts forward a bit more detail than their counterparts at westminster about when people might say those restrictions lifted and how. Yes, i spokejust a few restrictions lifted and how. Yes, i spoke just a few minutes to go to the first minister of wales, mark dra keford, the first minister of wales, Mark Drakeford, who said his very strong preference was that the four nations would be implementing the same sort of regime, so if there is a lifting of regime, so if there is a lifting of restrictions, that it would happen everywhere. But that does leave the possibility that in fact wales could go first, with all the potential complications that would lead to. It does leave that possibility open and the Scottish First minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has said a similarthing, first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has said a similar thing, that she would be prepared to do that if the evidence was there. But downing street, westminster would be doing its utmost to avoid that outcome. They have said at every turn during this crisis, they want the uk to move in lockstep, as downing street put it, through this. We have seen that so far in the restrictions that have been brought in, the timeline and extent of those lockdown measures. But there have been subtle differences here and there and potential outcome that we may see four different parts of the uk acting differently because the powers are there for the Scottish Government and the Welsh Assembly government to things differently with the devolved responsibilities, education and Public Health, should there be any kind of disagreement. You heard from the welsh first minister, Mark Drakeford, in that interview saying he was keen for a private conversation with the uk government and begin work in earnest in the coming week on talking on detail on how those restrictions would be lifted and i think the press co nfe re nce would be lifted and i think the press conference is starting now. Good afternoon. Welcome to todays downing street press conference. I am pleased to bejoined downing street press conference. I am pleased to be joined today by doctorjenny harries. Let me update you on the latest information from the cobra data file. I can report through the governments monitoring and Testing Programme that as of today, 612,031 test for coronavirus have now been carried out in the uk. Including 28,532 tests yesterday. 143,464 people have tested positive. That is an increase of 5386 cases since yesterday. 17,049 people are currently in hospital with coronavirus in the uk. That is down from 17,615 the day before and down 10 on the same day last week. And sadly, of those in hospital with the virus, 19,506 have now sadly, of those in hospital with the virus,19,506 have now died. Sadly, of those in hospital with the virus, 19,506 have now died. That is an increase of 684 fatalities since yesterday. We express our condolences to their families, their friends and we must not forget that each of these statistics represents a personal tragedy. Despite the continued challenges ahead, as we prepare for the next stage in our battle to beat this pandemic, there are tentative signs we are making progress. The main reason is the way britain has responded to the guidance to stay at home and maintain social distancing over the past few weeks. By respecting these measures, the whole country is slowing the spread of the virus. By avoiding public transport, we are freeing up space for critical workers who rely on buses and trains to travel safety. The continued cooperation of both passenger and freight transport is critically important to our resilience as a country. So today i am announcing a new package of measures to ensure transport boosts our National Response to covid 19. First, we are announcing a far reaching package to safeguard the flow of essential goods into and across our country. I can announce the government has secured a trilateral agreement along with french and irish governments which commits our nations to keeping freight routes open bringing in life saving medicines, food and other essential goods and allowing us other essential goods and allowing us to meet the needs of our countries during this difficult period. 0perators on many of these routes have been under rising financial pressure due to falling demand. Since many of them bring in crucial goods like medicines, Raw Materials and chemicals to purify water, it is important to guarantee the continuation of the services. We are protecting ferry routes between Great Britain and Northern Ireland with funding of up to £70 million. We are also taking action to secure services around the United Kingdom, including 10. 5 million for the links to the isle of wight and the scilly isles. Allowing critical freight to the isle of wight and the scilly isles. Allowing criticalfreight to continue to support families to every pa rt continue to support families to every part of our country. And we are making sure that air links to belfast and derry, londonderry in Northern Ireland will continue so that these routes are particularly important for critical workers. Thanks to the measures i have announced today, we are also safeguarding five ferry and two air routes between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. And 26 different freight routes from britain and between britain and france, belgium, spain, netherlands, denmark, germany, norway and sweden. Second, we have launched a transport support unit dedicated to fighting this pandemic. At the beginning of the crisis, we reduced Services Like railand crisis, we reduced Services Like rail and buses while securing their continuation to enable critical workers could make their way on essential journeys. Low workers could make their way on essentialjourneys. Low rider ships means we have Spare Capacity which i have directed to be used for logistical tasks to fight this virus. By making use of the people and the resources from the department for transport, and its agencies and arms length bodies, we have been able to help nhs trusts and local resilience groups fight this pandemic. We now have over 8500 specialist volunteers from across the transport sector and around 9000 vehicles which can support the national effort. This includes four fixed wing aircraft owned by the maritime and coastguard agency. 0ne of them is a 737. Helicopters, ships and trains and together they will help move emergency patients and medical supplies, help move emergency patients and medicalsupplies, deliver help move emergency patients and medical supplies, deliver ppe to hospitals and distribute food parcels to Vulnerable People. Meanwhile, vehicles from highways england will act as mobile covid 19 testing centres. Network rail has also made available its seven regional distribution centres which can be used to support that effort. This work is now under way and i would like to thank all those taking part, like the Network Rail Engineers who helped fit out the Nightingale Hospital in manchester. This country works hard to beat this virus and it is vital we come together and help each other. So the transport support unit is getting to work helping front line staff and making full use of the significant resources at its disposal. I have also given the green light to trials of drones to deliver medical supplies. Earlier this year we awarded £28 million to southampton and portsmouth to deliver a future transport zone. As part of that initiative, £8 million was earmarked for testing groans and how they might be used to deliver goods in the years and decades ahead. Of course, now we have an urgent need so we are making use of that Testing Programme as part of our response to covid 19. As a result, ifast tracked trials to Begin Next Week to carry medical supplies and equipment to St Marys Hospital near newport on the isle of wight. Finally, we have made funding available today to keep englands tram is operating. This will help in the fight to keep a light Rail Networks in greater manchester, sheffield, nottingham, West Midlands and tyne and weir operating, allowing essential and local routes to remain open and key workers to get to work during this crisis. All of these new initiatives build on the very considerable work we have seen across transport since this crisis began. The government has taken widespread action to support the industry. For example, we stepped in to keep trains running and to keep the buses running. We have worked with the Foreign Commonwealth Office and airlines to bring thousands of britons home who are stuck abroad. And as of today, i can also confirm there are now no british holiday makers left stranded on cruise ships anywhere in the world. To help motorists we have waived the mot renewals until the end of the outbreak, ensuring that Vulnerable People are able to stay at home without worrying about their ca rs. At home without worrying about their cars. But i want to pay particular tribute to the transport critical workers, who have gone above and beyond to keep vital freight and Passenger Services running, to keep hospitals and chemists supplied with medical goods to ensure supermarkets are stocked with fresh food and maintain deliveries of essential energy and food supplies. From hauliers and train drivers, to those keeping our ports and airports open, each and every one of us depends on the transport lifeline that they provide. And they of course are part ofan army provide. And they of course are part of an army of critical workers helping to fight this terrible scourge. But before we can consider if it is safe to amend these restrictions, we must first satisfy we have met the five tests set out by the first secretary to ensure that the nhs can continue to cope, that the nhs can continue to cope, that the nhs can continue to cope, that the daily death rates. In a bleak and consistently, that the rate of infection is falling, that operational challenges have been met and most importantly, that there is no risk of a second peak. Now, we dont know yet when that day will come. But i do know that that day will arrive sooner if motorists and others continue to only make essential journeys. The others continue to only make essentialjourneys. The actions i have announced today will ensure transport can continue to serve the nation during this crisis, keep us supplied with everything we need to stay at home. Yet also ensure the infrastructure required to emerge from this pandemic stands ready to serve us from this pandemic stands ready to serve us all when that time does arrive. I would like to turn to doctorjenny harris. Arrive. I would like to turn to doctorjenny harris. Thank you. Just to evidence how hard i think we have all been working and the results of that work in relation to the five key criteria that we are trying to achieve. We have some familiar slides here and to note on the first one, this is highlighting the change in our transport use. It was right down to 59 , lower than the first week of february. It has risen a little bit, just two or 3 in the last week. I would like to reinforce how important it is we retain that success in reducing the amount of contacts success in reducing the amount of co nta cts we success in reducing the amount of contacts we a re success in reducing the amount of contacts we are having in our travelling, which we know has contributed significantly to supporting the change in transmission of the disease. Next slide please. So this shows the numbers of cases reported. These are when lab tests are completed, that is sometimes a few days after the test itself and there are two colours on here. What you will notice as we go through the slides, first, the total number of cases has risen. It represents an epidemic curve of a type, but there is fluctuation relating to the reporting of the tests. But importantly, the curve is flattening, which i think indicates the reduction in cases and transmissions but just with the reduction in cases and transmissions butjust with a little caveat as we go forward. With the increased numbers of test available, thatis increased numbers of test available, that is particularly in the orange colour on the slide, we will expect to see, in some ways, an increase in cases because we are having an increase in detection numbers. So this is a good signal. We are flattening the curve, it rose sharply and it has levelled off. But dont be surprised if cases do increase a bit as our actual testing increases as well. Next slide please. So this slide demonstrates the people in hospital with confirmed covid 19 and this has fallen obviously vary markedly in london. We can see how hard the nhs was working, particularly in the first week in april and the su ccesses first week in april and the successes that has had. And i think on the number of inpatients who have been diagnosed with covid in the last 24 hours, for the first time in many, last 24 hours, for the first time in any last 24 hours, for the first time in many, many weeks, this has fallen below 1000. This is real success and many other success stories, as you can see, with many areas working really ha rd. Can see, with many areas working really hard. But we do need to keep our social distancing measures going, we must not allow those peaks to start going upwards again. Next slide please. And again, critical ca re slide please. And again, Critical Care bed use. We can see a sharp rise. I know there were concerns from members of the public whether our capacity would be sufficient. It has always been sufficient and increasingly on a day to day basis as we manage the disease and the epidemic in the uk, the numbers of beds available has significantly risen. So there is a lot of hard work on the front line and we mustnt underestimate that by nhs colleagues, but capacity is continuing to increase as we move forward. Next slide please. And then, sadly of course we report the deaths which happen. These are deaths which happen. These are deaths which happen. These are deaths which are confirmed in hospital. They are not reported until all the paperwork is cleared. So you will see some variation in the reporting, but generally an increase in deaths as the epidemic spread and then very gradually, but subtly, an overall decline, a trend in downward death data. Next slide please. Finally, this tries to give an indication, it is difficult because of the different data between countries, but to indicate how the uk is doing in relation to other parts of the world. The far right blue deaths line, marked as uk hospitals only, indicates the data that we have just seen on the proceeding slide, then increasingly we are trying to provide a much broader indication to ensure that we are capturing deaths which are not just in hospital but that we know will be happening in communities to make sure that we are clear how we are managing the disease and to make sure that we are looking after those who are most vulnerable. Thank you very much, i would like to turn to hugh pym of the bbc. Thank you. 0nline booking for Virus Testing has clearly proved very popular. Thousands of workers got the slots they wanted or managed to book kits, others may well have been disappointed, what assurances can you give about future demand being met, and how much will capacity go up met, and how much will capacity go up overthe met, and how much will capacity go up over the next few days . Thanks very much. I can tell you that there we re very much. I can tell you that there were reports that the website had crashed, which it had not, it was simply that the slots for today were taken up. We have seen, havent we, in the last few days, the difference between the capacity available, the last figure i saw was 51,000, and the number of tests done, 28,000 yesterday, and how important it is to make sure we are using that available capacity, people able to book online directly, the critical workers, 10. 72 Million People with theirfamilies, they workers, 10. 72 Million People with their families, they are available to use that site. I can tell you all so that 16,000 of those were booked during the first period of not being online, and the site has actually been brought back up around now for more people to go and book sites, when they close up, more tests will become available tomorrow and so on. So the answer is, as we heard from the professor here yesterday, it looks like the trajectory to 100,000 tests by the end of april is going to be met in terms of capacity. I would say, after the experience today, it looks like the demand is there, and if things come together we will have ambition met. So that is the status of the situation. We have heard from the devolved administrations, who also now want tojoin in using that Online Booking system as well. Did you want to come back . No, just to say, obviously, you dont want peoples expectations to be disappointed, just to sum up, are you pretty confident you can meet the demand that is out there in the next week or so . I think it is fairto the next week or so . I think it is fair to say that no one quite knows, we know what the capacity as but not how many people would want to be tested because, you know, many people working for the nhs, for example, will have already accessed test through their workplace this is now a much wider number of key workers, critical workers, is now a much wider number of key workers, criticalworkers, including the transport workers i was talking about in my comments, and we dont know the answer to how many that will be. It is worth stressing to people that this is a test which will only test if you currently have coronavirus, so there is no point to go on there and test if you had it three weeks ago, it will not give you the answer to that question. We will see how it settles down, but we are encouraged by those 16,000 bookings online, indeed 46,000 people went to the portal first thing today, there are more slots opening up right now, as i am speaking, andi opening up right now, as i am speaking, and i will be more slots tomorrow and the days after. I dont know if there is anything you wanted to add to that . Thank you very much, whew. I will turn to rogerjohnson, bbc north west, roger. Secretary of state, i will ask one in a moment if i may about light rail systems, which you talked about. But talking about social distancing, the sun has been shining here, as in a lot of places, for a couple of weeks now. I had a conversation today with a lady called jo whose sister was a health ca re called jo whose sister was a Health Care Worker who worked in a hospital in south manchester. She died of covid 19, it was a funeral today. She was in tears on the phone when i spoke to her, talking about the numberof spoke to her, talking about the number of people out on the street as they drove back from the funeral, not practising social distancing. I wonder, as the police also say that it is becoming an increasing problem, whether it is possible to manage peoples expectations about how much longer the lockdown will go on, and if necessary, to encourage the police, rather than policing by consent, to go to a different way of policing as they did at the beginning, i wondered what your thoughts were . Look, overall, it is tragical to hear stories like that, andi tragical to hear stories like that, and i think overall the country has done well in adhering to social distance, and there is a danger, as we go into yet another warm, sunny weekend that people think perhaps these graphs are showing that, you know, the peak is over. But asjenny was clearly shown, and i will ask you to comment in a moment, it isnt over, we are perhaps writing, we hope, a downward trend, but it is by no means established yet, and when people ask me, you know, when will the social distancing measures, the stay at home measures be altered, my a nswer stay at home measures be altered, my answer in some ways is that some of this lies in your own hands. The more we adhere to it and are strict about the social distancing that is required, the faster that decision will be made, but the decision will be made entirely on the advice of science and medical advice. Jenny, cani science and medical advice. Jenny, can i turn to you . Yes, the story you provide is often a very powerful one, people who have lost relatives or loved ones or colleagues at work really feel, when they see people flouting the social distancing requirements, and it is absolutely critical that we maintain them. It does, of course, demonstrate why, although this is a very sound led approach, that science includes behavioural science, and right at the start of the advice that was given, there was a considerable amount of debate and discussion and evidence looked at relating to how people comply with social distancing, and these are very difficult things to get the balance right. 0n the whole, as we have just seen, most of the public are really complying, really supporting, and that becomes increasingly difficult as we go through, but actuallyjust pretending that we can jump out of it easily is not the answer at all. We will lose all the benefit of the ha rd we will lose all the benefit of the hard work we have done if we left that, so absolutely we need to encourage everybody to comply, and perhaps just keep explaining, perhaps just keep explaining, perhaps we sound a little monotonous sometimes, but really important, even the basic things that we started with, washing hands frequently when you have been out, before you have food, keeping two metres away from other people, absolutely critical. Roger, you want to mention light rail as well, i think. Yes, just a quick question for you, 95 down on the manchester metro, andy burnham, the mayor, said it was within days of having to be mothballed, but clearly it is crucial for key workers to get to work, so therefore Government Support to keep it running is welcome. Ijust wondered how soon that money will come through and in what form. I have been in contact with andy burnham and other mayors in the last few days, and indeed throughout the whole of the crisis, and we are absolutely agreed that support is required, and in this package today, which will be substantial, assistance will be provided. I think it is fair to say, though, we are not looking to try to run services, because 95 of people are not travelling, we are not looking to run full services, but it is very important that they are available, not least to get critical workers to the nhs and around as discussed. So we are pretty much there, no doubt i will be speaking to the mayors and others this coming weekend about it as well. Thank you very much indeed. Can i turn to heather edwards, itv . Good afternoon. To be secretary of state, please, you have Just Announced the government money to keep these essential Ferry Services running between the mainland and the isle of wight and the isles of scilly, but we wight and the isles of scilly, but we do know of other Ferry Companies that are struggling because of this lockdown, notably the port of dover, p 0 ferries says it urgently needs £150 million of government money if it is going to stay afloat. 0f course, they are currently bringing in food and medicines to the uk, will i also get government funding . And secondly, if i could just say, we and secondly, if i could just say, we believe about 15,000 people a day are still flying into uk airports from overseas, none are being checked for covid. We now have the chief executive of Heathrow Airport personally appealing to you and the Health Secretary to screen passengers as they come in why is this not being done . Thanks very much, had. I referto the this not being done . Thanks very much, had. I refer to the trilateral agreement that we have reached with the french and the republic of ireland government about that critical fright float, to which you refer, p 0 and others, and in my remarks i also made reference to 26 different freight routes from britain, france, belgium, many other countries, i wont read the list, which had been secured as well. That is in addition to those Freight Services and transport services, which have been secured to places like the isle of wight, and also the links from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. So all of those things are included in the package, and we will ensure that a minimum level of service is provided so that people can be confident that the goods are back on the shelves of shops and remain there, as they are now, throughout the rest of this crisis. Look, with regards to flights, it is the case that, of course, people have been able to fly here, the numbers are down massively, probably only about 4 5 of the flights that we re only about 4 5 of the flights that were taking place before the crisis, and the load factors are very low. Quite a lot of the people returning, 1. 3 million of them so far, have been british nationals abroad who have been able to come back thanks to those flights. The requirements for anyone coming to this country at the moment are to stay in one place and not leave for any reason, and as we come out of. Any reasons outside of the four stated. As we come into the next phase at a future point, we will continue to keep the excellent medical and scientific advice we received under review to see whether those procedures at airports should change, but i do just want to make this point countries that locked down the flights, iam countries that locked down the flights, i am thinking for example of the United States, which prevented brits or europeans from flying there, have not necessarily weathered the storm of the coronavirus any better, indeed many of them have seen much higher levels of them have seen much higher levels of death. So although it should and must be part of the plan Going Forward , must be part of the plan Going Forward, i think it is probably more useful during the phase of test, track and trace that the Health Secretary was talking about. This country and many others learnt a lot, actually, from the west african ebola macro outbreak, and has been considerable discussion since then, and there are periods when elements of the screening, and i use that word advisedly, because it means Different Things to different people, can be reassuring to the public and can be helpful, so if you have a country which has a very high rate of an illness like ebola and an exit Screening Programme for people leaving can be helpful, and is certainly early in this particular pandemic, of course you will be aware that we very closely quarantined people, for example, coming back from wuhan and very high risk areas. 0nce coming back from wuhan and very high risk areas. Once the prevalence of disease balances, if you like, across the world, that becomes a less effective mechanism, and as the minister said, what may well become an opportunity is when our rates are very tightly controlled and individuals are coming into the country. Even then, it is not quite as simple, so i think often an average traveller will be very reassured with a thermometer scanning gun, but if i said to you, if you look at the detail of those, that the variation in reliability of their temperature control and recording can be 2 3d plus or minus, and it may depend on the ambient temperature, or even the colour around outstanding unit, you can see that it around outstanding unit, you can see thatitis around outstanding unit, you can see that it is quite problematic in saying whether an individual should be pulled in or out for screening. Equally, people can often, we are relying on them often to provide their own story, and i think the most critical point is when somebody comes through a port of entry, they may be going through two or three minutes, an incubation period for this disease running into 21,500 minutes, so the likelihood of grabbing somebody at that point is quite small, but there are important considerations for doing that, and i know that the government is looking at those. Cani can i turn to dan hewitt of itv. Good afternoon. Given you have promised 10 million key workers and their families who are showing symptoms a coronavirus test, you acce pt symptoms a coronavirus test, you accept you have raised expectations way beyond that you can deliver when you have 5000 home testing kits and 15 thousand drive through appointments . And given out on the government website there is no eligibility test to prove you are a key worker, you are trusting anyone who goes to the website to book an appointment for a test or home kit without checking who they are, will you be bringing in checks if the numbers continue to be so high . Thank you. We will always keep this under review, particularly the operation of that website. But, i think it is true to say although there are, as you say, 10. 72 million key workers and families or households, i should say more accurately, who are eligible. As i stress before there is no point taking a test from a medical point of view, i would defer tojenny on this, unless you think you have some symptoms, unless you think you have a reason to be taking it and particularly no point in taking a test if you have already had it three weeks ago or you suspect that you did, you have probably missed the boat, i think. You did, you have probably missed the boat, ithink. In you did, you have probably missed the boat, i think. In terms of expectation management and the rest of it, the Health Secretary stood here, made a clear pledge at the beginning of the month and a lot of people thought it would be difficult to achieve to get to 100,000. Capacity was rising very fast and people quite rightly said what about the demand for these tests, and the fa ct the demand for these tests, and the fact people now want those tests now we have made it much easier to obtain them, i think it is a good thing. It is helpful and we will have to see in the coming days how we balance that demand with the available, with the availability of tests. But i think i am right in saying that everyone would welcome us getting to the 100,000 figure and it would be very good to see that demand matched with the capacity, which has increasingly becoming available. Jenny . I want to reinforce the point made, this is the have you got it now test and it would be wasted if people track online, take one of those tests and to find it is negative. What we want to find it is negative. What we want to do is encourage those who have symptoms to take the test, over somebody in their family does. If those do prove negative with a certain number of caveats that we outlined, then it does mean those people can be back at work and those families can be circulating within the social distancing rules as normal. It is important the public use these tests in the way they were intended because that will benefit all of us. The particularly our front line services. You look like you might want to come back . Early to say we are talking about key workers, many of whom do shift work. If you opened the website at eight oclock in the morning, many cannot sit on the computer and refresh trying to buy tickets for a festival, it isnt that simple. Can there be a system where there isnt that rush every morning for these people who are not able to be at home able to do that . One of the slide show yesterday, there were 20 seven drive through sites. Today there are now 31 original drive through sites. We are making it easier by having more of these for people to be able to get to them quicker. I think by the end of next week, i think it is, we are aiming to increase that number quite a lot again. I think 248. We want to make it as easy as possible. We do have a smaller number at the moment, but it is in trial at the moment of home tests are picked up by courier afterwards to be tested. Hopefully we will be able to expand that programme as well. If by the end of next week, the end of the month we have somewhere near that goal of 100,000, i think in comparative terms, internationally that is a high numberand terms, internationally that is a high number and jenny might have more knowledge of that . L high number and jenny might have more knowledge of that . A very obvious clinical feature, more knowledge of that . A very obvious clinicalfeature, i recognise there is a challenge about the process but if you are symptomatic and you are a critical worker, you should not be at work, you should be at home. You might not be well enough to be hitting a button on a computer, but please do not be at work if you are symptomatic and needing a test. That isa symptomatic and needing a test. That is a good point, but i think we have to be sensible about this. Everybody recognises this is building a test system recognises this is building a test syste m fro m recognises this is building a test system from scratch. Everyone knows it is an enormous challenge and i think the nhs and many of the outside organisations who have been involved in this have really been rising to the challenge and it looks like meeting those numbers will be possible and hopefully balancing both the demand and the capacity for those tests as well in the coming days. Thank you very much. Can i turn to Annabel Dixon . Thank you, secretary of state. First question for you. The latest round of brexit talks finish today with both sides admitting that limited progress was made. Senior figures in a key sector for your department, the haulage sector has warned the coronavirus outbreak, these are not in a position to give the complexity of future trade arrangement with the eu the necessary focus and they believe the necessary focus and they believe the transition period should be extended. Are they wrong and a question for doctorjenny harries, we saw question for doctorjenny harries, we saw the huge demand for home testing kits from key workers who are now able to apply. Anyone who has watched a coronavirus test being administered knows its not a simple task. Are you confident these tests will be reliable and do you know what the failure rate is for the self administered tests . What the failure rate is for the selfadministered tests . Annabel, i will take the first point about the brexit talks. People may not be aware that these have been continuing during this period, and they take place via video link and as you rightly say, the latest round has just taken place. As you rightly say, the latest round hasjust taken place. It as you rightly say, the latest round has just taken place. It included some very Good Progress on some areas, for example transport and nuclear all made significant progress. Transport is one of the areas where there isnt necessarily quite so much distance between us. But it is true to say, and you will have heard all this before, this country not only voted to leave the eu, although i actually didnt in that referendum, but the country nonetheless did. We have also had a general election since in which a lot of people voted for the ma nifesto lot of people voted for the manifesto saying this was exactly what we were going to do and we were not going to entertain an extension to the transition period. That remains the case. We think the best way of providing certainty to all businesses out there is to know that we are not going to keep chopping and changing, the transition period will end at the end of the year. To carry on these negotiations with the eu in good faith, along with negotiations with other countries in the world. And at least ten to provide the certainty. I keep close contact with the haulage industry, who rightly say are right on the front line during this crisis. As i described in the package i outlined today, to which the government is also providing significant assistance, but now we will not be extending, to answer your question. Jenny, on demand for testing kits . The underlying question was around the reliability around them and test canfail the reliability around them and test can failfor the reliability around them and test canfailfora number of the reliability around them and test can fail for a number of reasons. The test might not be sensitive or specific enough. You can have problems in vaccinations where things are not stored properly in chains. It is quite difficult to try and put any number on the failure element. Which i think its what you are describing, potentially somebody taking the tests themselves. What i can assure you is, in trying to pilot these tests, we have run tests in parallel. So having a trained worker take a test and then an individual who is not trying to take them and actually, they are remarkably comparable. We would not be launching something if it wasnt. Having said that, you will have heard about the 0ns survey that it is important we understand the prevalence of disease. We need to extrapolate data from that and make sure we understand, as far as we can, what the prevalence of disease is across the country. Where we wa nted is across the country. Where we wanted to be absolutely robust, we will try and use exactly the same techniques and trained individuals, so they are directly comparable. I think are other settings, because it can be an unpleasant thing to do and not be very normal. In a care home, where it is important we are looking after both the care workers and the residents, there is likely to be additional training there because we need to ensure those tests are taken appropriately and we get good a nswe rs. Appropriately and we get good answers. There is a video that goes alongside this programme, so people can see how people can do it and we did try that and it came out comparable. Annabel, do you want to come back on brexit or testing kits . Ijust come back on brexit or testing kits . I just wanted to come back on brexit or testing kits . Ijust wanted to come back and one more thing, many people in the uk will have seen the clip overnight of the president of the United States suggesting coronavirus might be cured by injecting disinfectant into the body. Do you have a message for donald trump for spreading dangerous disinformation . I will defer to medical expertise, jenny . disinformation . I will defer to medical expertise, jenny . I dont have a specific message to donald trump, justa have a specific message to donald trump, just a specific message to anybody who thinks they should be injecting anything into their bodies. We would not support, from the medical profession perspective, it is really important people use appropriate treatments that are evidence based and tested. We have very Good Programmes that have been taken out very rapidly and coordinated in this country, testing various, different and alternative treatments. Those trials will report reasonably early but nobody should be injecting anything and we should be injecting anything and we should be using evidence based and properly trialled treatments we know will be safe. Perfectly clear. Thank you very much, thank you annabel. John walker from birmingham live very much, thank you annabel. John walkerfrom birmingham live at very much, thank you annabel. John walker from birmingham live at the newcastle chronicle. walker from birmingham live at the newcastle chronicle. I would like to raise again about rail systems, which are playing a part in major cities. He said the department for transport would support them, but i dont think you have given any indication how much funding they can expect. Tyne and weir say they needed a £10 million bailoutjust to keep the metra running untiljuly. Manchester says the metrolink is losing millions of pounds a month and transport for the west midland says they are losing £1 million a month. Can you tell me how much funding these reasons can expect regions. Under question for jenny harries, do we know why people from some ethnic minority backgrounds seem to be dying in disproportionately high numbers in this crisis . If we dont know at this crisis . If we dont know at this stage, perhaps you could tell us what work is taking place to try to find out . Thank thank you very much, john. We dont have the actual figures for you because we are in discussion with the systems and discussing the level to which they should be continuing to provide service, and also other assistance they are able to access. This is a package which runs into the millions, it is not a small endeavour to do this. I mentioned the particular systems to which it will apply, more details soon. But i also want to say that we heard in a comment early, these systems are running way below ordinary capacity and quite rightly, because people are following the social distancing, please dont go out unless you need to instruction. It is a case of finding a route with them which allows them to remain viable entities, but not continue to run exactly the same service they run at the moment. But we are actively in touch with them and i think it is good news we have announced there is going to be a multi Million Pound package to ensure there is light rail systems, which are excellent in all cases, can continue. Jenny. This isa all cases, can continue. Jenny. This is a hugely important and hugely complex object. You may wish to stop me ifi complex object. You may wish to stop me if i get into full flow. It is important when we look at disease prevalence and severity and particularly, in which individuals are losing their lives. We always look at different characteristics, whether it be gender, age or in this case, our focus is whether it be gender, age or in this case, ourfocus is on black and minority ethnic groups and trying to untangle all the different elements that might indicate there was an excess of severe disease, an excess of catching the disease in the first place, or even more importantly, those people who die from the disease is very complex. 0ur those people who die from the disease is very complex. Our data has to be very, very good and even the recording of ethnicity, both by a country of origin for example, or an ethnic group which somebody feels pa rt an ethnic group which somebody feels part of, that is hugely complex. So a death certificate will give the country of origin, but that may well not give anything to do with how the individual has lived their lives of the community they have lived in other sort of exposure to disease they may have. There is a huge amount of work ongoing on this as soon as an issue is potentially identified. I say potentially because i think we need to wait until we have very, very clear data. There was a meeting of senior Clinical Professionals and Public Health england announced a couple of days ago that they will be doing a very detailed review into this. The sorts of things that need to be looked at and i know will be, it is not just as simple looked at and i know will be, it is notjust as simple as the ethnic position, but it will be things like for example, what other conditions we know that individuals from particular ethnic background suffer from. So hypertension, high Blood Pressure is something we know carries an increased risk of severe disease and poor outcomes in covid and that is also more prevalent in some ethnic minorities. So it is actually untangling this. I think the other things, there are some important things, not just the underlying conditions. It is also about how people live their lives. So this disease will transmit more, taking social distancing measures if we live close together. People in close communities may have poorer outcomes or more likely transmit disease. 0bviously, many of our black minority and ethnic groups are in different elements of socioeconomic status and that is a really important point that also needs to be considered. It is really important that we engage with those communities to understand, and in this country we have very high representation in the nhs, huge numbers of workers in the nhs, huge numbers of workers in the nhs and in ourfront line Care Services are from minority ethnic groups, and so we need to understand how they are represented. I know, for example, in health care, the very sad deaths of Health Workers, it may be that is proportionate to the very high benefit that they provide to our Health Service in the sense that they are overrepresented. I think it is about 45 of doctors in the london area, for example, from minority ethnic groups. So very complex, all of those things need to be considered, and they are under very active consideration. Thank you very active consideration. Thank you very much indeed, jenny. I know that Public Health england are also looking into it. Lastly, can i turn to Harrison Jones looking into it. Lastly, can i turn to harrisonjones at looking into it. Lastly, can i turn to Harrison Jones at the looking into it. Lastly, can i turn to harrisonjones at the metro, please . Thanks very much. The Health Secretary promised 100,000 test would be carried out daily by the end of the month before the goalpost was seemingly moved to talk about capacity protesting. Less than 29,000 tests today, when will we reach the Prime Ministers previous target of 250,000, and how and when well be testing be opened up beyond key workers and their families . And ifi key workers and their families . And if i may, just an extra question on Contact Tracing, the new nhs app are we Contact Tracing, the new nhs app are we expecting to follow a similar model to south korea, tracking people by gps signals . On the 100,000, this is the number of tests versus the capacity, and it is a well worn discussion. I think what well worn discussion. I think what we have been finding is that capacity has been rising pretty fast, as i mentioned, professor newton said yesterday that he thinks we will get it 100,000 ambition by the end of the month. I think we can see that, because the additional Testing Facilities are coming online, and these sort of super labs, and they are looking at automation to make them even faster. The problem has been that they have not been sufficient people being tested, coming forward through the route which is quite convoluted, of course, of somebody having to go through their employer, perhaps the nhs ora care through their employer, perhaps the nhs or a care home, in order to take the test. What we have seen today is that there is excess demand will test out there, and i can therefore confidently say, adding the two figures that you mentioned, 28,000 yesterday through the ordinary system, 16,000 so that i mention today, that the numbers will be rising pretty sharply and quite fast. So i think that all backs what was said yesterday, that the number of tests, as well as the capacity, the test as well, look like they are all headed in the right direction, and we look forward to seeing that. I think the Prime Minister mentioned 250,000 as an ambition without a particular timetable. The important thing, leading into your second question, is why we are doing this, the contact testing and tracing is absolutely vital to it, and my understanding of the technology is that the app uses a bluetooth signal, completely anonymously, to check who has been within bluetooth range and then use that as part of the Contact Tracing follow up. I think that is the correct technical explanation on it, jenny may have something to add. Shall i just add a little bit of that . I think the ambition, as you say, is to digitalised some of this process, to try and support measures that can bring us back out of some of the social distancing restrictions. Clearly, i am sure we only have to look at our own families to think how many, usually the younger generation, have got the right sort of mobile phones and would quite happily be working that way, and after yea rs, happily be working that way, and after years, grandparents and things perhaps do not, so having a single model around a track and trace is not going to be possible, it will require a certain proportion of us to be using those phones, it will require very Rapid Testing of the key individual, and very strict compliance of all of those who are triggered, if you like, told that you have been near somebody who may have symptoms of coronavirus, to ta ke have symptoms of coronavirus, to take appropriate action. I think there is quite a lot of work to keep going on that, and we are likely to have some sort of hybrid response in order to manage both the digital side and human nature. But it is heading in the right direction, and obviously the testing in that scenario will be really important. We had yesterday about the 18,000 people, i think it is also true to say that you require quite high take up of the app to make it useful. This will be another Great National effort required, it will be an nhs app, and i know how people feel about supporting the nhs, this will be a new way to show support when it is available. Back to you, harrison. On the 250,000 targets, borisjohnson talked harrison. On the 250,000 targets, Boris Johnson talked about the 25th of march, do you have a date when that target will be reached, or is itjust going to that target will be reached, or is it just going to stay as an ambition . I think it was an ambition from the Prime Minister, and actually, i think that the fact that we have been able to go from, i recall, when the Health Secretary was talking about this, 7000 tests a day were being carried out on average each day, and it now looks likely we will get to be 100,000 capacity and quite likely to the testing of 100,000 a day as well, it shows what we can achieve, and i pay huge tribute to the many organisations which have been involved in getting us there, not just Public Health england but the private laboratories, universities, and the enormous scale up that has been required to achieve something which, you know, it looked like it was very ambitious, indeed was very ambitious. Harrison, thank you very much indeed. Ijust wanted to finish by saying that we are often asked about when this particular phase can come to an end, and in many ways the a nswer to come to an end, and in many ways the answer to that lies in our own hands, this is going to be another sunny weekend, we know that we have made a lot of great gains thatjenny has been explaining to us in those graphs earlier, flattening the curve, but it is absolutely essential that we do not let that slip this weekend, and the message remains the same stay home, protect the nhs, and therefore save lives. Thank you very much indeed, thank you. Studio transport secretary grant shapps there, bringing to an end that latest downing street briefing. You are watching bbc news, and the governments latest briefing has just ended. Lets look at the key points from the session. The transport secretary, grant shapps, confirmed that the uk reported another 684 deaths from coronavirus in hospital, taking the total to 19,506, and this does not include deaths in care homes or in the community. We also announced an agreement had been made to subsidise key ferry routes between france and Northern Ireland in order to keep freight moving. He pledged Financial Support for several english cities so that light rail and Tram Services can be maintained throughout the pandemic. And it was also confirmed that the government has given the green light for drones to be trialled as a way of delivering medication. Well, Political Correspondentjonathan medication. Well, Political Correspondent Jonathan Blake is medication. Well, Political CorrespondentJonathan Blake is at westminster for us, he was listening to the briefing, what struck you there . On the issue of the day, those tests are being allocated to key workers beyond those in the Health Service and other essential services who are already eligible from them, we heard from grant shapps that 16,000 tests had been allocated today after that website went live for the first time this morning. That is actually slightly different to the figures given to us by downing street, which was 15 thousand drive through test allocated and another 5000 at home testing kits for key workers are showing symptoms of coronavirus. 15,000 drive through tests. More interestingly, the total number of people who went to the website was 46,000, grant shapps said, giving you some idea of the scale of demand for those tests from the key workers, around 1 million or so, now eligible for those tests. 0n the issue of the lockdown, we had a transport secretary phase questions are not, he said he didnt know when the day would come that the uk was ready to start lifting measures. So perhaps that is an indication that although we have heard from the scottish and Welsh Governments today, and recently, that they are starting to look in detail about how and when those restrictions will be lifted, the government here at westminster isnt ready to Start Talking publicly about that at least. And again, grant shapps, as all ministers do, taking it back to that central message that they have for people to stay at home. And just a couple of interesting things to pick up on from the slides that we saw, car use has increased by 2 3 most recently, chiming with anecdotal evidence that people are out and about on the road in a car isa out and about on the road in a car is a bit more in recent days, and capacity in intensive care units increasing, and some more good news that the trend in death figures and hospital admissions seems to be going in the right direction, are you gradually downwards, but grant shapps one that we were not through the peak of virus cases yet. Come out 0k, jonathan, many thanks. It correspondentjonathan out 0k, jonathan, many thanks. It correspondent Jonathan Blake there. And now some really good news, which is that captain tom moore has become the oldest artists to reach number one in the charts with his rendition of youll never walk alone. He recorded it with time you are number one for your 100th birthday. So time for the weather with thomas. It was another study day across the uk, temperatures across the dash in the high teens in a few spots. More fine weather, very tempting whether, a reminder to please observe the current rules. This is the satellite picture. You can see how the skies clear across the uk. A little more hazy towards the west, but on the whole, fine and settled whether continuing through the rest of the evening and overnight. Clear skies for many of us. Towards the early hours of saturday, the skies will turn more cloudy and by morning, that cloud will spread into yorkshire and parts of the midlands. 0ut towards the west, i think we will have those clear skies all the way through the night. Temperatures around three degrees in some spots, so quite a chilly morning especially in the north. You can see that cloud again around the north see, it should eventually clear by the time we get around the early afternoon. Nippy on the north sea coast, around 126 1215d. That nippy on the north sea coast, around 12 6 12 15d. That was saturday, this is sundays forecast. This low pressure will drift in from the Norwegian Sea. Also a shift in the wind direction which will be coming in from the north, so cooler for much of scotland and Northern Ireland and also increasing clouds that may well bring a few showers. The temperatures, were talking 13 in glasco, so quite a drop. Monday, this trend continues. That is the cooler air arriving from the north and you can see that wind blowing out to the Norwegian Sea into scotla nd out to the Norwegian Sea into scotland and also Northern Ireland through the lakes. To the south, we just have a suggestion of a cold front here, that means to the south of that its still going to be relatively warm. Temperatures could get up to around 21 degrees, but you can see some showers there looming and southwestern parts of england on monday. Tuesday and wednesday, it looks as its going to cool down across the south many of us will catch a few showers. Bye bye. The governments new website for coronavirus tests is swamped as almost 50,000 key workers go online. From teachers to transport workers, 16,000 people did manage to book tests before the site had to close temporarily. Well, from when i first logged on last night, the whole process was very seamless. I was able to register and then ijust had to wait for the e mail to come through. Almost 20,000 people have now died from coronavirus in hospitals in the uk in just seven weeks. Among them, 37 year old twin sisters. Katie and emma davis died this week within days of each other