And as the daily death toll rises again, well be looking at the latest evidence of the momentum of the pandemic. Also tonight another day of concern about the availability of protective equipment, as ministers say theyre talking to suppliers. In new york, the economy in crisis and long queues forfood, as the president says he wants a temporary ban on all immigration. And leading artists respond to the work of the nhs with striking portraits of some front line staff. And coming up on bbc news, european footballs governing body, uefa, stages further talks, as it admits completing the current season will be impossible for some leagues. Good evening. The heavy human cost of the coronavirus pandemic is laid out in the latest official figures. They show that, in the week ending the 10th of april, the number of deaths in england and wales was double the level normally expected, and the highest level for 20 years. During that week, there were 18,500 deaths registered in england and wales. More than 6,000 of those deaths, thats roughly a third, were linked to coronavirus. In that same week, the number of deaths in care homes quadrupled, as care providers describe the difficulties they face. As for the latest daily figures, 823 people died in hospital across the uk in the last 24 hour period. Well examine the direction of those figures in a moment, but first our social Affairs Correspondent alison holt has the latest on the impact of the pandemic. Each face so much more than a statistic, a life lived, a family mourning. The extraordinarily high toll of deaths in the official numbers today can only really give a glimpse of how much the coronavirus is taking from us. Among those its claimed is 89 year old joan davies. My mum could ask her about something that happened when she was a child, and auntiejoan would be able to give you the day and time and everything that happened. She had an incredible memory for things like that, yeah, she was a great historian of the family. Her niece says, although joan was frail, she was still doing well at her care home in wales. Her ambition was to reach the age of 100, but within a couple of days of developing covid 19 symptoms, she had died. I do wonder if people really understand how much were going to lose in terms of the older communities. So much experience and family loss will happen, because we are not really looking out for them properly. Were certainly not looking out for the carers either, and thats really scary. And many care homes, like this one in sheffield, have been hit hard by the virus. The deaths of some of their residents have left staff at full stretch physically and emotionally. A week after she last spoke to us, their boss says theyre coping but have felt on their own. Sadly, were the forgotten sector, i think. We dont have the infrastructure or support of the nhs, so i would say that we have needed that, we really have needed that over the last four weeks, and i think we have to look at lessons that need to be learned from this. Official statistics are now only starting to give a sense of the impact of the virus in care homes in england and wales. The last figures up to the start of april recorded the deaths of 217 people as linked to covid 19. But todays figures show that, a week later, that overall number had quadrupled to more than 1000 deaths. That means 10 of all deaths connected to the virus are in care homes. The figures in scotland and Northern Ireland are higher. The majority of deaths are still happening in hospitals, but whatever the setting, covid 19 doesnt explain all of the increase in the number of people dying. So were hoping, in a few weeks time, to have a better idea about what those excess deaths are, and how they maybe interplay with those different settings, how much of them may actually be a covid related issue, how much of them may be actually where people are not going to hospital, where perhaps they would have done in the past, so how much of this may be due to other factors as a result of lockdown. The government has promised more help for care homes, but wherever person has spent the last hours, todays numbers are an upsetting reminder of the reality of coronavirus. Alison holt, bbc news. To take a closer look at some of todays official figures and what signals they provide, werejoined by the bbcs medical correspondent fergus walsh. This raft of data and figures today, what trends are you detecting . Well, huw, 823 deaths today, a hugejump, but many of those would have occurred over the weekend and in previous days. Now, for the first time tonight, we have an accurate picture of the trends in deaths in english hospitals on the day they actually happened, and that gives us some hope for optimism i made all the grim statistics. Now, if we look at those, we can say that there was at those, we can say that there was a steady rise in deaths which seems to have peaked on the 8th of april, and then since then it has been falling. Now, iword of and then since then it has been falling. Now, i word of caution on this, the last five days on these will have some deaths added to that in the coming days, so they will go up, but the trend is clearly down. If we go to that peak, that probable peaked on the 8th of april, those people would have probably been infected around three weeks before, on average, and that is just before the lockdown when people were being told to avoid pubs and restaurants and work at home, and then we had the lockdown, saw the dramatic effect that has had. We can also shed some more light on the situation in hospitals specifically this time in england, wales and scotland. Yes, we have gone from a peak of over 20,000 people in hospital with covid 19 in britain to around 17,600, so still a huge number, but we have brought some selected areas from the government chart, and we can see from that, well, you can see london seems now definitely to have peaked and is coming down. The other areas, the midlands, scotland and wales, well, they have not fallen, but they are levelling off, so still a lot of work to do there, and it is all dependent on social distancing continuing. Fergus, once again, many thanks, fergus walsh, our medical correspondent. Ministers are still under sustained pressure over the provision of ppe thats personal protective equipment to front line health and care workers. The Health Secretary for england, matt hancock, denied reports that the uk had refused for political reasons to take part in a European Union scheme to secure supplies of essential equipment. 0ur political editor, laura kuenssberg, has the story. So as you can see, our machines sit idle, and our staff are furloughed. Empty workshops that dont have to be. Tomorrow, jim griffins car parts firm will start up again to make gearfor medics. He will repurpose his kit to make protective equipment. But although he says hes filled in form after form, this nottinghamshire factory will be making medical equipment for orders from ireland. I dont understand why it is so difficult for people to be getting in touch with Companies Like ours to make the products here in the uk. Mps are now back at work in a very different parliament. And the squeeze on equipment for Health Workers is top of many of their demands. The green benches have been carefully spaced out. 0rder, order. From tomorrow, they will able to ask questions of ministers online. Members may launch forth into fine perorations, only to be muted or snatched away altogether by an itinerant connection. Ministers defend themselves to mps and others by saying that theyre focusing on larger providers after a vast 8,000 firms offered to help with kit. But the opposition believes the government has had time enough. Manufacturers here are saying we have stepped up and offered and did not really hear back from the government, and yet at the same time we have got planes trying to bring stuff back from abroad. So something is clearly going wrong. Do you think this is a bit of a reflection of what is going on in a wider sense in terms of management of this crisis . The other decisions about testing and equipment appear to have been very challenging for the government, and i think they have been slow into it. And they are still not fully accepting the gap between what they say or think is happening and what the front line are telling us is happening. The Health Secretary has always said the government was well prepared to cope with the terrible reality of this crisis. Since the start of the crisis, weve now delivered over a billion items of ppe. We are constantly working to improve that delivery system, buying ppe from around the world and working to make more here at home. This was declared a pandemic well over a month ago. Why is the government still having to scramble now to get our Health Workers the equipment they need and allowing uk firms weve been hearing from today who could supply british hospitals and care homes to sell their products abroad . I think the most important thing we concentrate on is one what are the offers that can get us the most ppe to be able to get it into the country, to be able to manufacture it here and to be able to then get it out to the front line. And we are doing everything we possibly can to make that happen. But tomorrow, ministers will no doubt again be asked in this very different looking parliament whether doing everything they can is the same as achieving what needs to be done. Laura is at westminster, and tonight laura we have a senior Civil Servant withdrawing comments hed made about the governments handling of the crisis. Thats right, huw, and it is a very unusual situation. There was might remember that at the start of all of this the government came under quite a lot of flak for not taking part in a lot of flak for not taking part in aeu a lot of flak for not taking part in a eu wide scheme to bulk buy lots of the kinds of equipment that we might needin the kinds of equipment that we might need in this crisis as it unfolded. They said at the time there had been a mix up, e mails had gone to the wrong addresses, and they insisted it was nothing to do with ideology. Remember, this was just happening around the time when we had just left the European Union. They were insistent this was not political. But in todays sir simon mcdonald, who was just about as senior as you can get in a civil service, said something completely different. He said there had been a political decision but then was almost immediately contradicted by the Health Secretary, matt hancock, who said that was not the case, and tonight is very unusual retraction from someone like that official, saying there had been a misunderstanding and he was wrong. Now, it is more than a matter of just he said, she said, and it is quite hard to get to the bottom of what happened in the specific issue, but it is another reminder that, on this specific question of making sure that medics and people working in care homes have the right kit, vital to dealing with this crisis, the government is encountering lots and lots of rocks in the road. And i am sure that this is something, when the first prime ministers questions in this strange new parliament that is gradually returning, will be something that will certainly come up something that will certainly come up from something that will certainly come upfrom mps, something that will certainly come up from mps, perhaps on the tory benches as well as from the opposition. This is an important and difficult issue, and no really expect the government to fix it overnight, even though there is no question theyre working very hard to try to do so. For weeks now, Health Experts have been emphasising the importance of boosting the capacity to test people for coronavirus. The governments target for the uk of 100,000 tests a day by the end of this month is widely regarded as unrealistic. Current testing levels are nowehere near that figure, but home testing kits are now being given to some key workers, as our health editor, hugh pym, explains. Des is a prison officer on his way into a drive through coronavirus testing centre. As a key worker he can, in agreement with his employer, get a test to confirm if he is fit to stay at work or return from self isolation. Im going to get you to say, ah. That is really good. A simple throat and nasal swab, and thejob is done. He must wait a couple of days for the results to come back. I was coughing at work, and my colleague didnt want to work with me, which is fair enough. The prisoners as well thinking, oh, hang on. So i was sent home and sent down here, which is fair enough. There is a network of testing centres for key workers like this around england. And a similar drive through site near aberdeen airport. And home testing has started this week in england, allowing key workers to take their own swab samples and sent them off for analysis. The number of tests carried out each day on patients and essential staff in the uk has risen to around the 20,000 level since data was first available earlier in the month. Still well short of the government target of 100,000 tests per day by the end of april, less than two weeks away. That target set by the Health Secretary, matt hancock, is for the number of tests carried out. Testing capacity is another matter. Facilities like these can be set up which are not fully used. The real aim is to secure the testing capability the country needs. And im confident we have that and will be able to allow the country to respond with the testing that is required. Are you confident of getting to the 100,000 tests per day by the end of april . You would need to talk to the secretary of state about his target, but we do have the lab capacity to deliver the Testing Service that the country needs. The swabs are brought here to one of three so called megalabs. This one in Milton Keynes has been created at an existing research centre. Management here got a call in late march saying they would be part of a National Virus testing effort. Equipment was lent by laboratories all round the country and brought here by the army, the navy and even in cabs. Testing started a few days later. Soon theyll move up to a 24 7 operation. At the moment, the manual process will support many thousands of samples per day, and as the automation develops, that will rapidly escalate into tens of thousands of samples per day. Those tens of thousands will be part of the move towards the government target, with volunteers like beth, a research student, helping out. Its really nice. Its really rewarding to be able to contribute, ive got a lot of friends in the front line and Health Care Professionals and to be able to help them out in a way is good. It is another part of the drive to escalate Testing Capacity which will be crucial if there is a second spike in cases late in the year. Whether it is enough to hit the government targets this month is another matter. Hugh joins me now. There was talk at the official briefing today of a vaccine. How do you assess the prospect for that . Briefing today of a vaccine. How do you assess the prospect for that7m the long run, a vaccine is the way out of all of this, and there are two interesting looking trials in the uk, one at Imperial College london and one at the university of 0xford. The oxford trial is due to start this week involving 500 volunteers, probably on thursday. Matt hancock, the Health Secretary, said today he was going to fund these to allow them to start manufacturing doses in september if they were successful, allowing further trials. So what is the long run chance of success . Experts have a lwa ys run chance of success . Experts have always said it will take time, it wont be until the middle of next year at the earliest that you get anything in scale in terms of a vaccine, but that will all depend on the success or otherwise of trials like these. Hugh pym, our health editor, thank you very much. As the number of victims of covid 19 continues to grow Health Workers too find themselves mourning the loss of colleagues and friends. Tributes have been paid today to 52 year old Manjeet Singh riyat, an a e consultant who died in derby after contracting the virus. He is one of dozens of black, asian and minority ethnic staff in the nhs who have died during this pandemic, as our correspondent rajini vadya nathan reports. Described as a beautiful, bighearted soul, Manjeet Singh riyat was also a trailblazer. The first sikh a e consultant in the uk, his impact was profound. Husband and father two boys. I will remember him as my loving cousin who i grew up with, and i will miss him terribly. How much did he love working for the nhs . It was his life. After his family, the nhs was everything. And he meant everything to his nhs colleagues. An absolutely fabulous man, inspirational. Inspirational on the shop floor, loved the clinical challenge. Had a massive intellect and encyclopedic knowledge and was an inspiration for many junior doctors. Black and minority ethnic workers represent 44 of doctors in nhs england and just over a fifth of nurses, midwives and health visitors. But bbc Analysis Shows that they account for a disproportionately high 58 out of the 84 recorded deaths in the uk health workforce. And these are the faces of some of those who lost their lives. Doctors, nurses, porters. Minority workers are the backbone of the National Health service. Our families weight back home, they are so afraid that we are on the front line here in a foreign country. But we filipinos never surrender, we foreign country. But we filipinos never surrender, we always do our job. We are dedicated and we work hard. We still dont know why health ca re hard. We still dont know why Health Care Workers from minority backgrounds are dying in greater numbers, but their contribution is clear. We all came here with great aspirations, and many of us have taken the opportunities that have been provided for us in the uk. We all know we are at risk, but we are professionals. As flags flew at half mast at his hospital today, Manjeet Singh riyat will be remembered as precisely that, an utter professional. Hospitals have warned that nhs supplies of face masks could be put at risk if the government starts recommending that the public wear them. Nhs providers, the Membership Organisation for hospitals, mental health, community and Ambulance Services in england, said there needed to be clear evidence of the benefits before any change was made. Today, the governments scientific advisers discussed the issue of masks their conclusions are expected later in the week. 0ur science editor, david shukman, has been looking at the arguments. A familiar sight on the medical front line masks protecting the faces of doctors and nurses. By contrast, masks worn by the public are generally helping to protect the people around them. There are two key reasons why it may be helpful for people to wear some kind of face covering. One is that if you become infected, five days may pass before you start coughing or having a fever. And in that time, especially in the two days before symptoms start to show, you can be highly infectious, passing the virus around without even realizing. The other reason is that some people become infected and never show symptoms. Maybe for ten days or even longer, no one really knows. And they also could be passing on the virus without even being aware of it. People started making homemade masks and giving them to others for free. Theres now a campaign to make your own mask. This one started in the czech republic. Its one answer to the pandemic. Masks arent a magic bullet, but what they can do is to slow the spread. And we can see that from countries such as taiwan, which havent had a lockdown, theyve managed to slow the spread of the virus through multiple measures. One of those is masks. And if all of us, or the majority of us wear masks, im convinced we can slow the spread of covid for the benefit of all of us, and protecting the nhs. But this has led to a serious worry among Health Professionals that if everyone rushes to buy masks, hospitals will face even more of a struggle to find them. We need to make sure that Health Care Workers can protect patients and can protect the public. Thats what an individual has to think about when theyre thinking of buying those higher grade masks. So while were being urged not to try to buy professional face masks, there is growing evidence that homemade ones like an old t shirt can be very effective. One study found thatjust two layers of cotton are enough to stop 90 of any virus you might be breathing out. A grim reminder of how easily the infection can spread. So when the lockdown is eventually relaxed, some kind of mask may be the answer. David shukman, bbc news. One of the countries where the British Government has been trying to source personal protective gear is turkey, where manufacturers say theyre managing to satisfy demand from both abroad and home. Turkey has the seventh highest number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the world, but the government insisted today that the numbers affected by the virus are beginning to stabilise. From istanbul, our International Correspondent 0rla guerin reports. Istanbul these days is a shadow of its former self. A city of over 15 million, turned to an empty shell. Weekend lockdowns now a feature of life. Turkeys view is that, unlike other countries, it responded to the virus hard and fast. And britain is looking to turkey for help. An raf cargo plane is on the tarmac in istanbul waiting for a consignment of personal protective equipment, desperately needed but still delayed. Turkey is churning it out, and has already sent donations to the uk, italy and spain. At vocational schools across istanbul, teachers have turned their hand to this urgent work. An Education Ministry official says they were mass producing ppe within one week of turkeys first case being diagnosed in march. Translation these schools have become a light in the darkness. Our country would like to help everyone in the world if we could. You were able to scale up very quickly and start producing these items. Are you surprised that britain hasnt been able to do the same . Translation let mejust speak for my country. During these hard times, we are working together, and were producing together. A diplomatic answer. The truth is, turkey had a head start with its Strong Manufacturing base. Theyre making about 250 gowns here every day. These are for doctors. The fabric is waterproof. These can be washed and reused. These here are for nurses, and all of the gowns being made here are taken directly from this school to a hospital nearby, theyre disinfected and theyre given to the staff. Now, the teachers here say they feel this is part of a war effort, and they are proud to be trying to save lives. Like the doctors and nurses who wear their gowns, here at this public hospital, one of the biggest in istanbul. Turkey has around 95,000 confirmed cases of the virus. Thats more than china. The government says the epidemic is stabilising. The Turkish Medical Association says the number of new cases is not falling, and doctors are still struggling. 0rla guerin, bbc news, istanbul. In the usa, President Trump has announced he wants a temporary ban on all immigration into the country. The president said the move, which is expected to provoke legal challenges, was needed to protect american jobs during the pandemic. New york in particular has been hit hard by the effects of coronavirus. Thousands of people have died, and the citys immigrant communities have suffered more than most. Live to new york and our correspondent nick bryant. America is an immigrant nation, so even a temporary ban on immigration would be an extraordinary move. Critics of donald trump are saying it is less about protecting the us economy and more about boosting his chances of re election in november. Four years ago, a tough stance on immigration helped him to reach the white house. It is immigration communities make immigrant communities make immigrant communities that have been devastated by the virus and the economic fallout. We have seen that for ourselves and the new york borough of queens. In a city of ambition, in a city of abundance, a scene that looks like a throwback to the days of the great depression. These people were queueing for food hand outs, the length of the line a measure of the desperation. Every person has a story of need. Almost all are economic victims of covid 19. Only a few weeks ago, restaurant workers, cleaners, labourers, now thrown out of work. Alfredo moreno was laid off last month. We have a little bit of money saved, so were trying to survive with that. While. When do you think the money will run out . We dont know yet. We have talked with our landlord to see what were going to do this month, but i dont know how were going to survive. Even in this time of crisis, Mary Bautista spoke of her civic and national pride. We are a nation who support each other, and you have seen the tremendous. The abundance of support from all the americans, and im glad to be a new yorker, and god bless america. And these are the meagre food packages they spent hours queueing for. A sandwich, some apple sauce. In this, the land of plenty. From queens, you can see the residential skyscrapers of Billionaires Row in manhattan. But these neighbourhoods are part of another america, one that has been ground zero in new yorks outbreak, one that is home to the hardest hit public hospital. Here, a mother and daughter had to wave up at the windows to their husband and father, his birthday spent in covid isolation. This on its doorstep is a neighbourhood called corona, heavily populated by immigrants who do not have the luxury of teleworking from home. People pursuing American Dreams that are being crushed by this global contagion. The Coronavirus Crisis has really held up a mirror to income inequality in america, and especially new york. Many of the richest people simply fled the city early on and headed to their coastal and country retreats. That was not an option for the poor. Many people here live in multi generational households in overcrowded housing, and the lower your income, the harder it is to be socially distant. With latino and black residents dying at twice the rate of white new yorkers, the local councillor, francisco moya, says the coronavirus has revealed a tale of two cities. A lot of the Latino Community and the Poor Community are living ten in one bedroom apartments. When you think of new york city, you are accustomed of thinking of these luxury condos and high rises throughout the city, but you have to come out to the outer boroughs and see how the working class and the poor have to live. In this crisis of need, new yorks iconic yellow cabs have been drafted in to deliver aid. Taxi drivers have become caregivers, handing out meals to people who cant leave their homes. New york believes its past the peak of its coronavirus outbreak. But its still in the depths of this economic disaster
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