Transcripts For BBCNEWS BBC News At Five 20200505

Hasnt done that yet. But hancock was saying that would not happen in the isle of wight, where they are testing that app. But when we come out of lockdown, it would be interesting if the government were to impose restrictions on a more targeted way than before. A couple of minutes to go before we hear from dominic raab. Let me ask you about virgin atlantic, they have said that they are cutting potentially 3000 jobs, pulling out of gatwick, another illustration of the economic damage being caused by coronavirus . Thats right. The pilot you were speaking to from balpa was saying it was a difficult issue. Labour has been talking about having a National Consensus on the coronavirus, but not specifically when it comes to the economy. I amjoined by angela maclean, the chief scientific adviser. Let me give an update on the latest data we have an coronavirus. I the latest data we have an coronavirus. I can the latest data we have an coronavirus. I can report to the governments ongoing monitoring and testing programme, as of today there have now been 1,000,380 tests for coronavirus across the uk, including 84,806 tests yesterday. We know that 194,990 people tested positive, an increase of 4406 cases since yesterday. Of those who tested positive, 29,427 have, very sadly, died. 0ur positive, 29,427 have, very sadly, died. Our hearts go out to everyone who has lost a loved one. We continue to see evidence of a flattening of the peak of the virus. But as the figures that i have just read out show, it is not over yet. So, in the coming days, sage will update ministers with the latest scientific advice. As ever, we will make sure that we continue to be guided by their advice as we take the decisions on the next step is fighting this virus. Alongside the advice that we get from sage, our five tests remain absolutely key. First, we must continue to boost nhs capacity so that the nhs cannot be overwhelmed. Second, we need to see a sustained and consistent fall in the numberof a sustained and consistent fall in the number of deaths. Thirdly, we must see further reductions in the rate of infection, to manageable levels across all different settings and areas. Fourth, we must be confident that the nhs will be able to cope with future demands, including as a result of any changes that we make to existing measures or, indeed, any new measures we may wish to take. Fifth, and above all, we need to be confident that any adjustments to the current measures will not risk a second peak of infections that could then overwhelm the nhs. Later on this week, the pm will update the country on the measures and decisions we will need to take to protect the nhs, to safeguard the economy and to avoid the risk of a second peak that would be damaging both for public health, but also forjobs on the wider economy. As we consider the decisions we will take next to protect life, but also to protect our way of life, it is now clear that the second phase will be different. We will need to adjust to a new normal, where we as a society adapt to save new ways to work, travel, interact, and go about our daily lives. We have never experienced anything like this first stage of covid 19, in terms of the scale of the lives lost, but also the lockdown that it has required. As we go forward, we want to make sure that the next phase is more comfortable, is more sustainable, and prevents lasting damage tojobs and prevents lasting damage tojobs and livelihoods. But we need to be under no illusions that the next stage wont be easy. And if were going to protect life and preserve our way of life, as ijust said, we must continue to be guided by the scientific advice we receive, and make sure the next steps we take our sure footed and sustainable. Before i hand over to angela, to run through the data slides, i want to provide an update on one further feature of coronavirus as a challenge, which has been thrown up for this country and, indeed, for the whole world. Whilst the vast majority of people and countries have come together and rallied to this interNational Mission, there will always be some who seek to exploit a crisis for their own criminaland exploit a crisis for their own criminal and hostile ends. We know that cyber criminals and other malicious groups are targeting individuals, businesses and other organisations by deploying covid 19 related scams and phishing e mails, including groups that in the cybersecurity world are known as advanced, persistent threat groups. Sophisticated networks of hackers who try to breach computer systems. We have clear evidence now that these criminal gangs are actively targeting national and international organisations, which are responding to the covid 19 pandemic. I have to say, that makes them particularly dangerous and venal at this time. We are working with the targets of the attacks, the potential targets, and with others to make sure they are aware of the cyber threat and they can take the steps necessary to protect themselves or, at the very least, mitigate the harm that can be brought against them. With that in mind, today, the uk National Cyber Security Centre and the us Cyber Security and Infrastructure Agency have published a joint warning about these groups, and we have offered some advice on cyber criminals and other actors who are seeking to exploit covid 19 through malicious cyber activity. 0ur teams have identified campaigns targeting health care bodies, pharmaceutical bodies, Research Organisations and various different arms of local government. Now, there are various objectives and motivations that lie behind these attacks, from fraud on one hand to espionage. But they tend to be designed to steal bulk of personal data, intellectual property and wide information that supports those aims, and they are often linked with other state actors. Now, we expect this kind of predatory criminal behaviour to continue and evolve over the coming weeks and months ahead. And we are taking a range of months ahead. And we are taking a range of measures months ahead. And we are taking a range of measures to tackle that threat. So, as we have done today, we will share advice on the nature of those threats to enable businesses, citizens and our International Partners to better defend themselves against the full range of Cyber Attacks from hostile states, to criminal gangs. Preventative action is often the very best way to deny attackers the opportunities that they are looking for. The National Cyber security ce ntre for. The National Cyber Security Centre offers a range of practical advice to safeguard against Cyber Attacks, from things like using online passwords, to guidance on what are the trusted sources of online information related to covid 19, like the gov. Uk sites republic of finland. As well as practical advice, the uk will continue to counter those who conduct Cyber Attacks, working very closely with International Partners, to counter the states that lie behind them. We are determined to defeat coronavirus and those trying to exploit the situation for their own nefarious ends. With that, i will pass over to professor maclean to give the latest update. Thank you, if i could have the first slide . The first slide reminds us of the five tests for adjusting lockdown. Number one is that we should always ensure that the nhs has enough capacity, that it is able to provide Critical Care and specialist treatment right across the uk. The second is that we should see a sustained and persistent fall in daily deaths from coronavirus, and third is that there needs to be reliable data to show that the rate of infection is decreasing to manageable levels right across the board. Fourth is that operational challenges, including testing and ppe, must be in hand with supply, able to meet future demand. 150 is that we should be confident that any adjustments that are made to current measures will not risk second peak of infection that overwhelms the nhs. Ifi if i could have the next slide . This isa if i could have the next slide . This is a slider bar transport use and how it has changed in great britain. Lets have a look. That is since february. So, there percentages are relative to normal use during february. The vertical dotted line is the date when lockdown started. What you see is that for public transport there has been a very marked and very persistent fall for bus, tube, National Rail and also in grey, further back, for buses in london. For motor vehicles, the top, dark blue line, what you see is a pattern that looks a bit like commuting, because it is low every weekend. And we do worry about that creeping up. I think all of us remember that what we have done together, to stay home, has worked together, to stay home, has worked to protect the nhs and save lives. And as one of the people that looks at this data and thinks about how it fits into how we think about the future, it doesnt trouble me that the dark blue line is creeping up again. Next slide, please. This is the number of tests that have occurred every day in the uk since the 6th of april, up until the most recent data, from yesterday. What you see is that very dramatic rise that happened during april, so that now we do have a lot of tests available that allow us to design the kind of testing strategies that we are going to need in future. Next slide, please. This is one of the ways we have of counting how many people in the uk are infected. So, the two colours here are people who have tested positive, in dark blue are people that are tested by the nhs, in orange are people whose tests were performed by universities, Research Institutes and private companies. So, most of the people in the dark blue pillars are either patients or nhs staff. Most of the people in orange are other key workers. This data is extremely interesting, but it is quite susceptible to the fact that the number of tests has been increasing and who is allowed to have a test has also been changing. Actually, i find the have a test has also been changing. Actually, ifind the next have a test has also been changing. Actually, i find the next slide a lot more informative. What this is is the number of new impatience in hospitals in england, with covid 19. This is everyday from the 20th of march, either dark blue, a patient that was in hospital and got back a positive test, or in gold, somebody who arrived in hospital having already tested positive. So, this was always the same kind of people, these people were always the top priority to get a test. In some sense, this is a much more pure strea m sense, this is a much more pure stream than the mice the one that i showed you before. What you see is the number rising from the 20th of march until it peaks on the 2nd of april. The 2nd of april is the day we would have expected it to peak, because that is about ten days after the 23rd of march, when lockdown came in. And from the 2nd of april, it falls away pretty rapidly. So, what this is is the inflow into the Hospital System of people who are covid 19 positive. We watch this number with great care every day. If that was the inflow into the Hospital System, this is the total number of people in hospital with covid 19 on any given day. That is the balance between people who came in and people who left. That has a rather smooth a much slower fall. What you see is that peaked around about the 10th of april in london, that the peak in london was much higher than everywhere else, perhaps very slightly earlier, and the fall in the number of people in hospital in london has been faster than everywhere else. So much so that in the last couple of days the number of people in hospital in london now exceeds numbers in hospital in the north west. Next slide, please. This keeps track of the proportion of Critical Care beds that are occupied by patients with covid 19. What you see is that has also fallen from its peak in early april, now down to less tha n peak in early april, now down to less than a third of all the Critical Care beds being occupied by covid 19 patients. It has been decreasing for most of the uk within the last two weeks, and it is beginning to come down to what might beginning to come down to what might be defined as more manageable levels. These are recorded deaths from covid 19. In the blue bars, the actual numbers reported each day, today, being the 5th of may, we got monday shelaghs figures in, and you can see there is a very regular pattern, that the numbers at the weekend always lower. So, thatjump from the 4th of may to the 5th of may is something that we would expect. Because this data has such a strong pattern across different days of the week, it makes sense to look ata of the week, it makes sense to look at a seven day rolling average and thatis at a seven day rolling average and that is what the orange liners. And what you can see is that the number of covid recorded deaths is falling and has been falling steadily since the middle of april. Next slide, please. This record is registered deaths from covid 19 by the place that that death occurred. And weve got it for five different weeks, and the most recent week for which we have this data is the week of the 24th of april. The grey bar at our deaths in hospital. The dark grey bars are deaths in care homes. Pale blue is deaths in the persons own home, and dark blue is other places. What you see is that while deaths in hospital have been falling, deaths in care homes in the week to the 24th of april were still rising, to the extent that in that week, deaths in care homes were about half as many as all the deaths in hospitals. I think what that shows us is that there is a real issue that we need to get to grips with about what is happening in care homes. The final slide for today is a comparison of numbers of deaths for different countries. The uk, which is covid deaths in all settings, is the grey line in the middle. And what you see is that deaths in the uk is still continuing to climb, and is higher than we would wish, i think is all i can say. And with that, i will end the data slides for today. Angela, thank you very much. We will now ta ke thank you very much. We will now take some questions, starting with questions from members of the public. My name is fred and i volunteer in the local community in gloucester, gloucester shire. My question is as we come through the tough times of covid, how can we embed our Reflective Learning so as to ensure we address inequalities across community and neighbours and continue to invest and empower local communities to thrive . Thank you. Thank you very much, and i want to pay tribute to everyone in gloucestershire, from the key workers like the nhs staff to people working in care homes, to all those doing criticaljobs in supermarkets and running deliveries, which have kept the lifeblood of our community is going. I think youre absolutely right to say that particularly after a pretty unique pandemic, something that certainly ive never seen before in my lifetime, we will all wa nt to before in my lifetime, we will all want to learn lessons, in this country and across the world. And i think one of the things that we have found with coronavirus is that it hasnt discriminated. We have had the Prime Minister laid low with it, weve got people all across the country, no one has been impervious to this virus. And i think it has also taught us to appreciate those key workers that i mentioned, not just those in the nhs and care homes, who are obviously doing an amazing job, but also those keeping our supermarkets running, keeping deliveries flowing, and up and down the country, and as you will probably remember from the general election, the Prime Ministers big, overarching goal is to level up right across the country, and i think this crisis has been a timely reminder of how important that agenda is going to be. But first things first, weve got to get through this crisis, recover, bounce back, if we can, the economy, make sure there was Small Businesses and employers are fit and we provide them with a bridge through the current set of challenges and make sure, ithink current set of challenges and make sure, i think we come together as one country, as i think weve seen in this National Mission to tackle the coronavirus and try and keep that spirit alive as we go forward. But i think there are lessons to be learned and there are opportunities to learn those lessons in a really positive way when we come through the immediate crisis. |j positive way when we come through the immediate crisis. I think you raised an incredibly important point. Infectious diseases always do and always will target the disadvantaged. And i think one of the things that we fear as we hopefully bring the incidence of infections, the number of people who are infected infections, the number of people who a re infected every infections, the number of people who are infected every day, right down to very low levels, is that infection will disappear into parts of our communities that are really, really ha rd to of our communities that are really, really hard to reach. And i think its incumbent on all of us, including our scientists, to find ways that we can make sure that we can track the ongoing spread of infection amongst every part of our society. And i think next up is jane from west yorkshire. She asks, i will read this one out. In respect of the track and trace app, is this something which will work worldwide, once travel can begin again, and if not, why was this not embarked upon asa not, why was this not embarked upon as a Global Initiative . I think the reality is, we want the app to be focused on the uk, and we want the technology to be tailored to make sure we can deal with the specific challenges that weve got in this country. Weve worked with the experts weve got in the National Cyber Security Centre, to make sure weve got the greatest protection on things like privacy, and weve got very high standards, both in professionalism and in privacy, as we embark upon what will be an unprecedented it project. And not all countries around the world will have the same standards. Whether theyre Technology Standards or privacy standards. So i think it is right to say that we should learn internationally about the tech innovation, but we want to make sure weve got something tailored to uk needs. Thank you, jane, for that question. We will go on to David Shukman from the bbc. Thank you very much indeed. A question about the death tolls. Looking at the official figures that you have Just Announced and comparing them with figures announced this evening by italy, it does now seem that the uk has had more deaths from covid 19 than any other country in europe. If it does turn out that we are the country thats hardest hit in europe, whats your reaction to that . Well, thanks, david, youre asking me to speculate. First of all, 29,427 lives lost is a massive tragedy, something in this country, on this scale, in this way, that weve never seen before. And as i said before, my heart goes out to anyone thats lost a loved one. In terms of the comparison that youre suggesting, as the scientists have all said, i can remember Patrick Vallance and chris whitty talking about this, i dont think we will get a real verdict on how our countries have done until the pandemic is over, and in particular until weve got comprehensive International Data on all cause mortality. But there are two points i would make about the uk approach. There are different ways of counting deaths, we have had that debate in this country, as we know. We now publish data that includes all deaths in all settings, and not all deaths in all settings, and not all countries do that. So im not sure that the International Comparison works unless you know reliably that they are measuring in the same way. And it also depends on how good countries are in gathering their statistics. And our own office for National Statistics is widely acknowledged to be a world leader. And one reason weve embraced that is because we want the transparency, because we are confident and we believe that it is only if we get the full transparency that we will be in the best place to tackle this virus. So i think it is important but i dont think you can make the International Comparisons youre suggesting at this stage, at least, not reliably. I would just reiterate, i think we have decided that our measure of how things have gone will be age adjusted all cause mortality, because that will capture all kinds of impacts of covid, not just the covid deaths. And clearly, it will be important to do what we can to make International Comparisons. Everybody knows that making International Comparisons in such statistics can be difficult, and it may be that that will take some time to sort out. And this isnt over yet. Do you want to come back on any of that . On another topic, if i may, last week, the Prime Minister suggested that there may situations and there could be benefits from the public Wearing Masks as pat does that mean that uk government policy on this has changed . And if it hasnt, might the public be forgiven for being a bit confused . Well, of course, youre a lwa ys confused . Well, of course, youre always trying to tempt us to get one or two steps ahead of the game. The reality is, we are considering the advice from sage, which has been nuanced and finely balanced, but we will consider it very carefully. 0ne thing we dont want to do is to give people inaccurate advice or create false confidence or comfort in masks, and also, there is a key difference between masks which might be self made, which some people around the world are being encouraged to use, and the clinical masks which we need for the nhs. And we do not want to detract from the supplies of masks and ppe going to the frontline in the nhs or care home workers. But the wider advice we will consider and we will shortly be saying more on. Robert peston at itv. Good afternoon. I absolutely acce pt itv. Good afternoon. I absolutely accept that its too early to draw firm conclusions about whether our death rate will be the highest in europe, but angela, whojust said, when pointing to your own chart of International Comparisons, the death toll is higher than we would wish on the basis of that, we have re ce ntly on the basis of that, we have recently instituted a new system of mass testing and were recruiting lots of people to do tracking, tracing and quarantining, would you hope, when there new infrastructure appears in place, that that death line will track down to nearer germany and korea, which have much lower death rates . Because after all, as chris whitty said on friday, were going to be living with coronavirus possibly for ever, and it is going to take us months if not years to get it down . Let me answer first before i hand over to angela. The first thing to say is that the big thing that has helped us flatten the peak is the publics adherence to the social distancing guidance that weve laid out. Not only has that weve laid out. Not only has that help reduce the number of deaths that they would otherwise have been, but it has also helped us preserve nhs capacity, which means that weve been able to deal with covid 19 patients but also other patients. I think the key is going to be with testing, tracking and tracing, is going to be the extent to which it gives us the fact civility to transition into a second phase safely, in a surefooted way, and sustainably, and i think thats the key to the test, tracking and tracing. That last graph that i was showing you is actually tubular to deaths, so there is no way it can go down. The very best that it can do is go flat, because once there are no deaths, it becomes completely flat. And of course i want it to become flat for the uk as quickly as possible. And the only way other countries could catch upward be if they had more deaths, and i certainly not going to wish that on anybody. So i think the sooner all of these can settle down to flat lines, the better. Do you want to come back with any more . Just on that, do you think mass testing, tracking, tracing, is going to be the Big Initiative that gets that curve to flatten in the way that we all want . Yes, i mean, ithink curve to flatten in the way that we all want . Yes, i mean, i think all of us are working really hard to figure out if we can do Contact Tracing in a way that will really start to find all of the infections out there in the community, find people who have symptoms, get them tested, find good, quick, reliable ways to find the people they have beenin ways to find the people they have been in contact with and ask them to go into quarantine. That is the strategy that has worked in south korea. And south korea is really the place in the world that we can look to and say, this work. It is a large country, like we are. They did have quite a big outbreak, actually, that they brought under control with Contact Tracing, so i think they are a fine example to us and we should try to emulate what theyve achieved. And i think we need to be really clear about the moment we are at and the relevance and value of test, tracking and tracing. 0ur at and the relevance and value of test, tracking and tracing. Our real risk right now is, we have come through the peak, we start to see us coming through the worst stage of this crisis, is that we move to ease up this crisis, is that we move to ease up too early without having a sensible, surefooted plan, and we see a second spike or a second wave. Test, tracking and tracing allows us, as well as getting the r rate down through social distancing, test, tracking and tracing allows us to manage that very carefully because any secondary emergence of the virus, wherever it may be, we can control and measure and monitor very swiftly. I think that is the crucial importance of it. Some codes from sky. The scottish govern today released Scientific Research suggesting that if schools go back north of the border, hospitals could be overwhelmed into marco montis, and in the worst Case Scenario become seven times oversubscribed. Is that based on science you recognise, and what might be the policy lessons you can draw from that . In two months. Borisjohnson said there could be some delays in the border when we leave the current brexit implimentation period. Today, we began trade talks with the us. Given the uncertainty facing the economy, is this the right thing to do at the time . Or, conversely, are there benefits of doing brexit talks at this time . I think there is a whole load of uncertainty. I work very closely with my european opposite numbers, right across europe. Actually, it has been a good example, and we come together, work ona example, and we come together, work on a practical cooperation, whether it is ppe, procurement, and it reminds us of the ties that bind us together. 0n reminds us of the ties that bind us together. On all sides, we want to avoid any uncertainty. So the smart thing to do is to focus on the track that we have got. We are making Good Progress, what we are making progress, what we are making progress, i should say, in relation to the future relationship negotiations. We are not there yet. The right thing to do for the uk, but also for the eu, is to avoid any future uncertainty beyond the end of this year by agreeing what ought to bea this year by agreeing what ought to be a reasonably straightforward approach, negotiating the detail will never be entirely straightforward because it is based on the standard precedent that the eu has adopted with other third countries. That will be the surest way to make sure we can give our economy is a boost by maintaining sea mless economy is a boost by maintaining seamless and frictionless trade as possible. That is the way that the uk and European Countries have a way to bounce back afterwards. I think prolonging the uncertainty of the brexit negotiation is unnecessary. And it would make that uncertainty worse. I dont know the study you are talking about, but i do know that there are some profound uncertainties in the underlying data about how likely children are to catch covid and how infectious they would be if they caught it. Its really quite difficult to trace, because they tend not to have symptoms, or their symptoms are very mild if they did catch it. So, there is not very much data because there havent been many children with symptoms. And, of course, most schools have been in lockdown for a very long time now. Its perfectly possible to produce projections for what is going to happen, based on reasonable interpretations of a thin evidence base. That could go either way. That being said, one of the things everybody is very clear about is that whatever we change we will make absolutely sure that we were monitoring the situation, so that we dont get explosive outbreaks, whether they started in schools or in workplaces. So, i dont imagine any country in the uk having an outbreak that would overwhelm the Health System sevenfold. 0ne outbreak that would overwhelm the Health System sevenfold. One of the things we can do, as well as making the most of the data we do have, is to watch very carefully in those countries that have reopened their schools and see what happens there. That is one of several things we are doing in order to make a decision based on this much science as we can find about what is likely to happen. Would you like to come back on any of those points . Just any answer to my question, but the secretary of state, you corrected yourself from Good Progress to just progress. Why is the end of year deadline quite so important, given the massive scale of the pandemic crisis we are facing . I know that if we talk about the positives of this, there would be somebody on either side of the channel saying that it is going terribly. The reality is that progress has been made and we are confident we can get that. And we do face a challenge with coronavirus, there would be damage the economy and we want to bounce back. Businesses would like some certainty. Knowing this will be concluded, i think the country wants some certainty. We were elected on this basis. What this crisis ought to allow us to do, not least to the goodwill and the spirit of cooperation we had with european partners, is to knuckle down, focus on what unites us, agree a pretty unprecedented Free Trade Agreement with our eu partners, which they have already agreed with other countries, and allow both sides to move on in that spirit of goodwill that i mentioned. That is what we will focus on. Jason groves from the daily mail . Thanks. Foreign secretary, can i pick up on sams question about schools . Can i ask what you think the prospect of them reopening them are, given the profound uncertainties that professor maclea n profound uncertainties that professor maclean talks about, and the fact that scotland seems to be pretty clear they are not going to be opening their schools soon . Professor mclean, can i ask you about one of the emerging risk factors of obesity . There seemed to bea factors of obesity . There seemed to be a lot of interest in the subject. Can you tell us anything about how much evidence there is that it is a risk factor, and whether people should think about going on a diet . Jason, thanks very much. 0n the issue of schools, first, i really feel for parents who have had the challenge of balancing working from home with home schooling. Ifeel for the teachers who have had to make that work as well. I think there has been exceptional effort to make that viable, and to make it work. Also, schools being closed has an impact on the economy, because so many of those workers cant go back to work as normal. The crucial bit for us is the five tests and the risk of a second spike in relation to any new changes that we would make. That must, of course, include schools. 0ne must, of course, include schools. One of the things we have done is asked sage to look at different options. I dont think it is binary. Theyre one thing i can say with confidence is, at least to date, the evidence has been that we would not be able to open up all schools without the real risk that the r rate would rise at such a level that we would risk a second spike. We have asked sage for the options, and we will be guided by the scientific advice that we get. You wanted me to talk about obesity. We have fine evidence from a rather beautiful studies gathered from inpatients in our hospitals with covid 19. Those studies show that once you are in hospital, being obese is an additional risk factor for being admitted to intensive care or for death. My understanding about the way to lose weight is that going on a diet is not to the way to do it, that you have to change your lifestyle, and do something in a way thatis lifestyle, and do something in a way that is enduring, and notjust going ona that is enduring, and notjust going on a diet. I understand that its a really difficult thing to do. Under all circumstances, pandemic or no pandemic, it is better not to be obese. Thanks, jason. Can we go onto andy dunn from the mirror . Foreign secretary, in france and holland, professional sport has been suspended until september at the earliest. Here, the premier league is making extremely detailed plans for a possible return in mid june. Is this realistic . And is the government actively encouraging it asa government actively encouraging it as a measure that might somehow lift the spirits of the nation . Well, you know what, andy, i think it would lift the spirits of the nation. I think people would like to see us get back not just think people would like to see us get back notjust to work, and get toa get back notjust to work, and get to a stage where children are safely going to school, but also enjoy some of those past times, sporting in particular. I know the government has had constructive meetings with sports bodies to plan for athletes to resume training when it is safe to resume training when it is safe to do so. I can tell you that the culture secretary has also been working on a plan to get sports played behind closed doors. When we moved to the second phase, that is something i can tell you we are looking at. Coming back to the key point, we can only do it when the medical and scientific advice is that it can be done safely unsustainably. Certainly, that is something under active consideration. Anything else you would like to ask . Yes, when you say safely, will there always be an element of risk if premier league footballers, or any footballers, any sportsman, go back to playing . And secondly, if we are, as you have said, professionalsports secondly, if we are, as you have said, professional sports will be behind closed doors, will that be the case until a vaccine is found, whether that be 12 months, 18 months, two years . Are we looking at professional sports behind closed doors until that moment . professional sports behind closed doors until that moment . I cant look too far into the future, because there are various different ways we could get control of the virus permanently, defeated for good. A vaccine is certainly one of those, therapeutics are another. I think we are all waiting to see how effective, internationally, test tracking and tracing can be. But thatis tracking and tracing can be. But that is also an option. Whether it isa that is also an option. Whether it is a combination of test, tracking and tracing and other social distancing measures within what is possible in a sporting environment, we wa nt possible in a sporting environment, we want to see whether, behind closed doors, what the options are for doing that. I think it is worth taking a close look at that, seeing if it is possible to do it safely, but, as ever, taking scientific and medical advice on when and how to proceed. Thank you very much. Finally, we have will hayward from the western mail. Thank you. My first question is for the foreign secretary. Watching the press conferences for the past six weeks has been very confusing for many people in wales. Some of the language used makes it very clear of what is said applies to them, because of devolution. Clearly, Foreign Affairs such as repatriating people from abroad does apply. But commonly mentioned issues around schools, local government, support for vulnerable people, health care and even the rules of lockdown itself do not actually apply for people in wales. Do you concede the government could have been clearer, up government could have been clearer, up until now, and will you and your ministerial colleagues commit to making the distinction as to what appliesjust to making the distinction as to what applies just to england making the distinction as to what appliesjust to england in making the distinction as to what applies just to england in the future . In the pms absence, i have chaired two of the cobra meetings. I have to say that good cooperation with all devolved administrations, including with the first minister in wales. If you look in practice, the social distancing measures, and i talked earlier about the level of compliance, it has been remarkably consistent across all of the nations. We have actually been to much in lockstep all the way. I think the right thing to do is to try to proceed on a consistent basis, respecting the constitutional settlement, of course, and that is what we have done so far. That is one of the reasons we have been so effective. I think we can pull together and, as one United Kingdom, see ourselves sustainably through this crisis. Angela, is there anything you would add . There is not much i would add. I think that would bea much i would add. I think that would be a sensible way to go forward. Did you want to come back on any of that . The point i was making was as much about the language and the press co nfe re nces much about the language and the press conferences for people in wales who naturally might not be that well versed in every bit of minutiae around devolution. My second bit follows on from that. The first minister of wales stated his desire for wales and england to come out of lockdown together, to keep the message simple. How is wales able to input into the announcement about lockdown that we are expecting this week . And to professor mclean, does sage take into account welsh data and the impact on wales when offering advice to nhs england, and has there been any marked difference between wales and england . M has there been any marked difference between wales and england . In terms of the formal structures, its important to make sure that there is early, consistent and continued cooperation and consultation. We do that from the welsh office, michael gove and the Cabinet Office are doing it, and we have the cobra meetings i discussed which bring all four nations of the United Kingdom together. Actually, we are flexible and pragmatic, we are not insisting on form over substance. But if you look at the substance, and come back to the record, the consistent record of compliance with the social distancing measures, we have done a pretty good job of working together. I think the key thing is that there is the political will on all sides to continue that. And i hope and i am confident that there will be. On the science, we work very hard to include all information. Sometimes there are data streams we only have for england at the moment. We try to make it clear to our colleagues why we think they are incredibly useful and why it would be fantastic if we could also have them from other countries. In sage, we certainly do think about wales, i promise you. Thanks very much. That brings this press co nfe re nce thanks very much. That brings this press conference to a close. Thank you all very much. Thats the end of the latest downing street briefing. Lets just remind you of some of the main points from that downing street briefing which hasjust finished. It was led by the foreign secretary, dominic raab and the deputy chief scientific adviser Angela Mclean. The uk is now the worst affected country in europe. The daily total number of uk deaths has risen by 693 in all settings. That brings the total number of deaths to 29,427 which means the uk has now surpassed the number of deaths in italy, which today reported 29,316 deaths from coronavirus. Dominic raab says that 84,806 coronavirus tests were provided in some form on monday, thats below the governments 100,000 tests a day target. 0ur Political Correspondent iain watson is in westminster. Dominic ra being asked about those figures, that mean that the death toll in the uk has now exceeded italy . Thats right. You can imagine the very negative headlines, potentially, for the government, from this. 29,427 deaths from covid in the uk. So, the uk overtaking italy on that measure. It was therefore unsurprising that i think therefore unsurprising that i think the foreign secretary wanted to emphasise that the figures arent necessarily directly comparable, and the deputy chiefs scientific adviser, Angela Mclean, also making it clear that we would not really get a true picture until the crisis was over, and the crisis still has some way to run. The government now ramping up its testing and tracing capabilities, which might further flatten the curve in this country. The government has consistently said that countries measure things in different ways. They have praised our own statisticians, for example. But i think although there has been an awful lot of emphasis on the uk italy comparison, which shows the scale of the problem, the scale of the tragedy, in this country, beyond that, i think the questions that we re that, i think the questions that were being asked by, for example, the former health secretary, who now chairs the commons committee, jeremy hunt, is not so much, why are we doing a bit better or a bit worse than italy or spain, it is why we are doing an awful lot worse than germany or south korea . Are doing an awful lot worse than germany or south korea . Very interesting there that Angela Mclean, the scientific adviser, making it clear that she was very praiseworthy of south koreas effo rts praiseworthy of south koreas efforts in this, and jeremy hunt arguing that they had much, much more robust tracking and testing and tracing in place well before the United Kingdom, and earlier on today, a couple of the governments advisers speaking to the Health Committee were saying, it was a problem of capacity at one stage, we did not have testing at scale, and the government working to point out that we have since ramped that up, although the number of tests that we re although the number of tests that were done, just under 85,000 yesterday, still falling short of this 100,000 target. What downing street are saying about that, it was a bit ofa street are saying about that, it was a bit of a Glass Half Full kind of answer, because they were saying that because there are fewer hospital admissions, fewer people are being tested in that way, and perhaps because of lockdown, fewer key workers have been tested having contracted the virus, but they are emphasising they have the capacity to test more than 100,000 people, even though they are not operating at capacity at this stage. And real concern expressed in that briefing from the deputy chiefs scientific adviser about what is going one in ca re adviser about what is going one in care homes are still in terms of deaths . Thats right. She pointed out a very grim graph, very solid statistics from the office for National Statistics until the 24th of april, and what this was showing was that deaths were continuing to rise in care homes, where deaths we re rise in care homes, where deaths were mentioned perhaps not necessarily as the primary cause of death but on the death certificate nonetheless. These are very solid figures. So far, the government have been fairly defensive about how they have approached this, and while it would appear that the peak is flattening in hospitals, with admissions going down, there is a real problem, a real acknowledgement from Angela Mclean today, that that problem still exists. Everybody is going to be tuning in to see what the Prime Minister has got to say on sunday about easing lockdown restrictions, but dominic ra was saying in that briefing, we need to get used to the new normal . Yes, he is not normally as ebullient as the Prime Minister, dominic raab, so perhaps he was giving us the bad cop treatment today. But i think he was very much managing expectations because although the government has to review the lockdown on thursday, we will get the full details about how the government might ease some of these restrictions on sunday with the Prime Ministers route map out of the crisis. But dominic raab making it very, very clear that life will not return to what we knew before the crisis. He was saying there will be a new normal and we will all have to adjust to the way that we live and work for some time. Soi that we live and work for some time. So i think he was softening us up