Good afternoon thanks for joining us here on r. T. International. Lets start by bringing you right up to date on the latest global coronavirus figures the total number of infections is now above 4100000 294000 lives have been lost but more than 1400000 people have recovered. France is taking its 1st tentative steps back to normality today its a lockdown is being eased back although some restrictions will remain in place for instance masks are mandatory and public transport while some see the overall move has been positive others fear that it could lead to a 2nd spike in infections auntie correspondent in paris charlotte devinsky has the story. From today thats monday many shops will be able to reopen schools will start to reopen public transport will be running more efficiently than it has over the last 8 weeks people hoping to get the taste of freedom for the last 8 weeks every time theyve left the house that had to happen a personal permission slip an act to say exactly why theyre leaving the house for a select narrow set of reasons that has now been disbanded with them people will be able to move freely within their towns and cities the country is split into some regions still in the red zone which means. To the far east in those regions and here in paris is one of those regions this is what the Prime Minister said when he. Was definitely going to be that easing restrictions from. The president of the republic has confirmed that given the latest results the progress of lifting of the measures can start on may be. Its another step in the fight against the epidemic it is good news for france and for the french people well not so much good news is that public parks and green spaces will be reopening for the moment thats expected to take place. Which theyre hoping will start late in june now already shops have been asking people coming into them to use hang gel sanitizer but now shops will also be able to enforce that there is a mandatory wearing or face mosques they are also mandatory on all public transport in france with people not wearing the age of 11 facing a fine of a 100 and. You know there has been criticism all over the plans as to how thats going to. Transport network saying you know they didnt have enough people on the ground to be able to enforce that and look. For extra help and in fact this morning many fronts t. V. Stations have been showing some of the chaotic scenes not just in the metro here in paris but also in stations and connecting stations around the country showing carriages full of people not respecting the fact that despite their all move freedoms social distancing is according to the government parroted theres also criticism of teach from teachers saying you know we shouldnt be opening the schools while some business is a concern that some of the advice from the government hasnt being exactly clear and no not really sure what they can and cant do there are also those businesses who called. Cafes and restaurants and bars you off they havent been included in this easing of the restrictions and theres also criticism from the public a sense from the public not quite sure that the governments perhaps the right strategy or the government is going to succeed in its strategy one poll showing that 74 percent of people didnt think public transport would be safe to use another poll showing some 58 percent almost 6 in 10 people didnt think that the government would be able to successfully implement its exit strategy and of course there is also this fear that while many people are hoping to see more freedoms down to get out and about that they will be that predicted the 2nd wave of the coronavirus and the french government has stated very clearly if there is a 2nd wave if there is a rise almost restrictions that people are hoping to have seen the back of they will be back. With life in the United Kingdom put on hold for almost 2 months now the Prime Minister to to the nations t. V. Screens on sunday night to line the path forward will be a gradual easing restrictions. Will be strictly monitored no exact date when the food will be lifted. From london. The u. K. Prime minister Boris Johnson addressing the country on sunday evening analysing his plans to resolve a lot of the measures that have been in place in the u. K. Since the end of march but the Prime Minister was also keen to stress that the country isnt in a position to lift those lockdown measures in any meaningful way its all no this is not the time simply to end the lockdown this week but would be madness not to throw away that achievement by allowing a 2nd spike we must stay alert we must continue to control the virus and saved lives. Now with the u. K. Having the highest death toll in the whole of europe mr johnson announced perhaps a new strategy moving forward the announcement of a fight it led system ranking a threat from covert 90 similar to the type of Anti Terrorism threat level assessments weve seen in countries like the u. K. And elsewhere with the ranking government front low level one all the way up to critical level 5 and obviously the lower the rating the more those locked our structures can be lifted to chart our progress and to avoid going back to square one were stablish in a new alert system run by a new joint bio Security Center could be the alert level will tell us how tough we have to be in our social distancing missions the lower level the fewer the measures the higher level of the tougher and stricter we will have to be now to have been some accusations that mr johnson wasnt particularly clear when he came to explaining some of the measures for example to send a people who couldnt work from home should go back to work but of course many work places like restaurants like theaters remain closed so unclear exactly how those people could go back to work now this is johnson also of course announcing the gradual easing of restrictions on wednesday we could see unlimited exercise being allowed in Public Places like parks but again there are fears that the public could just take advantage of that to fill up the lockdown rule that later on in the summer we could see the lifting of restrictions on children going to try many school and secondary school for example and also later on in the summer we could also see for example bars and restaurants open in one small albeit with social this. Using measures in place but mr johnson was also keen to stress that should we see one small increase in the rate of infection or even in the number of people losing their lives after testing positive with coke and 19 then the harsher restrictions could once more be put back in place well be monitoring our progress locally regionally and nationally and if there are outbreaks if there are problems we will not hesitate to put on the brakes. And joined on the line above Malcolm Kendrick is an n. H. S. Doctor and author malcolm well its its been quite an experience feel sure n. H. S. Officials have been battling this virus and trying to help patients for the best part of team months from your experience whats it been like. Well i think they started it was a bit chaotic or or very chaotic. People didnt really know what they were doing obviously there was issues to do with gang i think correct p. P. E. And also i mean just looking at one issue it had contact with someone and then some years so nicely for 2 weeks when we started to develop Staff Members were getting actual could sell terms and. We were so will you have to stay at work for example so these tiles everywhere you look there was this sort of well well well this doesnt make any sense why are you saying one thing one way or another thing in another way and then we run into the issue i do a lot of work dealing with elderly people in Nursing Homes and then. The rules if you like from. Elderly people even covered under the real live d people who d are to be sent back into here and so we need a little why is this happening because these are clearly the most Vulnerable People and were some of them out of hospital in the care home anderson this was obvious to anyone who who had a brain yamaka much want to pick up on that because everything we hear suggests that you know the vast majority of people here who were killed by this far s are over a certain age and that a large number of them are residing in homes has enough been done to help these people are do feel they have been just kind of left to the inevitable well you know is. There a notice that the swedish government apologized for not protecting elderly people so this is just the u. K. Experience and i was reading a blog from a us doctor they did the same ive done the same around the world so. One of the major reasons for. Was that not overwhelm the Health Service by having lots of people having to come in and be treated and these were the elderly notable yes i mean if you look at the mortality and infection rates i think in iceland they found that they tested 1000 children nearly a 1000 children and none of them. And this doesnt is a disease really you know and the people who are going to overwhelm a Health Service are the elderly vulnerable they think make absolute efforts to protect this group and yet the strategy was clear at the hospital theyre not included throwing them into care homes and also in an intermediate care. Look after and we could see them coming and i mean they came and covered positive we ended up weve now had to close the plan this you know which has finally happened and patients who who were in the unit who were negative became codes so its clear that whatever people we. Break limited we were protecting the patients that was being spread in each unit so yes this was a complete and utter just i cant use another word an abject failure. And were seeing this is now it was obvious what was going to happen and. Well i think you mentioned it just a moment ago the whole point of the lockdown in the u. K. Was to prevent the Health Service the hospitals from being completely overrun now that Boris Johnson is outlining a gradual lifting a lockdown measures how concerned are you that this is still going to happen youll get a 2nd spike and that the carriers and the hospitals are going to be overrun is it got the timing right or is it. Well i think that they now recognize that actually we shouldnt be trying to fill up care homes with people who are either doc who are potentially up to what i call some unexploded bombs theres a oh its all right they dont have any symptoms you know and then they sent me. And i recognize that this is not you know. So so i think aspect of it as well as not being completely dealt with but it is being dealt with as a 2nd spike issue is difficult because the the i mean we are now you know under the age of about 60 or 50 this disease is less. Of a problem less virulent and less damaging than say normal flu so if we if if you know the general population starts to get exposed or children so exposed we seem to get no symptoms whatsoever i think you get to 2 cases of children under 15 succumbing to covert and i think in both cases serious underlying conditions so you know we will get another spike. And it is difficult to tell i do think we need to be relaxing restrictions now because of the there are also other problems i mean theyre not theyre not going to people are not coming to hospital because theyre got chest pains if you are staying at home children i was reading an article to one diabetes which the major problems i think to Massachusetts Children arriving to answer those is that parents are terrified to bring them to the hospital because were told that so so theres. Theres a lot of votes going on and. You know who sits with. A lawsuit is that issues that are not immediately not being treated so i think you can just remember all respect you know i think you know with respect we should. In my opinion we should have one and it only. Malcolm really appreciate you coming on to artie pleasure to speak to Malcolm Kendrick giving us his expert analysis there n. H. S. Doctor and author thank you thank you very much youre. Going to belgium now which is also join the ranks of those taking their foot slightly off when it comes to the law down under its plan court sectors including the Retail Industry will be allowed to open up from the day but there are concerns that restrictions are not being lifted fast enough but in the economy under even more strain and the hospitality Sector Workers staged protests in brussels last week they laid down hundreds of chefs jackets they did outs the governments decision not to reopen bars restaurants until at least june they also say theyve been left out in the cold claiming theres been a lack of aid for their trade the 3rd largest source of jobs in the country the government says that it will look at Additional Support measures for those sectors hardest hit by the crisis. Belgium which broaden its restrictions in mid march is already looking at a steep economic slide of nearly 7 percent this year the travel tourism entertainment and hospitality sectors are expected to be those hardest hit prompting fears that millions will lose their jobs organizers of the protests called for tax breaks and extensive economic support. Government and much of the sick that wed be banquet into coming weeks when they see it as i really want to see i mean for the sake of you we care and or lurd or so on does sounds to play us of different measure that we are to whom our im the 1st one was to see for all the ways down and to work out on your 6 goals and because for the moment when you won the last time exemption far security contribution and that was 2 of those and 20 and now went to. The bill to check they can be 100. 00 im now at the. Gerson company. A father broke out at a hospice in the russian city of cross the girls go overnight has claimed 10 lives a little port suggests the fire was caused by an electrical fault and also revealed that the home was registered as residential with no permission to carry out functions of a hospice criminal investigation has been launched only reportedly is being questioned. Coming up next new yorks governor wants billionaires to reimagine a postponed make america after the virus sliced our vast sways of the countrys jobs market that story and more after this break. We go to work. Straight home. Seemed wrong. Wrong just dont. Get to shape our disdain become educated and in gains from an equal betrayal. When something find themselves worlds apart we choose to look for common ground. From. Welcome back new york remains the at the center of the corona Virus Outbreak in the United States is a struggle to deal with the rapid rise of infections some neighborhoods in the bronx queens Staten Island theyve been hit far harder than wealthier whats as a new r t documentary highlights. The. Quarantining new york is a little bizarre because theres theres like 2 worlds right so were in a world where we feel very isolated were working from home but were still working and then theres this like other part of new york that we dont see when you look at like the map of how it is played some of the wealthier neighborhoods its been far more contained in the numbers are much lower than some of the flora neighborhoods its like 2 different worlds. Surface a more livable how many absent certainly a lot of your early we probably dont argue over the last 2 weeks and we have more than 100 more to go and were going round going in new york which is considered one of the or areas. Of the we were with the other core population are dying water because in everyday circumstances when you go to a hospital in new york city and probably many others the 1st thing they actually are is you having to put the bar dizzyingly to you will ya please do you think this is a real. Meanwhile the new york states governor is already outlining his post outbreak plans but this decision to call on americas richest to help out has prompted anger in the big apple limo picks up a story. United states has the worlds top number of coronavirus deaths and 33000000 americans have now filed for unemployment u. S. Officials are saying this is a catastrophe on par with 911 or pearl harbor many have accused the u. S. Government of dropping the ball failing to provide Adequate Health care and effectively mobilize relief however the new york state Governor Andrew Cuomo has found some saviors to help reimagine new york in the aftermath of the pandemic billionaires. Cuomo has given eric schmidt the c. E. O. Of google the task of helping to reimagine new york in the aftermath of the pandemic with Talent HealthRemote Learning and broadband probably the best mind in this country if not in this on the globe to do this is i believe a true visionary especially in the field of technology and thats eric schmidt and weve asked him to come work with us now google has already earned the distrust of millions with their project nightingale that acquired the personal medical records of millions and their ownership of fitbit. The new york governor has also decided to bring bill gates on board bill gates the microsoft founder and billionaire is set to help revolutionize schools across the state bill gates is a visionary in many ways and his ideas and thoughts on technology and education hes spoken about for years but i think we now have a moment in history where we can actually incorporate and advance those ideas advocates of Public Education have slammed his initiative as pushing privatization. Both the Gates Foundation and your coma have a history of pushing privatization and agendas that have the potential to destroy Public Schools this collaboration raises a red flag and real questions about what shape our reimagine Public Schools will take postponed demick and whether there will be recognizable as Public Schools at all the Gates Foundation or big advocates of common core and initiatives aimed at advancing americas performance and education which is already quit