That's it for our live coverage today.

It was edited by Holly Wallis and Alex Kleiderman, and written by Hazel Shearing, Doug Faulkner and Alex Therrien.

Here are some of the headlines from around the UK and the world today - as millions of people face further restrictions:

• From 18:00 BST, Wales began its 17-day firebreak lockdown with non-essential shops forced to close and supermarkets banned from selling non-essential items
• In Scotland, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has launched the new five-level system of coronavirus restrictions, which will come into force on 2 November, when current curbs to the hospitality trade are due to expire
• It is Boris Johnson's "ambition" for people to celebrate Christmas with their families, his spokesman has said, but scientists have warned that without taking action, a normal Christmas is "wishful thinking"
• Greater Manchester has entered the top tier of restrictions with South Yorkshire set to follow on Saturday
• Other parts of the country, including Warrington and Nottingham are also preparing to enter tier three
• Coronavirus infections continue to rise across the UK, according to the latest Office for National Statistics data, with cases estimated to have risen by a quarter to 35,200 a day

• In France, President Emmanuel Macron has said people will have to live with the virus until at least next summer as a curfew is imposed on two-thirds of the country
• And holidaymakers are flocking to the Canary Islands after it was placed on the UK travel corridors list, according to holiday firms

Supermarkets in Wales have been covering up non-essential items ahead of the nation's 17-day firebreak lockdown, which is due to start shortly.

From 18:00 BST shops will be forced to close - unless they sell essential items, external such as food. First Minister Mark Drakeford has said supermarkets should also stop selling items such as clothes as a matter of "fairness" until 9 November.

As shops prepare for the rules to come in, plastic covering has been placed over items such as pillows and cat baskets in Asda in Coryton, Cardiff.

The company said it had been given "little time to implement these changes or clarity on what is deemed 'essential'" - and a spokesperson "expressed our deep concerns about the implications for customers accessing products they genuinely need".

Tesco said it would work "incredibly hard" to comply with the Welsh government's rules, while Sainsbury's said it was "working around the clock to put changes in place".

If you are wondering what you can do during the Wales lockdown check out our guide here.

Rory Cellan-Jones
Technology correspondent

People who are told to go into isolation via an alert from the NHS Covid-19 app in England and Wales will not be eligible for government support.

Anyone on low income who is instructed to self-isolate in a phone call from NHS Test and Trace can claim a £500 payment from their local authority.

Now the Department of Health has said the payments will not be available to app users, as reported by Sky News, external.

However, the government is exploring ways of changing that.

A spokesperson said: "The NHS Covid-19 app is voluntary with users of it remaining anonymous, which means that currently people are not eligible for the support payment if they are advised by the app to self-isolate."

Read more here.

Imogen Foulkes
BBC News, Geneva

The World Health Organization (WHO) has warned that the next few months will be "tough", with the northern hemisphere in particular at a critical juncture.

The head of the WHO, Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus, said too many countries in Europe were seeing an exponential rise in cases, and he called on their governments to take "immediate action" to try to ensure that schools could remain open and hospitals did not become overstretched.

WHO officials also said it was possible some results from its vaccine trials might be available by the end of the year, but stressed that these would be very preliminary results - "the bare minimum required for emergency use authorisation".

Police in England will attempt to turn around drivers making non-essential journeys out of Wales during the nation's 17-day firebreak lockdown.

Gloucestershire Constabulary confirmed they would patrol routes into the Forest of Dean area, on the England-Wales border, and pull over vehicles they suspected of making long journeys.

If the drivers turn out to have driven out of Wales without a valid excuse they will be asked to turn around, the force said, and if they refuse they will then be reported to police in Wales - who can issue fines.

A spokesman for the force said: "While we cannot issue fines to those travelling from Wales into the county, we can inform the host force of those we stop about what has happened so they can take action."

Image source, PA Media

Northern Ireland's deputy first minister has said a potential extension of the nation's four-week circuit-break restrictions cannot be taken off the table.

At her first press conference since emerging from a 14-day self isolation after a family member tested positive, Michelle O'Neill said she hoped the measures could be lifted on 13 November.

But she stressed an extension may be needed if the virus has not been sufficiently suppressed.

"I think if everybody works really hard at the measures we've brought into place now in this intervention, then we possibly can avoid that. I want us to be able to avoid that. But I'm honest enough to be able to say that all these things have to remain on the table."

She also said the best way to avoid further lockdowns was to invest in a "first-class" test and trace system,

Laurence Cawley
BBC News

Prime Minister Boris Johnson hailed Luton as the "way forward for the entire country" just a few weeks ago, after Covid cases there fell and local restrictions were lifted.

But the rate of infection has surged in the past week.

The council is now urging residents to voluntarily put themselves under tighter restrictions to avoid being put into a higher tier.

How are they reacting?

Read more here.

A further 20,530 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in the UK, the Department of Health has said.

The number is a slight drop on the 21,242 new cases on Thursday.

There were 224 more deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test, taking the total UK deaths to 44,571.

Crowds of revellers made it one final party night before the firebreak lockdown spells last orders for Wales.

Cardiff's city centre streets swelled on Thursday night ahead of the 17-day national shutdown that will see pubs and clubs closed.

Wales' First Minister Mark Drakeford has said stopping supermarkets selling non-essential goods during the nation's firebreak lockdown is about "fairness".

He insisted any suggestion the decision was based on his own politics was "nonsensical", amid criticism from the Welsh Conservatives.

He said: "I'm not prepared to treat small businesses in Wales in one way, requiring them to close - they are not able to earn a living during these two weeks, as part of our national efforts - and then simply because another sector in society are more powerful, are bigger, that they think that they can be treated differently.

"It is a straightforward matter of fairness, we are in this together here in Wales."

The aim of the lockdown was to "minimise the amount of time that people spend out of their homes during the two-week period", he said.

He said it was "not the time to browse for non-essentials".

Earlier, at the Welsh Government briefing, Drakeford said the pandemic would not be over in the coming months but added there were "things that we can do... to make sure that Christmas of a coronavirus sort can still be celebrated here".

But he added that the priority is about "saving lives not saving Christmas".

Linnete Bahati
BBC Monitoring

Throughout the pandemic, social media companies have become increasingly bold in deleting viral misinformation.

The latest example: YouTube has removed a video claiming masks are ineffective against the spread of Covid-19. The group behind the video calls itself "America's Frontline Doctors".

And on Facebook, they claimed they had been "censored".

The video has been widely shared on other platforms. It was deleted from video sharing site Vimeo, and Facebook’s third-party fact checkers have labelled it with a warning, but it went viral on Twitter.

Anyone clicking the YouTube link, however, will see a message saying that the video has been taken down because it violated the site’s terms of service. We’ve contacted YouTube for comment.

The doctors claim masks are "completely irrelevant" in battling coronavirus.

However the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends face coverings "to provide a barrier for potentially infectious droplets".

The first appearance of the doctors’ group in July went viral, though that earlier video was also taken down by YouTube because it contained misinformation about Covid-19.

What’s the truth about masks?

The BBC’s health team has explained how they work – and how they should be used https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/health-51205344

BBC Sport

Image source, PA

England's match against the Barbarians at Twickenham on Sunday has been called off after 12 Barbarians players were stood down for breaking Covid rules.

The players left their hotel bubble - contrary to team protocols - to have dinner at a London restaurant.

During its investigation, the Rugby Football Union said it discovered another breach where players left the hotel without permission.

It says those actions meant the "bubble environment" had been compromised.

Read more here.

The Welsh Conservatives have called for urgent clarity over which items are classed as essential ahead of the "firebreak" lockdown in Wales.

The new restrictions come into force from 18:00 BST. People are being told to stay at home, with pubs, restaurants, hotels and non-essential shops shutting for 17 days.

Food shops, off-licences and pharmacies can stay open but supermarkets will be unable to sell items like clothes during Wales' temporary lockdown.

Darren Millar, shadow minister for Covid recovery, said with only hours to go until the lockdown begins, "confusion is rife".

"Supermarkets, convenience stores and other shops have no idea which goods the Welsh Labour-led government regards as non-essential so that they can restrict them from sale," he said.

Millar added: "Making last-minute diktats is irresponsible. Ministers must issue guidance immediately so that businesses and the public know where they stand."

Read our story here

Rhoda Odhiambo
BBC Africa Health, Nairobi

Image source, Getty Images

Kenya has reported a sharp increase in Covid-19 cases, with more than 1,000 people confirmed to have contracted coronavirus on Thursday.

This is the highest number of single-day cases to be recorded in the country since the first case was reported on 13 March.

Critics say the rise in cases is a result of people not adhering to safety measures in open spaces after President Uhuru Kenyatta relaxed restrictions three weeks ago.

The health ministry is holding talks with the management of about 20 hotels that will be converted into isolation facilities to ease off pressure in hospitals.

Some hospitals are said to have started recording a surge in admissions.

Daniel Yumbya, the chief executive of the Medical Pharmacists and Dentists Council, said the country has a total of 18,443 isolation beds - which is not enough.

"We’re now back to negotiating with private hotels to charge the bare minimum for patients in isolation. We do not want hospitals to be overwhelmed," Yumbya told journalists on Thursday.

Kenya has so far confirmed over 47,200 coronavirus cases with 870 deaths.

Kevin Peachey
Personal finance reporter

Virgin Holidays has been ordered to meet refund deadlines following Covid-related cancellations or face court action by the regulator.

The company has agreed to pay refunds by 30 October for any holidays cancelled before September.

Those cancelled last month or this month will be refunded by 20 November.

By law, package holidays cancelled by an operator should be refunded within 14 days, but some people have waited three months to get their money back.

A spokesman for Virgin Holidays said it was "98% through the refund queue", adding: "Our focus now is on rebuilding trust with our customers, recognising that it has regrettably taken much longer than normal to process their refunds. We thank them sincerely for their patience throughout."

Meanwhile, holidaymakers have spoken to the BBC in recent months over the stress of getting refunds from Virgin Holidays.

Image source, David and Natalie Rogers

Newlyweds David and Natalie Rogers, from Dudley, saved for two years for their dream honeymoon safari trip to Kenya but coronavirus ruined their plans.

"We were quite angry about having to wait on hold [to Virgin Holidays] for over eight hours, and a message on the line saying that travellers should have already received a voucher for their missed holidays. It just felt like we'd been forgotten about," they said.

Image source, Lynn Fox

Lynn and Martin Fox had remortgaged their home to pay for a holiday of a lifetime with their two children in Florida.

"If only they [Virgin Holidays] would have been honest with us and communicated with us, we would have been happy. If they put a date on the refund, we could have planned. But the phone cut off calls and emails were ignored," Mrs Fox said.

Read the full story here.

Can I go into someone's house for a service such as hairdressing in tier two?

Is it alright to meet with people around the UK for work?

Someone in my support bubble is in tier two, but I'm in tier one. Should I follow the tier one rules or the tier two rules?

As more and more people across England face tougher restrictions, we've answered some of your questions about the new three-tier system of restrictions.

Check out our answers here.

Rob Cameron
BBC Prague Correspondent

Czech Health Minister Roman Prymula has refused calls from the country's prime minister to resign, after being pictured by a tabloid newspaper coming out of a restaurant late at night - despite all such establishments being closed.

The affair has thrown the country deep into political crisis, and public confidence in government restrictions has been left in tatters.

There was already considerable public grumbling at the latest restrictions, which include closing all pubs and restaurants.

So when the man who thought up those rules was caught by a tabloid photographer emerging from a restaurant and without a mask, it appeared his days – perhaps hours – were numbered.

However, he now says he was at a meeting in a private room in the building that also houses the restaurant, and that he put on his mask as soon as he got to his car.

The country now finds itself in an unedifying and toxic political struggle – right in the middle of the worst health crisis it has ever seen.

Image source, Getty Images

US retailer Gap could close all of its own UK stores, putting thousands of jobs at risk, as it mulls shifting its operations to franchise-only in Europe.

It may close all of its shops in the UK, France, Ireland and Italy next summer, the retailer said, external.

Gap could also close its European distribution centre in Rugby.

The retailer, which has seen sales fall in recent years, reported a £740m loss in the three months to May due to coronavirus disruption.

Instead of operating its own stores, Gap said it was looking at whether to move to a franchise model.

Read the full story here.

Image source, Reuters

The prime minister hopes that people will be able to celebrate Christmas "as a family" this year, his spokesman has said.

"The PM has been clear previously that he is hopeful that in many ways we could be able to get some aspects of our lives back to normal by Christmas," he told journalists at a briefing.

"We've been clear about the ambition to ensure that people may celebrate Christmas as a family this year."

It comes as one of the government's scientific advisers said the idea that "we can carry on as we are" and have a normal Christmas "is wishful thinking in the extreme".

Prof John Edmunds, a member of the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage), said "radical action" would be needed - particularly in problem regions - for this to happen.

Earlier, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Stephen Barclay said he hoped families would be able to spend Christmas together - but "few people expect it to be exactly as it would normally".

Read the full story here.