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Vietnam has appealed for help in obtaining the 150 million coronavirus vaccines it will need to inoculate its population.

So far, it has obtained less than one million doses through direct purchases and the global Covax scheme.

Vietnam's Ministry of Health asked China, Russia and India for assistance on Thursday. Today it turned to Japan, the US and the EU for vaccines and technical support.

The country aims to have 20% of its 98 million people vaccinated by the end of the year, the ministry said.

Vietnam has used strict guidelines to keep the virus mostly at bay during the pandemic, registering just 35 Covid-related deaths.

Image source, Reuters

British regulators say they have identified 30 cases of rare blood clot events associated with the AstraZeneca vaccine but stressed the benefits of the jab in preventing coronavirus outweigh any risks.

The Medicines and Healthcare Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said on Thursday that the risk associated with this type of blood clot is "very small" and that the public should continue to take up the vaccine when offered it.

The agency says it has identified 30 cases of rare blood clot events following use of the Oxford/AstraZeneca jab, out of 18.1 million doses administered up to and including 24 March.

Responding to the data, a member of the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) said that taking up the vaccine was "by far the safest choice" at minimising risk of serious illness or death.

Professor Adam Finn, from the University of Bristol, says: "The extreme rarity of these events in the context of the many millions of vaccine doses that have been administered means that the risk-benefit decision facing people who are invited to receive Covid-19 vaccines is very straightforward: receiving the vaccine is by far the safest choice in terms of minimising individual risk of serious illness or death."

This view is echoed by the World Health Organisation (WHO), which has urged countries like Germany to continue using the jab.

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Kazakhstan has recorded its highest daily number of coronavirus cases.

According to official statistics, it has posted 2,077 new cases today.

President Kassym-Jomart Tokayev has offered up stiff criticism of his own government's rollout of a locally-produced version of Russia's Sputnik V jab.

He noted just 47,000 of 19 million people have been fully vaccinated.

"The reason is simple. Not enough vaccines," he said, according to the AFP news agency.

He complained Kazakhstan has been "forced to agree to unfavourable commercial and financial conditions to accelerate deliveries".

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Leinster's Heineken Champions Cup last-16 match against Toulon will not go ahead after an unnamed Toulon squad member tested positive for Covid-19.

The French side are already in Dublin in preparation for the Friday evening fixture.

With the quarter-finals scheduled for next weekend, it appears unlikely that the fixture will be rearranged.

The winner of Friday's match was set to meet Exeter Chiefs or Lyon on Friday 9 April.

During the group stages of the tournament, any side unable to fulfil a fixture due to a Covid-19 case were deemed to have lost the game. If the same principle applies to the knock-out stages, Leinster will advance to the last eight.

The coronavirus reproduction number, or R value, in England is between 0.8 and 1, according to the latest government figures, external.

Last week the whole of the UK had an estimated figure between 0.7 and 0.9.

A UK-wide estimate of R rate has not been agreed by Sage this week - the Department of Health says that as restrictions are lifted at different rates across the four nations, a UK-level estimate for R becomes a less meaningful measure of the pandemic.

R represents the average number of people each Covid-19 positive person goes on to infect.

When the figure is above 1, an outbreak can grow exponentially, but when it is below 1, it means the epidemic is shrinking.

For more on the R number click here.

Wearing face masks has given thieves increased confidence to steal and resulted in more cases of verbal abuse, shopkeepers have told the BBC.

Coronavirus restrictions made face coverings compulsory in stores across England last July.

The Association of Convenience Stores (ACS) said 89% of staff have experienced verbal abuse during the pandemic.

Neelesh Parekh, who owns a shop in Portsmouth, says he has lost £12,000 at the hands of thieves in the past year and believes mask-wearing has contributed to the problem.

He said: "We can't see their faces - all we can see is their eyes and part of their nose.

"People just take and run - because they've got masks on you can't see what's happening."

Read more from shopkeepers here.

Image source, Reuters

The public is being urged to give seals space to protect them as they have ventured further inland during lockdown.

The Seal Alliance is warning that getting too close to seals can lead to their injury and death, even up to several months later.

The aquatic mammals have come further on to beaches and coastlines that were quieter during lockdown, it says.

Last month a popular seal known as "Freddie" was put down after he was attacked by a dog in Barnes, London.

Christians around the globe have been marking the second Good Friday since the coronavirus pandemic started.

In Jerusalem's Old City, worshippers have carried a wooden cross along the Via Dolorosa, or Way of Suffering.

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Christians wore protective masks at the Kalwaria Monastery, a Unesco Heritage Site, in Poland.

Usually thousands make the trip to see a re-enactment of the crucifixion.

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Masked Catholics marked the day in Chennai, India.

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People observed social distancing at the Protestant Berlin Cathedral.

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Chile has closed its borders for the month of April as it seeks to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Health officials say a second wave of the pandemic has left hospitals close to collapse.

Chile has one of the world's fastest rates of vaccination but has seen cases spike following the southern hemisphere summer holidays.

Neighbouring Peru has begun a four-day lockdown over the Easter weekend as it battles the virus while Bolivia has closed its frontiers with Peru and Brazil, the Latin American country worst affected by the pandemic.

People who have been shielding could become "prisoners in their homes" because of a loss of confidence after months indoors, an expert says.

Dr Deborah Morgan, a leading specialist on loneliness, external, says a "national strategy" is needed to help people reintegrate into their communities.

Shielding has ended in England and Wales, while Scotland and Northern Ireland are expected to lift their restrictions later in April.

Amy-Claire Davies, 26, has been shielding with her parents in Swansea since the start of the pandemic.

Medically, she is extremely vulnerable. She is living with a life-limiting condition that means she suffers multiple agonising spasms.

She says: "I think I'd struggle going anywhere that was particularly crowded, I would get quite anxious about that, because it's been ingrained as a survival instinct over the past year and I haven't been in a crowded space for the past year. It would be quite overwhelming.

"A lot of the young people I know are at a real risk of struggling to go back out into the world in the way that we were before."

Those shielding have been advised they can stop but are still being advised to keep social contacts at low levels, work from home where possible and stay at a distance from other people.

Adam Easton
Warsaw Correspondent

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Poland has reported its highest number of new coronavirus infections since the pandemic began.

There have been more than 35,000 new cases and 621 deaths in the past 24 hours, the health ministry says.

Poland’s third coronavirus wave is mainly being caused by the rampant UK variant of the virus that is responsible for 80% of all new cases.

The country’s health system is struggling to cope with rising hospital admissions, which are at their highest ever level.

Poland’s Health Minister Adam Niedzielski says the number of new infections is expected to peak this week or next. But he warns hospital admissions will not peak until 10 days after that.

The health service’s capacity has already reached its limit in the worst-affected areas such as Silesia, where some patients are being relocated to less burdened hospitals in neighbouring provinces.

Niedzielski says the main problem is a lack of staff, rather than equipment, and the government is seeking to bring in doctors from abroad.

Nick Hope
BBC Olympic sports reporter

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The Diving World Cup in Tokyo has been cancelled by the sport's international governing body because the organisers' planned Covid-19 precautions "will not properly ensure" athletes' safety.

In a letter seen by the BBC, Fina also criticises the Japanese government which, in its opinion, "did not take all the necessary measures to ensure successful and fair" competition.

The event was scheduled to run from 18-23 April, and was due to be the final Olympic qualifier and an official test event for the postponed Tokyo Games.

"Fina sincerely regrets this situation," reads the letter. "Despite all best efforts and understanding from Fina, the executive was obliged to take this drastic decision."

Fina informed national federations by email on Thursday after receiving what it describes as "worrying" information about the organiser's proposed Covid-19 strategy, through its taskforce.

"In their view, this plan will not properly ensure health and protection guarantees to participants," continues the letter.

It is understood Fina is also unhappy about:

• Several Japanese embassies around the world not yet issuing visas to nations who planned to compete
• Rising costs associated with Covid-19 countermeasures, which Fina has been asked to pay for
• The insistence on a new three-day quarantine prior to the event that would require late changes to pre-booked travel.

Read more here.

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As it is Easter weekend, and with Passover, Ramadan and Vaisakhi all falling within the month of April, you might want a reminder of what the rules are for places of worship.

Among the common rules across the UK nations are requirements for services to be conducted as quickly as possible, worshippers needing to wear face masks and socially distance and items such as prayer books or mats not being shared.

In England services have continued throughout winter with capacity limited by a risk assessment on the venue, while similar rules are in place in Wales.

In Scotland places of worship have reopened for communal services but with a 50 person limit.

Northern Ireland's main Christian denominations chose to suspend in-person gatherings in January, but most have resumed services as of today.

You can find the full details here.

Frances Mao
Sydney

Image source, ZAC EFRON/INSTAGRAM

It started with Zac Efron. Then Mark Wahlberg flew over, Matt Damon jetted in, and dozens of other celebrities followed - all to set up temporary homes in Australia.

More recently, Julia Roberts touched down. She's due to film a movie here with George Clooney later this year, one rather aptly titled Ticket to Paradise.

Because amid the pandemic, it does appear that half of Hollywood has fled to Australia, viewing it as a Covid-free idyll.

Life is good in a country that's largely eliminated the virus - people are freely enjoying beaches, bars, and nightclubs.

Most of the famous arrivals are here to work. Australia's government has lured over productions such as the next Thor film with tax breaks.

"They're calling it Aussiewood," one local entertainment reporter tells the BBC.

But not everyone is pleased. One year on since Australia shut its borders, there are still at least 40,000 Australians stranded overseas.

Many say they've effectively been blocked from returning home. One group has lodged a human rights complaint with the United Nations.

"No other country has impeded the return of their citizens in this way," Sabrina Tiasha, who arrived home from the UK last month, says.

Read more here.

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Boris Johnson says two vaccinated people cannot meet indoors yet because the "vaccines are not giving 100% protection", which is why "we just need to be cautious".

The prime minister has answered questions from the public in a video on Twitter, external.

In it he says the government thinks vaccines do not entirely remove the risk of transmission of Covid-19.

Asked about whether you can play sport with more than six people he says you can play with as many people as you like as long as it is outdoors.

"The key thing is that it is outside because it is outside that we think is safer," he says.

There is much debate surrounding Covid passports or certificates today, with a group of cross-party MPs calling the idea "divisive".

Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden tells BBC News coronavirus certificates could be a way of getting people back to "doing the things they love".

He says he is participating in Michael Gove's review on the subject.

"This is not about a vaccine passport, this is about looking at ways of proving that you are Covid secure, whether you have had a test or had the vaccine," he says.

"Clearly, no decisions have been made on that, because we have to weigh up different factors, the ethical considerations and so on, but it may be a way of ensuring we can get more people back doing the things they love."

Image source, Getty Images

As we have been reporting, the Philippines is one of the countries being added to the so-called "red list" meaning visitors from the nation face a ban on travelling into England from next Friday.

A total of 15,310 new infections have been reported in the Philippines today, the highest daily figure reported since the pandemic started. The health ministry said more than 3,000 of those were part of a backlog.

The previous highest number had been just over 10,000.

The Philippines has now recorded more than 770,000 cases and 13,320 deaths.

The capital region of Manila has been placed under one of its toughest levels of lockdown as the country's healthcare system is put under pressure.

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As we just told you, travel from the Philippines, Pakistan, Kenya and Bangladesh will be banned from 04:00 BST on 9 April, as the countries are added to the UK government's red list.

Nearly 40 countries are currently on the red list, external and nations can be added to the list with just a few hours' notice.

If someone has been in or through any of these countries in the previous 10 days, they will be refused entry to the UK.

An exception is made for British or Irish passport holders - or people with UK residence rights - but they must first pay to quarantine in a government-approved hotel for 10 days, external.

The aim of the travel bans is to prevent new variants of Covid-19 arriving in the UK.

Read more here.

The Philippines, Pakistan, Kenya and Bangladesh are being added to England’s "red list" to protect the country against new variants of coronavirus, the UK government says.

It means a travel ban on visitors from these countries will come into force next Friday (9 April).

British, Irish and third-country nationals with residence rights arriving from these countries will be required to self-isolate in a government-approved hotel for 10 days.

The Department for Transport says the move follows new data showing an increased risk of importation of variants of concern.

Image source, Getty Images

Today sees a change to Scotland's "stay at home" rule, which has been in place for three months, with advice to "stay local" replacing it.

People are being urged to remain within their local authority boundaries for the next three weeks as First Minister Nicola Sturgeon warns there are "no grounds for complacency" despite the success of the vaccine rollout.

In Northern Ireland all pupils are due to return to school on 12 April but singing indoors will be banned.

Currently people in Northern Ireland can meet in groups of up to 10 from two households to exercise or up to six in private gardens.

Wales has lifted all travel restrictions for residents within its borders and six people from two different households can meet and exercise outdoors and in private gardens.

Since Monday people in England have been able to meet outside, including in gardens, in groups of six or from two households.

The stay at home rule has ended although there is advice to minimise travel.

You can find the rules where you are here.