Dominic Raab says a big rise in coronavirus testing is coming, at a "virtual" Prime Minister's Questions.

Image source, Metropolitan Police

Police have rescued vulnerable women from brothels in Westminster during a series of dawn raids by the Met Police.

Six people have been arrested a properties in London and Gloucester on Wednesday morning in connection with modern slavery and money laundering, police said.

Officers recovered cash and about £1m worth of assets including high value watches and paintings.Two luxury cars were also seized.

Supt Tara McGovern, of the Met Police's Modern Slavery Investigation Team, said: “We are committed to protecting the vulnerable and bringing those responsible for exploiting others to justice."

The victims are being supported by specialist officers. The Salvation Army are also providing specialist assistance to ensure the victims have somewhere safe to stay and "the support they need to begin to rebuild their lives", police said.

Those arrested include:

• A 38-year-old woman on suspicion of modern slavery and proceeds of crime offences
• A 30-year-old man on suspicion of modern slavery and proceeds of crime offences
• A 67-year-old woman on suspicion of modern slavery and proceeds of crime offences
• A 29-year-old woman on suspicion of modern slavery and proceeds of crime offences
• A 27-year-old man on suspicion of money laundering, and
• A 28-year-old woman on suspicion of money laundering.

Image source, Met Police

A man who committed a domestic assault on a woman has been jailed for offences including spitting at police officers while claiming to have coronavirus.

On 20 April, officers arrested 21-year-old Brandon Wallace, in Barking, on suspicion of assaulting a woman and damaging her property.

The man also told officers that he had Covid-19 and, while being put into a police van, he spat at two officers, police said.

He was further arrested for assault on emergency workers.

While in custody, Wallace confirmed that he did not have coronavirus or any symptoms.

He pleaded guilty to all offences and was sentenced to six months' imprisonment.

Insp Alexis Manley, said: "Thousands of dedicated officers are working to keep Londoners safe at this extraordinary time, and among our priorities is to tackle all forms of domestic offending.

"It says much about the attitude of this man that, in addition to targeting somebody close to him, he was also willing to make false claims about Covid-19 and to spit at officers."

Sam Francis
BBC News, London

London's confirmed coronavirus deaths have increased for the second day in a row.

Hospitals in London reported 173 new deaths, a 23% increase on yesterday's figures, according to the NHS England daily briefing, external.

There have now been 4,211 deaths in London hospitals linked to coronavirus - 26% of all deaths in England, despite the capital representing only 13% of the country's population.

The Royal Free London NHS Foundation Trust becomes only the second hospital to record more than 400 deaths.

Three other London hospitals have recorded more than 300 deaths:

• London North West University Healthcare NHS Trust (398),
• Kings Collge London NHS Foundation Trust with (339), and
• Barts Health NHS Trust (335)- the trust responsible for the new NHS Nightingale hospital

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Image source, Family handout

The family of a London bus driver who died with Covid-19 believes that a lack of protective equipment for public transport workers and delays to improving safety had “cost lives”.

Mervyn Mally Kennedy is one of 29 transport staff — including 23 bus drivers and workers — to have died with the virus amid claims they have not been adequately shielded.

The 67-year-old, a “proud and loving” father of three and grandfather of seven who had no underlying health conditions, was taken to hospital on 6 April when he started struggling to breathe.

Penny Palmer, a paediatric nurse at Lewisham hospital, said she believed her father would still be alive if he had been given personal protective equipment at work.

“It is people like my dad who are driving the NHS staff and carers to work. The changes that have been brought in should have happened much quicker.

"The lack of equipment and delays has cost lives,” she said.

Mr Kennedy had worked as a London bus driver for 16 years, having moved to Croydon from Zimbabwe in 1999.

His family have set up an online fundraising page to pay for his funeral and to fund PPE for bus drivers. They are also trying to start a “beep for drivers” campaign, where people sound their horns every Wednesday at 12:00, as it was "important these workers feel appreciated", Ms Palmer said.

Claire Mann, Transport for London’s director of bus operations, said she and colleagues were “utterly devastated that Mervyn Kennedy has died as a result of the coronavirus pandemic”.

She said the safety of bus drivers "is our absolute priority" but the “very latest scientific advice” was that PPE was “not required in non-care settings and could be counter-productive”.

One motorist is clocked at more than three times the limit, as thousands are caught speeding.

Newham University Hospital is reinstating its home birth service from Friday.

In a post published on Twitter, the hospital's maternity ward said it was "very proud to offer women choice of place at birth at our freestanding birth centre, at home, at our alongside birth centre and hospital labour ward".

An NHS worker has asked people to re-direct their donations of food and coffee to vulnerable members of society and those who are seeing their income reduced due to the coronavirus pandemic.

NHS workers, she said, are not losing income, unlike the homeless, elderly and self-employed.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Image source, Google

Streatham Cemetery in Lambeth reopened to the public, allowing people to visit loved ones’ graves again.

But the two other cemeteries in the borough remain closed because they have crematoria on the grounds.

The council closed the borough’s three cemeteries at the start of the month in a bid to fight the spread of coronavirus.

Streatham, West Norwood, and Lambeth cemeteries have only been only be open to funeral services since.

Lambeth council made the decision to reopen Streatham cemetery following Government guidance.

A council spokesperson said: “Under the emergency legislation issued by the Government we are able to reopen Streatham Cemetery.

“Lambeth and West Norwood Cemeteries have crematoria within the grounds, and so legally under the same legislation they have to remain restricted to funeral parties and those with scheduled appointments.”

Local Democracy Reporting Service

A campaign launched in response to the Covid-19 outbreak has raised over £100,000 for Lewisham Food Bank.

More than 2,400 people have donated to the mayor of Lewisham’s appeal since it was launched just over a month ago.

Demand for the food bank’s services has tripled in the wake of the pandemic, with Lewisham’s centre helping more than 3,500 in the last month.

Many of those people are waiting for the outcome of Universal Credit applications, while the temporary closure of support agencies is putting increased strain on food banks.

Lewisham Food Bank is spending £4,000 a week on supplies for essential food parcels.

Mayor of Lewisham, Damien Egan said: “Over the last few weeks we have seen a significant increase in the number of residents experiencing financial and food insecurity.

“The Food Bank is doing invaluable work to ensure families don’t go hungry and the response we’ve had to the appeal has been a reflection of the fantastic community spirit we have in Lewisham.”

Lora Jones
Business reporter, BBC News

Many businesses have been finding new ways to survive during the pandemic lockdown.

Travel Curious, a London-based tour company, was set up just 12 months ago. But as travel came to a standstill, it decided to ask its guides to run live virtual tours on Instagram.

Where governments are allowing people to walk in cities, walking tours are filmed by a family member already sharing a household with the guide.

Other tours are hosted from home, where restrictions on movement are more strict. One Venice "excursion" recently took place from a tour guide's apartment that overlooks the Grand Canal. Viewers are then asked to give a tip at the end of the tour.

Amir Azulay, chief executive of Travel Curious, said: "Watching a live-streamed tour on Instagram is not quite the same as actually being there on your own, but it's the next best thing.

"We wanted to support our tour guides at this time, and to provide some welcome respite for people by bringing the world into their homes."

Find out how other businesses have been change their approaches here.

Sam Francis
BBC News, London

Image source, bbc

The number of confirmed cases has been decreasing in London following a spike in testing, figures have revealed.

In the last seven days 3,600 new cases of coronavirus have been confirmed across London, a 43% decrease since the first week of April according to official figures., external

Between 1-7 April there were 6,257 confirmed cases.

This decrease comes at the same time as testing has been increasing across the UK.

On 18 March the government committed to, external "increase the number of people tested for COVID-19 to 25,000 hospital patients a day", which was then upgraded to reaching 100,000 tests per day, external by the end of April.

As of 09.00 BST this morning 535,342 tests have concluded across the UK with 18,206 tests carried out yesterday.

There have now been 22,072 confirmed cases of coronavirus in London, with more than 4,000 deaths.

It is worth remembering that other regions are behind London in the curve of the pandemic, but that also means that they locked down at an earlier stage.

One-year-old Alice used her dad's phone to "buy" three very expensive onions.

Ilford Recorder
Ilford Recorder

Volunteers from Sikh temples in Barking and Seven Kings are distributing more the 550 meals a day to local food banks.

Fears grow that thousands of children in England face increased danger during the current lockdown.

BBC London

A talented group of pattern cutters and seamstresses across south London has been working hard to create scrubs for NHS front line staff.

Rail operator Southeastern has announced it is closing more of its ticket offices in response to the downturn in rail travel due to coronavirus.

The company has issued a list of its ticket offices which will remain open.

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Image source, The Parlour

An independent London pub owner who decided to turn his business into a grocery shop to survive the lockdown is now seeing queues of new customers.

Jesse Dunford Wood, 42, had the idea of turning the Parlour in Kensal into the Parlour Market Place, after non-essential businesses were forced to close.

It now sells a selection of fruit and veg, meats, fish, freshly baked goods, and a variety of craft spirits, beers and wines that would otherwise be sitting unloved in the gastropub’s basement.

But it came at a cost, as Mr Dunford Wood, who bought the pub in 2013 and lives upstairs, has furloughed 28 of his staff and now has a reduced team of just seven.

He said he had changed the business "with survival in mind but also a way of serving the community… and being proactive about the terrible situation.

“For the first weekend we tried to do takeaways and I nearly gave up," he added.

Four customers are allowed in the shop at a time, and all the staff wear gloves and masks.

They took the beer pumps from off the bar and replaced tables and chairs with fridges from the kitchen to store the meat and fish.

Mr Dunford Wood, who grew up in the Cotswolds, said: “A day now starts with a big baking session in the morning, to be able to offer four types of freshly baked bread.”

To his surprise, one of their best selling products has been flour. “We ran out one day and there was uproar,” he said.

BBC London

With people staying home, many of London's iconic landmarks are deserted.

These photos were captured by BBC London online journalist Rebecca Cafe yesterday afternoon.

Hannah Richardson
BBC News education and social affairs reporter

Only a tiny fraction of vulnerable children in England are taking up the emergency school places kept open for them, official figures show.

This has prompted concerns "at risk" children are facing increased danger in the lockdown, while schools and teachers struggle to get hold of them.

Manorfield Primary School, external in Poplar, east London, has a high percentage of vulnerable children but only a tiny small fraction of these are coming to the school.

Head teacher Paul Jackson said: "I've had a senior teacher calling the families of children at risk.

"If they can't raise anyone, we trawl through the emails. If that doesn't work, we are carrying out home visits.

"We are trying every means to contact them, and working through the process to refer those we can't get hold of on to social services to see if they're safe."