Summary

  • President Trump says US guidelines for social distancing extended for additional month

  • It could be six months before life returns to "normal", UK official says

  • A top US expert has warned that 100,000-200,000 Americans could die

  • More than 30,000 people have died worldwide

  • Spain has a new grim daily record of deaths - 838 in 24 hours

  1. Thanks for tuning inpublished at 00:26 British Summer Time 30 March 2020

    Thanks for tuning in to our live page today. We’re now wrapping up for the evening.

    Here’s some of the biggest developments from today.

    • More than 30,000 people have died worldwide from the virus.
    • Spain has recorded a new grim daily record of deaths with 838 in 24 hours.
    • In the UK, a further 209 people were confirmed to have died in the last 24 hours, raising the death toll to 1,228. Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that things would get worse before they get better.
    • England's Chief Medical Officer Dr Jenny Harries warned it could be six months before life "returns to normal".
    • Australia has tightened its restrictions on movement. Public gatherings are now limited to just two people. Playgrounds, outdoor gyms and parks will close from Monday.
    • Italy recorded 756 new deaths in the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 10,779.
    • France reported 292 new deaths from the coronavirus outbreak bringing its total to 2,606, according to AFP news agency.
    • In the US, President Donald Trump has extended the country's social distancing guidelines an additional month - to 30 April. He says that he expects the US to be well on the way to recovery by 1 June.

    You can read our main story on coronavirus here.

  2. Trump’s daily briefing: the key pointspublished at 00:22 British Summer Time 30 March 2020

    President Trump has wrapped up his daily press briefing on his administration’s coronavirus response.

    Here are some of the key points he outlined:

    • Social-distancing guidelines will be extended throughout the US to 30 April
    • Hydroxychloroquine, an anti-malaria drug Trump has claimed can treat coronavirus, is being administered to 1,100 patients in New York. “Let’s see how it works, we may have some incredible results,” he said
    • Project Airbridge, a White House initiative to speed up health supplies getting to hospitals, has begun with 130,000 specialist face masks arriving in the US from China
    • The peak of coronavirus deaths in the US is expected to happen "within two weeks"
    • The US “will be well on our way to recovery” by 1 June

    What is the latest in the US?

    • 122,653 infections and 2,112 deaths from the coronavirus in the US, according to the latest figures from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC)
    • Speaking to CNN, President Trump’s leading disease expert, Dr Anthony Fauci, predicted 100,000 to 200,000 Americans could die from coronavirus
    • Governors from states across the country, from New York to Washington, warned of dwindling medical supplies and pressure on hospitals
    • A baby boy in Chicago became the first infant to die from the coronavirus in the US
    Donald Trump speaking at a press conference outside the White HouseImage source, The White House
    Image caption,

    President Trump said "we’re unleashing every tool in our nation’s vast arsenal" to combat coronavirus

  3. Trump: State-by-state unravelling of measures abandonedpublished at 00:15 British Summer Time 30 March 2020

    Trump said the state-by-state application of social distancing, depending on how serious their outbreaks levels were, would not happen as his expert advisers "don't like that".

    Mr Trump had floated the idea earlier this week as a way of getting the US economy up and running again.

  4. Trump: 'I don't want high approval ratings' for virus responsepublished at 23:36 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    Taking questions from reporters, Trump says that he "doesn't want high approval ratings" for his response to the coronavirus outbreak.

    "I see numbers, they don’t matter to me," he says, adding that "victory" over the outbreak is what matters.

    Earlier on Sunday, Trump issued a series of tweets, quoting an article from the New York Times which called the president's daily briefings a "ratings hit" and compared its viewership to that of reality series The Bachelor.

  5. Trump extends social distancing until 30 Aprilpublished at 23:20 British Summer Time 29 March 2020
    Breaking

    Trump says that the national guidelines for social distancing will be extended for an additional month until 30 April.

    The initial 15-day guidance was set to expire tomorrow, on 30 March.

    "Social distancing, that's the way you win," he says, adding that the US "will be well on our way to recovery" by June. The president had previously said he wanted the US economy to re-open by Easter which falls on 12 April.

    Trump says the "peak" of recorded deaths in the US is likely to hit in two weeks.

    "Nothing would be worse than declaring victory before victory is won," he says. "That would be the greatest loss of all."

  6. Trump scolds 'hoarding' of medical suppliespublished at 23:06 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    Mr Trump alleges that some states and medical groups are "hoarding" ventilators and other critical medical supplies.

    "Many of the states are stocked up... some of them don't admit it," he said.

    He added that hospitals "can't hold them if they think there might be a problem weeks down the road".

  7. Trump announces expansion of rapid testingpublished at 22:58 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    President Trump says that a new test has been approved to get Covid-19 results within five minutes.

    "The deployment of rapid testing... will ultimately defeat the virus," he said from his daily White House briefing. "We will defeat the virus."

    He said an anti-viral drug was being administered to 1,100 patients in New York. “Let’s see how it works, we may have some incredible results," he said.

    Mr Trump then praised a new technology that Ohio Governor Mike DeWine says can sterilise used masks, before he discussed potential treatments.

    "The vaccines are moving along very rapidly. The vaccines are an answer," he said.

  8. Today's key developments in the UKpublished at 22:37 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    Media caption,

    Coronavirus: 'Back to normal' in up to 'three to six months'

    Here are some of the key developments in the UK today:

    • And more than 750,000 people have now signed up to help the NHS during the crisis - three times the number the government asked for
    • Meanwhile, Communities Secretary Robert Jenrick announced that the first 50,000 food parcels are to be delivered to the most vulnerable this week
  9. How to protect your mental healthpublished at 22:31 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    As we wait for President Trump's press conference, it's worth thinking about the wider impact of this news story.

    The coronavirus pandemic has plunged much of our everyday life into uncertainty, and it’s a stressful time for people all around the world for different reasons.

    If worrying about the virus is taking a toll on your mental health you can read some useful tips to support your wellbeing here.

  10. Trump news conference delayedpublished at 22:16 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    President Donald Trump was due to speak from the White House at 17:00 local time (22:00 BST) to give an update on the current Covid-19 situation in the US.

    That has reportedly been delayed by approximately 30 minutes.

  11. Fauci: Social distancing to be extendedpublished at 22:00 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    Dr Anthony Fauci looks on as US President Donald Trump speaks during the daily briefing on the novel coronavirus on 27 MarchImage source, Getty Images
    Image caption,

    Dr Anthony Fauci has predicted that "millions" of Americans will test positive for Covid-19

    The face of the US response to the coronavirus outbreak Dr Anthony Fauci said the White House virus task force would be examining its 15-day guidelines for social distancing, announced two weeks ago.

    The deadline will likely be extended, Dr Fauci told CNN on Sunday, depending on the availability of instant testing kits.

    "It’s going to be a matter of weeks. It’s not going to be tomorrow and it’s certainly not going to be next week," he said.

    Dr Fauci, director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, predicted that the US would see "millions of cases" and "between 100,000 and 200,000 deaths".

  12. Trump news conference happening soonpublished at 21:44 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    US President Donald Trump and the Coronavirus Task Force are about to hold a press briefing to discuss their response to the pandemic.

    Mr Trump and the team will appear at the White House at 17:00 local time (22:00 BST).

    We’ll keep you up to date with the latest developments.

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  13. Deliveroo to make free meals available to NHSpublished at 21:31 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    A Deliveroo courier in central LondonImage source, Getty Images

    The food delivery service Deliveroo says it will make half a million meals available to NHS staff for free during the coronavirus crisis.

    The London-based company has already received pledges of 350,000 free meals from partner restaurants to provide to frontline workers.

    Pizza Hut is offering 300,000 meals, while Itsu and Lewis Hamilton’s plant-based Neat Burger restaurant have also made donations.

    Meanwhile, a campaign to provide hospital staff with hot meals backed by actors Matt Lucas, Damian Lewis and Helen McCrory has received over £400,000 ($497,000).

    A similar campaign called Meals for the NHS has raised more than £250,000.

  14. Czech medical aid arrives in Spainpublished at 21:22 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    A Spanish Air Force plane carrying medical supplies donated by the Czech Republic has landed in Madrid.

    The aircraft, which touched down at Torrejón air base on Sunday, was stocked up with 10,000 protective medical suits and 90 respirators.

    The delivery was organised by Nato at the request of Spain, which has the second highest death toll from the virus in the world.

    Another delivery of a similar number of Czech medical suits will be made to Italy on Monday.

    Nato, a transatlantic military alliance, thanked the Czech Republic for its "generous bilateral aid", external, describing its contribution as "solidarity in action".

    Spain and Italy are the two worst-affected countries in Europe.

    A picture of medical aid being unloaded in MadridImage source, Nato
    Image caption,

    Nato said the medical aid would be distributed by Spanish authorities

  15. Pandemic and epidemic: What's the difference?published at 21:15 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    Covid-19 has been characterised as a pandemic by the World Health Organization (WHO), so you've probably heard that word used a lot.

    But how is that different from an epidemic?

    Dr Rosalind Eggo from the London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine looks at the difference.

    Media caption,

    Epidemic v pandemic: What's the difference?

  16. Pattern of cases across the UKpublished at 21:07 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    In the UK there are more than 19,000 confirmed cases of the coronavirus and at least 1,228 people who have tested positive have died.

    The virus was first confirmed in the UK at the end of January. Numbers are now increasing rapidly, and Sunday saw daily confirmed cases jump by more than 2,400 compared with the previous day.

    Cases in UK

    Most of the deaths in the UK have been in England, primarily in London. The capital has seen more than 400 fatalities so far.

    pattern of cases
    cases pattern
  17. 'I don't see any virus flying around!' - Belarus leaderpublished at 20:51 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    File photo of LukashenkoImage source, Getty Images

    Belarusian President Alexander Lukashenko has laughed off the suggestion that his country should try to stem the spread of the coronavirus, because he can't see the virus "flying around".

    Speaking to a TV reporter at an indoor ice hockey match, he also claimed that crowds at the match were fine because the coldness of the stadium would prevent the virus from spreading.

    There is no evidence that this could be the case and the coronavirus cannot be seen with the naked eye.

    Unlike most of Europe, Belarus has not placed any restrictions on sports events.

    "There are no viruses here," Mr Lukashenko said. "You haven't seen them flying around, have you? I don't see them either! This is a fridge. Sport, particularly the ice, this fridge here, that's the best antiviral cure!"

  18. UK PM: 20,000 staff to rejoin NHSpublished at 20:46 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    About 20,000 retired doctors and nurses are set to return to the NHS, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said.

    In a video posted on Twitter, Mr Johnson thanked them for responding to the government's appeal for them to return.

    Letters were sent to more than 65,000 retired NHS workers in England and Wales last week, asking them to come back.

    Mr Johnson is currently self-isolating at his home in Downing Street after testing positive for coronavirus.

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  19. Watch: How to make the most of your ingredientspublished at 20:31 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    Media caption,

    Jack Monroe says there's hope for the culinary clueless in these challenging times

    Food writer Jack Monroe has some tips on how to make the most of your store cupboard during the pandemic.

    She has some advice on expiry dates and what to do if you don't have all the right ingredients to hand.

    The author is well-known for making the most out of basic items. She says swapping around pulses and vegetables will still lead to delicious meals.

    For more tips, watch the video above.

  20. Nigeria's president orders lockdown of citiespublished at 20:19 British Summer Time 29 March 2020

    An isolation centre in LagosImage source, Reuters

    Nigeria’s President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered a lockdown of the capital Abuja and the country’s largest city Lagos.

    In a televised address to the nation, he ordered the “cessation of all movements” in the cities for two weeks from 10:00 GMT on 30 March.

    He said the measures would also apply to Ogun State.

    "All citizens in these areas are to stay in their homes," he said. "All businesses and offices in the area should be fully closed."

    He also said a special fund of $40 million had been set aside to help deal with the pandemic.

    Nigeria has 97 confirmed cases of the virus and one death.