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Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis has just issued a mandatory order to state residents requiring them to stay at home and only go out for "essential" needs.

It comes after he was criticised for not ordering a state-wide lockdown, even as more than 30 other US states did so.

There have been about 7,000 coronavirus cases in Florida, as well as 87 deaths.

It's one of the most instinctive things to do - and also something you absolutely shouldn't be doing right now. Here's why we love to touch our faces and how we can overcome that urge.

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New measures are being introduced in Russia, including a tracking app in Moscow and a limit on alcohol sales in some regions.

The app will track the movements of people in the capital diagnosed with coronavirus - who have been ordered to stay at home - and is being introduced on Thursday.

It will request access to users’ calls, location, camera, storage, network information and other data, and is designed to check that people do not leave their homes while contagious.

The move coincides with a separate initiative to help European health authorities create virus-tracing apps that communicate with each other.

Meanwhile, several regions are limiting the hours when people can buy alcohol - in southern Siberia you won't be able to purchase any after 15:00 while in Karelia sales will be banned after 14:00. In Yakutia alcohol sales are suspended altogether during the lockdown.

Moscow authorities have denied the capital could face similar restrictions.

Russia has reported 2,777 cases of coronavirus, with 440 new cases in the past 24 hours. Twenty four people have died.

In the US, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo has been quoting former British Prime Minister Winston Churchill as he briefs reporters:

"It's no use saying we are doing our best. You have to got to succeed in doing what is necessary".

He called the statement "a tad harsh, but it's true".

"We have to get this done, and we have to succeed. We have to find a way and we have got to make it happen," he added.

Mr Cuomo said his own brother was self-quarantining in his basement after finding out he was sick with coronavirus on Tuesday morning.

Chris Cuomo, a CNN host, did his show with his brother last night, where they had a hilariously awkward interview.

Bournemouth's Eddie Howe has become the first English Premier League manager to take a voluntary salary cut, following the suspension of the competition because of coronavirus fears.

A statement on the club website , externalsaid the chief executive Neill Blake, first team technical director Richard Hughes and assistant manager Jason Tindall had also all taken "significant, voluntary pay cuts". Other non-playing staff have also been affected.

Tottenham, Newcastle and Norwich had already announced they had furloughed their non-playing staff - although managers appeared to be exempt.

Bournemouth said: "Furloughed employees - all of whose roles have been affected by the closure of Vitality Stadium and the club’s other sites - will be on leave for a minimum of three weeks under the UK government's coronavirus job retention scheme, which is currently set to run until Sunday, 31 May."

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Nick Triggle
Health Correspondent

The number of questions about the lack of testing at the daily press conference came as no surprise.

The government has been heavily criticised for not increasing testing capacity more quickly.

Public Health England medical director Prof Yvonne Doyle said she was confident the UK would achieve the target of 25,000 tests a day by the end of the month.

There is some way to go - over the past 24 hours just shy of 10,000 tests have been done.The lack of tests means NHS staff have struggled to get tested, which has resulted in them having to self-isolate at home when members of their household show symptoms. News that there are going to be five drive-thru centres for staff will also help.

But it was interesting Professor Doyle was also asked by how much more testing can be increased by in the long-term.

If the number of cases does come down, testing will play a crucial role in allowing the lockdown to be eased. The plan would be to contain the virus by testing lots of people quickly. That will require the UK to be able to test hundreds of thousands of people a day.

Danny Shaw
BBC Home Affairs Correspondent

Transfers of prisoners between jails in England and Wales have been banned, unless there are "exceptional" circumstances.

The restrictions have been imposed by the Prison and Probation Service as part of emergency measures designed to limit the spread of coronavirus.

Newly arrived inmates remanded or sentenced by the courts will be, in effect, quarantined for 14 days - in a separate part of each prison.

The rules, seen by BBC News, also mean that inmates with symptoms of the virus will be held in "protective isolation" units for seven days.

Those assessed as susceptible to catching the disease are to be contained in a "shielding unit" (SU) in each jail for at least 12 weeks.

The number of prisoners who are confirmed to have Covid-19 has risen to 69 across 25 prisons, with around 1,200 believed to be self-isolating.

In the last hour we've been hearing form Business Secretary Alok Sharma and the medical director at Public Health England, Prof Yvonne Doyle.

Here are some of the key points from Wednesday's briefing:

• Mr Sharma said local authorities had now received £12bn ($15bn) to distribute in grants to struggling local businesses
• He warned banks that it would be "completely unacceptable" if they were to "unfairly" refuse emergency loans to "good businesses"
• On protective equipment for NHS staff, he said ministers would do "as much as we can" to ensure it gets to the front line
• On calls to increase testing, he said it was the "government's top priority" and that the UK could now carry out 10,000 tests a day
• Prof Doyle said a "relatively small" number of the tests had been carried out on frontline NHS staff
• But she said there was now capacity for 3,000 tests on frontline NHS staff a day - and that would increase when new drive-in centres open
• She added that British industry was committed to helping the UK overcome a shortage of chemicals used in creating tests
• And she urged people to stay at home after a "concerning" rise in car use

Back to the UK government briefing, and Business Secretary Alok Sharma said banks need to support firms and people "in their time of need" and "repay the favour" to UK taxpayers.

"We urge them to make sure the benefits of the loan scheme are passed through to businesses and consumers," he said.

Based on White House project models, the US appears to be on track to see a coronavirus impact similar to Italy's, says Vice-President Mike Pence

"We think Italy may be the most comparable area to the United States at this point for a variety of reasons,” Mr Pence told CNN on Wednesday.

If not for the mitigation measures already being implemented, millions of Americans would have died, rather than the 100,000 to 240,000 currently forecast, he says.

"Our message yesterday, our message over the next 30 days, is the future is in our hands,” says Mr Pence.

Europe’s recorded death toll officially topped 30,000 on Wednesday.

We've been bringing you the latest from the UK after the Downing Street briefing in the past hour, but here are the latest developments from elsewhere in the continent:

• The death toll in Italy rose to 13,155, up by 727 - about 100 fewer than the day before. The rate of infection rose slightly compared to Tuesday, but the broad trend over the last ten days suggests the spread of the virus may finally be slowing
• Spain however became the third country to confirm more than 100,000 cases, and reported 864 deaths -another record for a 24-hour period. It is the fifth day in a row in which more than 800 people have died
• Following talks with state leaders, Germany’s Chancellor Angela Merkel has extended the national anti-virus restrictions until at least 19 April, including over the Easter break. “A pandemic knows no holidays,” Ms Merkel said, as she warned people not to take trips or visit relatives
• And although Sweden’s schools, bars and restaurants remain open, the government is now ramping up its social distancing advice. People have been told to avoid large social gatherings and public transport at busy times. New rules are in place limiting the amount of prescription medicines people can get from pharmacies, to limit hoarding. You can read more about Sweden’s approach to the virus here

Back to the issue of testing for coronavirus in the UK - the subject of several questions from journalists at today's Downing Street briefing.

The government has made it "a lot harder" for the UK by choosing to delay the introduction of widespread testing and buying more ventilators, a GP and former MP says.

"For us to be arriving at the party a bit late in terms of widespread testing... I've not really followed the logic of that," Dr Phillip Lee said.

The former Lib Dem MP said the government should have reacted back in January when he says it knew that the illness was going to have a significant impact on lung function in some cases.

"It beggars belief that we didn't act quicker. We'd done an exercise, we knew we had these challenges."

Downing Street says the first batch of 30 new ventilators produced by a consortium of companies will be delivered this weekend, with "hundreds more" to follow in the coming weeks.

In a veiled criticism of Mr Trump’s self-described “optimism”, Mr Cuomo says he rejects "subjective interpretations” seeking to predict when the pandemic will end.

"I am interested in the facts first. Give me the facts un-jaded by your opinion,” he says.

Based on modelling provided by the Gates Foundation, he says the New York area could still see a high death rate occurring in July, and the pandemic could last through the summer.

To other regions around the US he warns: “Look at us today, see yourself tomorrow.”

New York City playgrounds would be closed to limit social contact, he added.

Image source, Getty Images

To New York now, which is the worst affected state in the US. Governor Andrew Cuomo is giving his daily briefing now.

So far he's announced that the number of deaths in the state has jumped to 1,941 from 1,550.

Mr Cuomo says more and more patients are being released from hospital after surviving the coronavirus, but warns that there is only a roughly 20% survival chance for anyone who is put on a ventilator.

The state is currently suffering a major shortage in ventilators as well as other important medical equipment.

Nearly 2,000 deaths have been reported in the wider New York City area, which includes parts of New Jersey and Connecticut, according to the New York Times.

Italy says it has seen a drop in the number of fatalities, raising hopes that the infection curve is starting to plateau.

At a daily news conference, officials said 727 had died on Tuesday, down from 812 the day before. It takes the total number of deaths to 13,155. There were 2,937 new infections.

Italy has recorded more deaths from coronavirus than any other country and the total number of infections stands at about 105,800.

Earlier, Italy announced that it was extending its lockdown, which was due to end on Friday, until 13 April. Italians have been subject to strict stay-at-home measures for the past three weeks.

The last question in today's UK press conference is about a lack of personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS workers, and whether staff are being put at risk.

Business Secretary Alok Sharma repeats that over 390 million pieces of equipment have been delivered.

He says ministers will do "as much as we can" to ensure equipment gets to the front line as fast as possible.

Prof Yvonne Doyle, medical director at Public Health England, also says they are working to make sure guidance on PPE is understood.

Image source, Reuters

The business secretary is now asked what the UK's "exit strategy" is for bringing the pandemic under control

Mr Sharma does not give a precise answer but says the current social distancing and lockdown measures must be kept in place as long as necessary so as to avoid a "dangerous second peak" in the virus next winter.

Yvonne Doyle says clinical decision-makers will continue to strive "to make the right call at the right time".

On mass testing in the community, Prof Doyle says the aim is to enable many more people to know whether they have had the virus or not but says the availability of kits is currently "limiting" progress.

Prof Yvonne Doyle, medical director at Public Health England, is asked about the shortages of reagents used to test for Covid-19.

She says the reagents that work best to test for the virus are those that work with the testing machines that they're intended for.

"That's the most efficient," she says. "But as the head of the industry has said, there is a global market in this."

She says industry is committed to working with the UK government to help meet demand.

Image source, AFP

There's a question on whether Public Health England has been "dragging its feet" in approving antibody tests, which will be able to tell people whether they have had the virus.

Prof Yvonne Doyle, medical director at the agency, says it is important that each test that is approved "does what it says it does".

We want to get antibody tests into use "as soon as we can", she adds.

Image source, AFP

Sky's Beth Rigby asks how many frontline NHS workers have been tested, how this is being scaled up and when the "reality is going to meet the government's rhetoric" on mass testing of members of the public.

In response Yvonne Doyle says a "relatively small" number of tests on NHS staff are happening at the moment but there is the capacity to do 3,000 tests a day.

This will increase when new drive-in centres open, she adds.

In terms of mass testing, she says the intention is to move up from "thousands of tests to hundreds of thousands" within weeks.