30,076 people have now died in the UK with coronavirus, the government says
For the fourth consecutive day the government misses its 100,000 per day testing target
UK PM Boris Johnson vowed earlier to reach 200,000 lab tests a day by the end of May
In Germany, football will resume behind closed doors and small shops can open
President Trump says the White House coronavirus taskforce will continue its work "indefinitely"
Italy's prime minister is the latest European leader to talk hopefully of his citizens getting a summer holiday
Airbnb reports a jump in bookings from Europeans hoping to get a holiday after lockdown is eased
Worst song possible plays as Trump tours mask plant
As President Donald Trump touted plans to reopen the US economy at a mask factory in Phoenix, Arizona, Live And Let Die blared over a loudspeaker.
Matt Hancock said it was "just not possible" for Prof Ferguson to continue advising the government
Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said he was left "speechless" by Prof Neil Ferguson's breach of lockdown rules that led to his resignation from the UK government's scientific advisory body.
"It's extraordinary. I don't understand," he told Sky News.
He said Prof Ferguson, whose advice to the prime minister led to the UK lockdown, was right to resign from Sage, adding it was "just not possible" for him to continue advising the government.
"Prof Ferguson is a very eminent and impressive scientist and the science that he has done has been an important part of what we have listened to," he said.
The social distancing rules "are there for everyone, they are incredibly important and they are deadly serious", Hancock added.
Earlier we reported that Security Minister James Brokenshire said Prof Ferguson did the right thing in resigning.
Image source, ReutersA man holds a sign saying: "Bravo for saving lives" in Barcelona: Spain is one of the worst-hit countries by the virus
Spain's death toll rose by 244 in the last 24 hours, the first time since Saturday the number has risen above 200.
In total there have been 25,857 confirmed deaths from the virus, and the country has confirmed 220,325 cases - a rise of 996 compared to Tuesday.
Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez is asking parliament to extend the state of emergency for a few more weeks, telling lawmakers on Wednesday that "the goal is near" but "we are not there yet".
The Baltic states of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania have agreed to reopen borders to each other.
On Twitter, Latvia's Prime Minister Krisjanis Karins said freedom of movement for all citizens of the three countries would restart on 15 May after the "successful containment" of the virus.
Those arriving from elsewhere will however have to self-isolate for 14 days.
Allow Twitter content?
This article contains content provided by Twitter. We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. You may want to read Twitter’s cookie policy, external and privacy policy, external before accepting. To view this content choose ‘accept and continue’.
Sean Coughlan
BBC News, Education correspondent
In Denmark primary children are trying out the socially-distanced school day
Can reopening schools be safe - and who should go back first?
Denmark and Germany, where schools have already restarted, are attempting to answer these and other questions.
"There was anxiety in the community," says Dom Maher, head of the international section of St Josef's school in Roskilde, on the Danish island of Zealand.
But almost three weeks after re-opening, he thinks it has worked better than might have been expected.
Alex Pope
BBC News Online
Forget wearing the usual scrubs made from blue or raspberry coloured fabric - health workers at one UK hospital are rocking some new threads.
A number of scrubs have been donated from sewing groups and individuals from the eastern English counties of Cambridgeshire, Essex and Hertfordshire to staff at the Royal Papworth Hospital in Cambridge.
Image source, Royal Papworth HospitalThe outfits, ranging from Thomas the Tank Engine to exotic plant patterns, have been a "real hit with staff", a spokesman said.
"We're so grateful to everyone who has made them for our teams - they’ve made a huge difference and helped to keep us smiling."
Image source, Royal Papworth Hospital
Image source, Royal Papworth Hospital
Image source, PATheresa May said there was "little evidence" that politicians around the world were working together to fight the pandemic
Former UK Prime Minister Theresa May has criticised world leaders for failing "to forge a coherent international response" to fight the coronavirus pandemic.
In a letter to the Times, external she called on the government to "embrace its wider international role beyond the day to day of the pandemic" and not shy away from our "responsibilities on the world stage".
She said the virus had been "treated as a national issue for countries to deal with alone" and while researchers and scientists may work together, there was "little evidence of politicians doing so".
Mrs May said it was understandable that governments wanted to protect their own citizens first, but warned while there was not a collective international view on fighting the virus it risked "exacerbating the shift towards nationalism and absolutism in global politics".
Rob Cameron
BBC Prague Correspondent
Image source, EPAThe Czech Republic was one of the first European countries to introduce a lockdown
The Czech authorities say the results of a mass antibody study carried out on 23 April has revealed a tiny proportion of the population has so far been exposed to Covid-19.
Of 26,549 people tested in eight locations across the country, just 107 tested positive for antibodies in the serological test.
The authorities have not given a single nationwide result in percentage terms, rather a range for each testing location (Prague, Brno, Olomouc and several smaller towns). Nowhere does the number exceed 5%. In Prague, the figure was 1.48%.
As of Wednesday morning, the number of confirmed infections is 7,899. Some 295 people are in hospital. Some 4,017 have recovered, and 258 have died.
The Czech numbers are amongst the lowest in Europe, and the government says this is due to one of the first lockdowns introduced in the EU. The country is now slowly lifting restrictions, and is still reporting an R number of 0.7%.
Image source, Getty ImagesOcado has scrapped the restrictions on the number of items on sale introduced at the start of the lockdown
Customers have returned to "more normal" shopping habits after a huge increase in demand amid the coronavirus lockdown, says Ocado.
The online grocer said shoppers were putting fewer items in their baskets, and more fresh products.
Ocado, whose revenues in April were up more than 40% from a year earlier, said it had made changes to increase the delivery slots available, including suspending the delivery of mineral water.
"At the beginning of the outbreak demand increased significantly, almost overnight," the retailer said.
It initially limited the number of items on sale in order to stop customers from panic buying, but has since rolled these back as the number of items shoppers are putting in their baskets "appears to have passed its peak but remains high".
Image source, ReutersThe UK government is expected to announce plans to ease the lockdown in the coming days
The UK government has drawn up a three-stage plan to ease the coronavirus lockdown that was imposed at the end of March, The Times newspaper reports, external.
The government must review lockdown measures by Thursday but Prime Minister Boris Johnson has made it clear that he is worried about triggering a second spike in cases.
The first phase will involve small shops reopening alongside outdoor workplaces while the second will include large shopping centres reopening and more people encouraged to go to work, the newspaper said.
Entertainment venues such as pubs, hotels and leisure centres will be among the last to open.
Image source, ReutersRussia has reported more than 10,000 new Covid-19 cases in the past 24 hours
The number of new coronavirus cases in Russia has risen by more than 10,000 for the fourth consecutive day.
There were 10,559 cases recorded over the past 24 hours, bringing the total to 165,929, the coronavirus crisis response centre said on Wednesday.
It also reported 86 new deaths, bringing the country's total toll to 1,537.
Tessa Wong
BBC News
Image source, AFP/GettySome schools in China have made students wear face masks even while exercising
As more Chinese students go back to school, lots will be wearing masks as part of the new normal in China - though there have been complaints that it is not practical in some cases.
In recent days, Chinese mainstream and social media have been discussing the deaths of teenage students who allegedly collapsed while exercising in school and wearing face masks.
Reports have centred on two particular cases that apparently happened within days of each other: a 15-year-old boy who died during a physical education class in Henan province, and a 14-year-old boy who collapsed in Hunan province while running laps for a physical fitness test.
None of these cases have officially been linked to the use of face masks, and none of the families consented to post-mortem examinations. But in interviews with local media, the family of the Henan boy have insisted there is a connection between his death and the fact he was wearing a mask at that time.
As an indication of new anxieties arising in China, the cases have now become a talking point online with some criticising school authorities for forcing students to exercise with masks. Some regions in China are reportedly now adjusting the way they conduct physical fitness tests.
Experts quoted in Chinese media have said it is not a good idea to wear a mask while exercising strenuously as it could impede breathing, but have also pointed out that it is unlikely a mask could kill someone. "The students' deaths might have resulted from other underlying causes, like some other diseases," respiratory expert Zhang Shunan told the Global Times., external
There is also the fact that your health could deteriorate after spending several weeks on lockdown, even if you are a young and healthy person. Louie Hung-tak Lobo, an associate professor in physical education with Hong Kong Baptist University, told Apple Daily that students who had stopped exercising for some time would not be able to regain their fitness immediately, and recommended a period of three to four weeks of gradual fitness reconditioning.
Image source, Getty ImagesFans in South Korea have been replaced with placards
The baseball season began in South Korea on Tuesday... but things looked a little different.
With no fans allowed in the stadium, SK Wyverns' opening fixture against Hanwha Eagles was instead watched by a crowd of spectator cutouts.
All 10 teams in the league were in action, at five stadiums across the country, with a series of new protective measures in place to keep players, coaches and officials safe.
As well as the absence of fans, face masks are required, chewing tobacco in the dugout has been banned and the Korea Baseball Organization is reportedly screening players and coaches for fever before they enter the stadiums.
Image source, University of Pittsburgh School of MedicineA researcher who was said to be on the verge of making significant findings about the corinavirus has been shot to death in an apparent murder-suicide, US officials said.
Bing Liu, a researcher at the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine, was found dead at an address in Ross Township, north of Pittsburgh, on Saturday, the local medical examiner said.
Shortly afterwards police found the body of a second man, Hao Gu, in a car less than a mile away. Investigators told NBC they believed Hao Gu had killed Dr Liu and then died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Police said an investigation was under way.
In a statement on its website, external, the medical school described Dr Liu - who had studied at the National University of Singapore - as an "outstanding researcher" who had made unique contributions to science. It said Dr Liu "was on the verge of making very significant findings toward understanding the cellular mechanisms" behind the coronavirus, adding: "We will make an effort to complete what he started in an effort to pay homage to his scientific excellence."
Image source, ReutersGerman politicians discuss easing lockdown even further while Spain seeks to extend its state of emergency once again. Here is the latest from Europe:
Image source, Imperial College LondonProf Neil Ferguson resigned after the story was published
As we reported earlier government adviser Prof Neil Ferguson has resigned after admitting an "error in judgement" after the Daily Telegraph reported, external a woman, said to be his "married lover", visited his home in lockdown.
Security Minister James Brokenshire said Prof Ferguson, whose advice to the prime minister led to the UK lockdown, did the right thing in resigning.
"Prof Ferguson has obviously set out that he should have abided by the rules, that it was a lapse, an error of judgment and those rules on social distancing are very firmly still required," he told BBC Breakfast.
He added: "We have a range of experts who will continue to support ministers in making those right decisions but I'm obviously sad to see this development but ultimately Prof Ferguson, I think, has very firmly taken the right course of action."
Robin Brant
BBC News, Shanghai
Image source, Getty ImagesSeniors in a Wuhan school will have to undertake the Gaokao later this year
Some of Wuhan's students are going back to school, but it is not school as they know it.
A nucleic test to check they do not have Covid-19 was required before they were allowed back. Class numbers have been halved so pupils have space to sit apart from each other. Temperatures are being taken several times a day.
Conditions like this are being replicated across China as a staggered resumption of face-to-face teaching continues.
In Shanghai, staff and pupils at some returning schools have been ordered to wear masks, eat in pairs and only play sport that does not involve a transferable object like football. (All this as millions of commuters in the city mingle freely every workday close to each other on the metro system).
The return for high school students in Wuhan marks the end of a three and half month shutdown. It means no further disruption to the infamous university entrance exam known as the Gaokao, which was pushed back until early July.
But for younger school children there is no return in sight. It is likely millions under the age of 10 will not return at all in this school year.
Image source, AFPAirbnb has reportedly seen a jump in bookings from Europeans
As we reported earlier, some European leaders have been talking up the prospects for the summer holiday season. Many people seem to be thinking along the same lines - online holiday booking platform Airbnb has seen a jump in bookings from Europeans as they begin to plan their holidays after lockdown, according to the Financial Times, external.
Chief executive Brian Chesky told the paper there had been a surge in domestic bookings in Denmark and the Netherlands. Norway, Austria, Sweden and Switzerland have also seen some improvement in their domestic bookings, the company said.
"The recovery is better than what we had forecast even two weeks ago. Is it a temporary recovery? Is it a permanent recovery? Nobody knows," Chesky said.
Airbnb announced on Tuesday that it was to cut about 25% of its staff- some 1,900 people of its 7,500-strong workforce - due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Thomas Naadi
BBC News, Accra
Image source, AFPGhanaians have been asked to wear masks in public
Ghana has adopted "pool testing" of samples to maximise the use of coronavirus test kits that are in short supply globally.
It involves testing up to 10 samples in a single test. If any of the samples tests positive, then the entire batch is tested individually to identify the infected sample.
Scientists believe that the method is a valuable time saver in the fight against Covid-19 and has seen Ghana test more than 100,000 samples so far.
But it is only efficient while Ghana's infection rates remain low and the accuracy of the method has been disputed in some quarters.
"The limitations come in when the majority of the wells test positive in which case you have to rerun the majority of the pooled samples again and you lose the benefit of the efficiency of doing them concurrently," says Nana Kofi Quakyi, a research fellow at New York University’s School of Public Health.
Germany and India have adopted similar methods in testing for the virus - allowing them to expand their screening capacity and improve detection in communities.
Ghana's medical drones have being deployed to deliver Covid-19 samples directly to laboratories, the first country to do so in the world.
This enables authorities to identify and isolate infected persons quickly and contain the spread of the virus.
Dominic Hughes
Health correspondent
David interacts with his family through a window
It's been seven weeks since David Harris first developed Covid-19 symptoms.
At first, he began to feel better after a week or so. But then the symptoms returned. Then he got better, until they returned again.
He did not know if he had the virus but he chose to be safe rather than sorry - self-isolating in his room, eating and sleeping away from his wife and baby daughter.
"Probably one of the most stressful things is trying to work out at what point you ask for help," he says.
"You don't want to pester the NHS, because there are obviously people in much worse situations than me. But certainly, I didn't want to fall into the trap of not asking for help and then something bad happening because [of that]."
Read more about David and others who have been plagued by their symptoms.