Matt Hancock says antibody tests - which let people know if they've had the virus - will be "crucial" in understanding how the body reacts to it.

The results of a government study suggest around 17% of people in London and 5% in the rest of the country have tested positive for coronavirus antibodies.

The government has signed a contract to supply more than 10 million tests over the next few months, Mr Hancock adds.

Matt Hancock says a faster form of swab testing - telling people if they currently have coronavirus - is being trialled from today.

It could give a result in just 20 minutes.

People should stay at home "as much as possible", Matt Hancock says - adding that maintaining good hygiene is still "crucial" in the fight against coronavirus.

With the bank holiday weekend approaching in the UK, he called on people to "renew our efforts".

Matt Hancock says the Covid Alert Level is still at Level 4, but the country is "in a position" to start moving to Level 3 - which is less dangerous. "Real progress" is being made, he says.

Matt Hancock says the number of coronavirus tests carried out in the UK has now passed three million.

Matt Hancock says that, as it is Mental Health Awareness Week, he recognises the "uncertainty" coronavirus has caused for people.

Anyone finding the situation difficult should realise it's "normal" to "feel unhappy sometimes". He urges them to look for help if it's needed.

Mr Hancock says he's providing another £4.2m for mental health charities to help.

Health Secretary for England Matt Hancock kicks off today's Downing Street coronavirus briefing.

He's joined by Prof Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, and Prof John Newton, who's co-ordinating the UK's testing effort.

The UK government briefing is coming up soon.

While we wait, why not watch this lovely video of swimmers in Staffordshire enjoying the open water during lockdown?

It's sure to cheer you up.

The charge paid by overseas workers to use the NHS will be scrapped for health and care workers, the UK government has said.

The health immigration surcharge on non-EU migrants is £400 per year and set to rise to £624 in October.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson had been under pressure from some of his own MPs to scrap the charge for NHS workers.

Full details will be announced in the coming days.

The daily UK briefing, today led by Health Secretary Matt Hancock, is due in just under half an hour. We'll bring you all the updates here.

In the meantime, here's a round up of what's been happening so far today:

• A row has been brewing over the surcharge paid by non-EU nationals, including health workers, to use the National Health Service. Many MPs want it scrapped for health service staff and carers
• The government has reached a deal for the supply of antibody tests, which can detect if someone previously had the disease. NHS and care staff will be the first to get them
• NHS leaders have warned the UK is running out of time to avoid a second peak of cases by getting a track-and-trace system in place
• The Scottish government has published its roadmap for a phased lifting of lockdown measures

Nick Triggle
Health Correspondent

Antibody testing attracts huge attention.

But the UK government's deal with a large pharmaceutical company needs to be kept in context.

We still do not know how strong any antibody response is and therefore the potential for long-term immunity.

So the logic in offering it to health and care workers first is to help with that research.

They will not suddenly be casting aside their protective equipment at work.

Instead, officials will be keeping an eye on whether those who have antibodies are at lower risk of re-infection.

The test may also help with surveillance in time.

A large sample of the population could be tested to look for signs of antibodies.

One of the great unknowns is just how many people have been infected but have not developed symptoms.

If you're just joining us, in New York, Nice or Nairobi, or anywhere around the world, here are the global headlines:

• A surge in visitors to beaches in France, the Netherlands and England as lockdowns ease and temperatures rise has alarmed officials and experts

• A two-day-old baby has died with coronavirus in South Africa - one of the world's youngest victims of the virus
• Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg has defended what his company has done to combat virus misinformation in a BBC interview, saying it would remove any content likely to result in "immediate and imminent harm" to users

• Sicily's coronavirus co-ordinator and nine other healthcare officials have been arrested and accused of taking bribes
• US roads have become more lethal even though Americans are driving less due to quarantine and stay-at-home orders, a new report has found.

Image source, Getty Images

We're expecting the daily UK government press conference in just under an hour.

It's being led by Health Secretary Matt Hancock, who'll be joined by Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, and Prof John Newton, who co-ordinates the national testing effort.

Expect more details on the deal made by the government to acquire antibody tests, which say if someone has already had coronavirus, and questions about a surcharge paid by foreign users of the NHS, which has become a political hot topic.

Image source, Reuters

"You are the one man who is not allowed to fall apart right now", an excitable Julia Roberts told Dr Anthony Fauci, the top US infectious disease expert and a familiar face at President Donald Trump's regular briefings.

The American actress interviewed Fauci as part of a charity initiative by One Campaign, external to amplify the voices of medics and experts.

"There are very few experts in the world and you have emerged as a hero for me," Roberts told Fauci.

The doctor has become a minor celebrity in the US and was played by Brad Pitt on a Saturday Night Live sketch in April.

Fauci explained that last month he had been sleeping just three hours a night and was on the verge of "falling apart".

He said that physical separation had worked to an extent in addressing the US outbreak, which is the largest in the world.

"Now is not the time to tempt fate and pull back completely," he added.

He also said the US had a "moral responsibility" and a public health reason to include developing countries in vaccine trials to ensure they also worked globally.

And Fauci also said he might "plagiarise" Roberts when she suggested we need to accept "in a positive way" that normal will never return.

MPs in the UK have asked tech giants Google, Twitter and Facebook to return to Parliament to answer questions about their content and coronavirus misinformation.

Julian Knight, chairman of the Digital, Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee, said MPs had been "very disappointed" by the standard of evidence given by the three firms at their last meeting.

Only Facebook's head of global policy, Monica Bickert, has agreed to attend.

The committee has specifically requested the attendance of Google's Ronan Harris, managing director of UK & Ireland, and Dara Nasr, managing director of Twitter UK.

The committee wants clarity on a range of issues including:

• how Facebook deals with the spread of false narratives on WhatsApp

• how Twitter deals with influencers and celebrities in spreading misinformation such as 5G conspiracy theories

• concerns that YouTube allowed creators to effectively monetise the spread of misinformation through Super Chat revenue

Twitter recently introduced a labelling system for tweets that could potentially cause harm.

But its enforcement appears patchy, with some from 5G conspiracy theorists going unchallenged.

You can read more here

Image source, Twitter

BBC Radio 5 Live

This morning BBC Radio 5 Live asked listeners across the UK how the coronavirus pandemic was impacting on their university plans.

From students in the middle of a degree course, parents concerned about prospects and finances or a landlord who relies on student rent, listen back for a range of perspectives...

Image source, HEBRIDEAN AIR SERVICES

What do you do if you're a pilot with two hours to kill?

Well, if you're Yak Tuna, you fly your plane through the skies to create a 35-mile wide tribute to the UK's health service.

The 23-year-old traced the letters "NHS" over the Yorkshire Dales as he conducted a routine maintenance flight on Wednesday, with his tribute picked up by various flight tracking websites.

Mr Tuna, who works for Scotland-based Hebridean Air Services, was in Leeds as the aircraft he flies needed a new engine fitted.

The commercial pilot said he wanted to do the tribute to thank NHS staff for "their hard work and dedication".

He had organised his route on a flight plan app before taking off from Leeds Bradford Airport.

As parents hold their breath for news of when UK children might be returning to school, a Northern Ireland minister says some pupils may be back in their classrooms by late August.

Education minister Peter Weir said: "Subject to medical guidance and safety, it would be my aim to see a phased reopening of schools."

He said it would begin with "limited provision for key cohort years in August, followed by a phased provision for all pupils at the beginning of September".

He added pupils could expect a "new normal reflective of social distancing and a medically safe regime", with a mix of scheduled school attendance and home learning.

Schools in the UK have been closed since March. In England, some younger children could be back at school on 1 June, while in Scotland there will be no return until the new school year on 11 August. No date has been given for the reopening of schools in Wales.

In a week when Pakistan all but ended its two-month coronavirus lockdown,, external it seems the country is now facing another threat - locusts.

Khalid Jawed Khan, the country's attorney general, said an attack was imminent during a recent hearing of a coronavirus case headed by Chief Justice Gulzar Ahmed, the Dawn news website reports.

Khan said a large swarm of locusts would be migrating from Africa to Pakistan in the coming days and could damage crops.

East African countries have been severely affected by a second invasion of locusts in recent weeks.

The UN estimates the swarms could be up to 20 times bigger than during the first invasion - and they could become 400 times bigger by June.

Putting a mask on: it sounds simple, but in Covid times, it requires a little more care and attention.

Here's our one-minute video guide on how to wear yours.