Environment Minister George Eustice has said it is time to "move on" from the row over the UK prime minister's chief aide's travel during lockdown.

Echoing other Conservative government ministers, Eustice told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that Dominic Cummings had dealt with the issue "comprehensively" on Monday, when the aide defended driving 260 miles from his home in London to County Durham, then taking a second trip to Barnard Castle with his wife and son.

However, when asked how many emails he had received from constituents concerned about Cummings' actions, Eustice admitted he'd probably had "well over a hundred".

“That I think is inevitable when you have a big media story that runs for several days," he said.

Image source, Reuters

This year's British and Australian MotoGP races have been cancelled because of coronavirus, organisers said on Friday.

The British Grand Prix had been scheduled for Silverstone on 30 August while the Australian round had been due to take place at Phillip Island on 25 October.

"We’re saddened to have to announce the cancellation of these iconic events after finding no way through the logistical and operational issues resulting from the pandemic and rearranged calendar," Carmelo Ezpeleta, chief executive of the commercial rights holder Dorna, said in a statement., external

Image source, Getty Images

The National Trust is to reopen some gardens and parklands in England and Northern Ireland from 3 June.

Twenty-nine sites are due to open to people with pre-booked tickets, with more to follow in the coming weeks.

But only around a third of the usual number of visitors will be permitted in order to maintain social distancing.

All properties and car parks in Wales will remain closed, however, in line with Welsh lockdown rules.

You can find the full list of sites that are scheduled to reopen here., external

Image source, Geoff Adams-Spink

Many disabled people face difficulties adapting their routines to stay safe during the coronavirus pandemic.

How do you deal with coronavirus when you use your mouth for simple tasks, instead of your hands?

Thalidomide Society chairman Geoff Adams-Spink says some thalidomide survivors have been left perplexed after realising how often they use their mouths and feet for tasks.

• Click here to read Geoff's full story

Maddy Savage
BBC News, Stockholm

Image source, AFP

Professional sports matches have been given the go ahead to take place in Sweden without spectators from 14 June.

Elite athletes of all levels will be able to compete. They will be allowed to travel to different parts of the country for competitions and training, as long as they are symptom-free.

Sweden currently bans gatherings of 50 people and has issued general guidelines against travelling more than one to two hours from home.

However, Sweden’s Minister for Culture and Sport, Amanda Lind, told a news conference that the decision shouldn’t be seen as “us rolling back the recommendations”.

The director of Sweden’s Public Health Agency, Johan Carlson, said that he expected the current ban on large public gatherings to remain in place throughout the summer, indicating that sports fans will have to wait some time before they can attend matches.

The World Health Organization's special envoy for Covid-19 was asked about whether those in the shielded category, who are particularly vulnerable to the virus, will have to wait until there is a vaccine until they can leave the house.

Dr Nabarro said he was in the shielded category himself and wanted to be able to see his family.

"I think people will have to make their own choices about the level of risk they want to take," he said.

“I just hope that over time we ourselves will be given the responsibility for making choices, guided by a series of really clear, not so much rules, but sort of directives on what best we can do."

Coronavirus "has not gone away", and as people's movements increase we have to be prepared "for new outbreaks to build up very quickly", the World Health Organization's special envoy for Covid-19 has said.

Dr David Nabarro told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that as lockdown restrictions are eased, people will have to continue to practice physical distancing as much as they can, and isolate straight away if they get ill.

Orla Guerin
BBC News, Istanbul

Image source, EPA

Covid-19 came late to Turkey - on 11 March - but soon spread to every corner of the country. Within a month, all 81 provinces had been affected.

Turkey's became one of the fastest growing outbreaks in the world - worse than China or the UK. There were fears that the death toll would soar, turning Turkey into another Italy, which was then the hardest hit country.

But three months on, that hasn't happened, even without a total lockdown.

The official death toll is 4,397. Some doctors here dispute that, claiming the real figure could be twice as high because Turkey only includes those who test positive. Either way, in the annals of the Covid-19 era, it's a relatively low number for a population of 83 million.

• Click here to read Orla's full story on the virus in Turkey

Caitlin Henderson was working for a spider exhibition when the coronavirus pandemic hit.

The venue closed, and suddenly she was living in lockdown with 70 spiders in her bedroom.

Laura Bicker
BBC News, Seoul

Image source, Getty Images

A cluster of new outbreaks in the South Korean capital Seoul has worried officials because the cases are popping up in densely-populated areas of the city.

The authorities say this coming weekend is a critical moment to prevent further infection. They have called for a stricter social distancing campaign over the next two weeks.

Public parks and museums will be closed both in Seoul and in surrounding cities. Businesses are being urged to encourage more flexible working, and people are once again being asked to avoid mass gatherings.

It comes after hundreds of school were forced to close as a result of the new outbreaks, just days after they reopened to millions of children.

The emotional plea from officials is: "Comply, for the sake of our children’s education."

Schools in South Korea are reopening in phases - but only where there are no coronavirus infections. More than 250 schools that did reopen had to close this week because of a nearby cluster of infections.

And in schools that are open, things are not back to normal. BBC correspondent Laura Bicker joined some returning pupils.

From Monday, groups of up to six people from different households will be able to meet outside in England, as the lockdown begins to ease across the UK.

Appearing on BBC Breakfast, Environment Minister George Eustice was asked about concerns that it was too soon to take the step and could lead to more cases.

Eustice said the government's objective was to keep the R number - the number of people that one infected person will pass the virus on to - below one. If the R number is higher than one, then the number of cases increases exponentially.

He said the R rate was currently "close to one and that's why we are being very cautious in the steps we are taking".

He said that the risk of transmission outdoors was "much lower" than indoors and you have to be in close contact - at a distance of less than two metres for more than around 15 minutes - for there to be a likelihood of transmission.

if you're just joining our live coverage, good morning. Here are the latest coronavirus headlines from around the world:

• Hundreds of schools in South Korea have closed due to a spike in infections, just days after they reopened to millions of children. Most of the new cases are in Seoul. It comes after officials reported the highest daily rise in new infections in more than two months
• Brazil, which is at the centre of the Latin American outbreak, has also reported a surge in new cases. It said a record number of infections - more than 26,400 - had been confirmed over the past 24 hours
• In Lebanon, the security forces will begin issuing fines to anyone caught in public without a face mask. Passengers on public transport risk a fine of around $16 (£13) if they do not wear one
• Croatia, which has been quick to limit the spread of the virus, reopened its borders to 10 European Union countries, including Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic. It is hoping to salvage its vital tourism sector
• The number of Americans filing new unemployment benefit claims last week was more than two million for the 10th week in a row, bringing the recent total to a record 40m
• Nearly six million people have tested positive for coronavirus worldwide, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University. The global death toll has risen to more than 359,000.

Image source, PA Media

Four Premier League games will be broadcast, free to air, live on BBC Sport when the season resumes.

It is the first time since the league's inception in 1992 that games will be shown live by the BBC.

It was announced on Thursday that the league is set to restart on 17 June, subject to government approval.

"This opportunity creates an historic moment for the BBC and our audiences," the director of BBC Sport, Barbara Slater said.

As well as the four live games there will be additional Match of the Day highlights programmes.

A cluster of new outbreaks in the South Korean capital, Seoul, has been described as a "crisis situation" by health officials.

Most of the new infections are linked to a distribution centre in Bucheon, just west of the city. Traces of Covid-19 have been found on the shoes and clothes of workers at the centre.

At least 56 new cases of Covid-19 have been recorded in the last 24 hours, down from a two-month high yesterday of 79.

But the concern among health officials is that these infections are close to highly populated areas.

Image source, Jaguar Land Rover

British car manufacturing nearly came to a halt in April, down 99.7% on the same month last year.

It was the lowest output since the Second World War, according to industry body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).

Just 197 premium and luxury sports vehicles rolled off factory lines, with 45 of those sent to UK customers.

Instead, some plants rejigged to make 711,495 items of personal protective equipment for health workers.

The loss of 400,000 cars that would normally have been made is expected to cost the British car industry up to £12.5bn in revenues.

Labour has accused the government of not having a full test and trace system up and running by June as promised.

"We don’t have, for example, the local authority plans all around the country. And the app which was said to be so important is now being described as a cherry on top of the cake rather than something that’s central," shadow home secretary Nick Thomas-Symonds told BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

England's test and trace system launched on Thursday but a planned contact tracing app is not yet ready to be rolled out across the country.

Image source, EPA

It's been a fortnight since Prime Minister Scott Morrison gave the go-ahead to start easing Australia out of lockdown - and so far, things are going according to plan.

Health officials say the nation has only two patients on ventilators, is finding fewer than 20 infections per day from 30,000 tests, and "is in good shape" overall.

"We may see more cases as we relax restrictions but our aim is to make sure that outbreaks are small and controlled," said chief medical officer Dr Brendan Murphy.

With businesses open and public life slowly getting back to normal, there are concerns about public transport. Australia has never advised people to wear a mask in public (initially to protect supplies for health workers) - and says that advice will continue.

While people can wear them, there's no need, Dr Murphy said.

PM Morrison also reiterated interest in opening leisure travel with New Zealand in the near future - and said that travel could even occur sooner than that between Australian states.

Queensland, Western Australia and others have refused to open their borders - despite federal pressure.

Image source, Getty Images

Croatia has reopened its borders to 10 countries including many of its key tourism markets, such as Austria, Germany and the Czech Republic.

But any visitors will need to show a negative test for Covid-19 in order to enter.

Croatia has recorded around 100 deaths from coronavirus, and it responded quickly to the outbreak.

The Institute of Public Health published guidelines even before the arrival of a busload of tourists from Wuhan, China, in late January.

But the pandemic has hit the country’s vital tourism industry hard. Salvaging the summer tourism season is likely to be a top priority for the government.

People from the following countries will be permitted to enter without restrictions from Friday: Hungary, Austria, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Poland, and Germany.

Image source, Reuters

The UK lockdown is starting to be eased after more than two months of restrictions.

Decisions on relaxing the lockdown are the responsibility of each national government, so the new rules are slightly different in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

• From Monday in England, you will be able to meet up to six people from different households outside - either in parks or now also in private gardens - as long as you remain 2m (6ft) apart

• From today in Scotland, members of two different households will be allowed to meet up outdoors if maintaining social distancing. Groups cannot be bigger than eight, and people are "strongly recommended" not to meet more than one other household per day
• In Wales, the BBC understands that people from two different households will be able to meet each other outdoors from Monday
• Groups of four to six people who are not in the same household can meet outdoors in Northern Ireland, although outdoor weddings with 10 people present may be allowed from 8 June

Read our explainer to find out more about the new rules.