Today's press briefing is due to start in roughly 15 minutes - its start is being slightly delayed to avoid a clash with a commemorative Red Arrows fly past.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock and test and trace lead Dido Harding are likely to face some tough questions about a further delay to a proposed phone app.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson first promised the "world beating" app would be rolled out on 1 June, but it's still being tested in just one area of the UK - the Isle of Wight.

And today came news of a major U-turn - the UK is ditching the way its current app works and shifting to a model based on technology provided by Apple and Google.

This means epidemiologists will have access to less data. And the app won't be ready until the autumn - when it may only be able to "track" but not "trace" new cases.

Read more on the change here.

Image source, Getty Images

Star footballer Marcus Rashford's efforts to ensure children don't go hungry during the coronavirus pandemic are "more important than any game of football he could play", Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has said.

A highly personal campaign by the England and United player - including an open letter to MPs about his own experience of relying on free school meals - prompted the government to extend its food voucher scheme in England over the summer, to the benefit of about 1.3 million children.

"He has changed the lives of so many kids this summer," said Solskjaer.

He called the 22-year-old a "top human being" who had used his position as a "role model" at the club to help people.

"We're really proud of him and his family must be so proud of what he has achieved.

"He is a future leader, a future captain, maybe, of England, Manchester United, who knows?"

Image source, Reuters

Earlier Scotland announced a further easing of its lockdown and now some changes are also being made to the lockdown in Northern Ireland.

From 6 July, hairdressers and barbers in NI will be allowed to reopen.

And the social distancing required between children and young people will be reduced to 1m within the education sector.

This is the first significant change on social distancing within the UK.

However, the current guidelines of 2m (6ft) distancing will remain in place for adults.

Read the latest from NI here.

Image source, Getty Images

On Thursday, Russia's health watchdog said there had been a huge rise in the number of medics who had died. The statement appeared to be based on a list of deaths compiled by an independent website, which put the death toll at 489, up from the official figure of 101 on 26 May.

But comparing this figure to other hard-hit countries is tricky as the most recent statistics are not always available. Official numbers also differ to tallies kept by media outlets or medical associations.

In the UK, at least 300 health workers are believed to have died by early June, according to the Doctors' Association UK. , externalIn April we reported the stories of 100 NHS staff who lost their lives.

In Italy, 168 doctors have died, external, according to a list published by the National Federation of Surgeons in June. A medical journal estimated that 40 nurses there had also died, external by the end of April.

And official statistics in Spain say 53 health workers have died,, external while a medical association says the toll at the beginning of May was 76., external

Overall the total number of deaths in Russia's two largest cities, Moscow and St Petersburg, was 30% higher than average in April and May, with about 9,100 more people dying than usual. See how this compares to excess mortality in other countries in our report.

Image source, Getty Images

Many major airlines have begun to cancel or cut back on the service of alcohol and other drinks during flights in an effort to keep the coronavirus from spreading.

One way the virus spreads is through points of contact with contaminated surfaces, meaning it could be transmitted through straws, cups and liquid containers.

In the US, Delta is only serving bottled water. American Airlines is only offering alcohol on international flights.

Virgin Atlantic and Virgin Australia are currently not offering alcohol, nor are KLM, British Airways or Easyjet.

BBC OS

In China's capital, millions of people are living under renewed restrictions after an increase of coronavirus cases, thought to have originated in a large food market.

Two residents of Beijing have been giving their reactions.

Image source, Fan Yingxiong

Fan Yingxiong lives in Haidian in central Beijing.

"We knew the virus would return in some way, shape or form," he says. "But we had so much excitement going back to normal life so it's a disappointment."

He's concerned about how other countries will deal with renewed outbreaks.

"Many places are still trying to just deal with their first waves. So a lot of the world has no second or third wave plans."

Image source, Richard Parsley

Richard Parsley also lives in central Beijing.

"We knew [a second wave] was going to happen one day but it came sooner than we expected. I was planning to take a trip later this week and it's been cancelled, so it's disappointing," says Richard.

"I was shocked seeing restaurants and roads all empty. And this is not what the government dictated. People are taking precautions on their own."

The daily government press conference is due to start in about an hour.

It's being led by Health Secretary Matt Hancock and Baroness Dido Harding, who's leading the UK's track and trace systems.

With news today that the government has U-turned on its plans for a track and trace phone app - a change in design will see the app's roll-out delayed from this month to the autumn - expect some tough questioning for both Mr Hancock and Baroness Harding.

In the UK, a further 135 people have died with coronavirus, according to figures released by the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC), bringing the total number of virus deaths to 42,288.

In the 24-hour period up to 09:00 on Thursday, 136,516 tests were carried out or dispatched, with 1,218 positive results.

Overall, a total of 7,259,555 tests have been carried out and 300,469 cases have been confirmed positive.

Since March, Americans have deferred payment or sought relief on more than 100 million student loans, auto loans and other forms of debt, credit-reporting firm TransUnion tells the Wall Street Journal.

As of May, 106 million accounts were "enrolled in deferment, forbearance or some other type of relief," the Journal reports.

Student loans make up the majority of the total, with 79 million accounts seeking relief.

Car and personal loan payment deferrals also doubled in a one-month period.

Laurence Peter
BBC News, Europe desk

Image source, Reuters

German Chancellor Angela Merkel is trying to rally the rest of the EU to back a huge recovery fund, faced with the severe economic impact of the coronavirus crisis.

EU leaders are to begin tough negotiations on Friday in a video summit, but already there are concerns about countries getting even deeper into debt.

The EU Commission is proposing a €750bn (£676bn; $843bn) fund, made up of €500bn in grants and €250bn in loans. But it requires unanimous EU approval.

Most of the aid would go to countries hardest hit by the coronavirus crisis, notably Italy and Spain. It would be added to the planned €1.1 trillion seven-year EU budget, not yet agreed.

Merkel and France’s President Emmanuel Macron strongly back the controversial plan for €500bn in grants. But grants, unlike loans, would mean taking on shared debt – something Germany previously opposed doing.

The Netherlands, Denmark, Sweden and Austria, nicknamed the “frugals”, want a smaller aid total, and only in the form of loans. Others, especially Italy, argue that solidarity is needed now, to keep the single market working and stop the EU fragmenting.

Around 2.5 million people in the UK were contacted in March telling them not to leave their homes - or 'shield' - because they were medically most at risk from Covid-19.

Now, hundreds of people have backed Natasha Howard's campaign to introduce a "shielding hour" - when people who aren't shielding stay indoors so those who are can leave their homes without the risk of coming close to someone with the virus.

The current advice on shielding is due to expire in England and Northern Ireland on 30 June; in Scotland on 31 July and in Wales on 16 August.

The Department for Health and Social Care says it is "looking to make life easier" for those who are shielding.

Image source, Gett

The Bank of England has said the outlook for the UK economy remains "unusually uncertain", after it decided to inject a further £100bn into the financial system.

It's Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) said there was a high risk of "higher and more persistent unemployment" in the months ahead.

It also expects to see "precautionary behaviour" from consumers and businesses, despite lockdown measures being eased.

However, the MPC said it had begun to see a pick up in activity after a record 20% contraction in the economy in April - and there was evidence that the overall hit to the economy would be "less severe" than initially feared.

Image source, Google

A chicken processing plant in North Wales has suspended production and closed for a fortnight after a coronavirus outbreak.

Public Health Wales said there were 51 confirmed Covid-19 cases at 2 Sisters in Llangefni on Anglesey, with 110 people said to be self-isolating - about a quarter of the 500-strong workforce.

The company produces from a number of sites about a third of all the poultry products eaten each day in the UK. It said it was temporarily shutting down the Llangefni unit to "demonstrate how seriously we take this issue".

2 Sisters Food Group is one of the largest food producers in the UK, with brands including Fox's Biscuits and Holland's Pies.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething said the outbreak was a "concern".

The US is still on a downward trend on new jobless claims, but that still meant another 1.5 million registered for unemployment benefits for the first time last week.

Over 45 million have filed such claims in the past three months, peaking with 6.6 million in the week ending 4 April.

More businesses are opening up as the economy tries to recover with the aid of the $2tn £1.7tn) stimulus package passed in March.

Jobless numbers remain at historic highs. Before the pandemic, the record number of claims for one week was 695,000, reported in October 1982.

Image source, Reuters

Peru is now the second-worst hit country in Latin America with the number of new infections continuing to rise.

In the Cathedral of Lima, photographs of the victims are lining the walls to commemorate them.

The virus has brought tourism to a standstill. Here, officials are contemplating the new health protocols for Machu Picchu which is set to reopen on 1 July.

Image source, AFP

Image source, AFP

Peru now has more than 240,000 infections and around 7,000 deaths have been attributed to Covid-19.

Kerry Allen
BBC Monitoring, Chinese Media Analyst

Papers in Beijing are warning people that the number of cases of Covid-19 is “likely to increase” over the next few days and are encouraging people not to leave the city.

But authorities are desperate to avoid a lockdown similar to the one the original Chinese epicentre Wuhan experienced in January. Police spokesman Pan Xuhong told media the city had “taken decisive measures to strictly manage Beijing’s outbreak”, by locking down medium and high-risk communities - but “that does not mean the city is closed”.

People who have the virus, are close contacts with people who do, or those who are feverish, have been told they must not leave the city. The same applies to those who have visited the Xinfadi wholesale market since 30 May – the site where the latest outbreak is believed to have originated.

However, most people have already been given strict instructions not to even leave their homes since the city announced its return to "war-time status" on Tuesday.

Since 11 June, 158 people have tested positive for Covid-19 in Beijing - 21 of them in the past 24 hours.

Wuhan’s strict 76-day lockdown had a devastating impact on the local economy.

As we know, French President Emmanuel Macron is visiting the UK today to commemorate the 80th anniversary of wartime leader Charles de Gaulle's BBC broadcast to occupied France after the 1940 Nazi invasion.

The Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall welcomed Macron to their official London home, Clarence House, with all three remaining two metres apart in line with social distancing guidelines and greeting each other with namaste gestures.

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, PA Media

Image source, Getty Images

A 13-day-old baby is among the latest to have died after testing positive for coronavirus.

The four nations of the UK have published their latest death figures.

The NHS in England said a further 62 deaths had been reported, including the baby.

In Wales, a further five people died, while there have been two more deaths in Scotland. Northern Ireland reported no new deaths.

While this adds up to a total number of new coronavirus deaths of 69 across the UK, the UK government has not yet published its official figures, external today. Its total often varies because of differences in the time frame for recording deaths.

The UK currently has the third-highest number of recorded coronavirus deaths. Only the United States and Brazil have had more, and both countries have far bigger populations.

But while the UK has been hit hard, just comparing Covid-19 deaths doesn't give the full picture as countries have different ways of recording deaths.

Scientists and ministers say it's better to look at total deaths, even the ones that aren't caused by coronavirus, to see how many extra people died above the normal amount. So, the BBC did.

We found that by any measure, the UK consistently appears in an unhappy club of countries hardest hit so far. This group also includes Italy, Spain and Belgium who have also seen at least a third more deaths than they would have expected.

There's lots more to read here about how the UK compares.

Image source, Getty Images

In the face of a deteriorating economic situation, South Africa's President Cyril Ramaphosa has opted to ease lockdown restrictions further, although coronavirus cases are rising rapidly.

In the past week alone, the number has increased by 37%, and the president has warned that the epidemic will remain for "many more months, possibly years".

But in a frank address, Ramaphosa highlighted the need to preserve livelihoods.

Sit-down restaurants, casinos, hotels and hair-dressers, among other businesses, will now be able to reopen. It could see half a million people going back to work.

Since its outbreak began, South Africa has reported more than 80,000 cases of coronavirus and there have been 1,674 deaths.

Read more here.