Gavin Williamson says the curriculum in place in England's schools will not be "watered down" and subjects will not be reduced. If schools are not delivering, they will be marked down by Ofsted, which inspects schools and colleges, he adds.

Asked why pubs are opening this weekend, while not all school places will open until September, Mr Williamson says education is important but it hasn't been able to bring all pupils back at this stage.

Reality Check

Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said: "We’ve been rolling out over 200,000 laptops for children from the most disadvantaged backgrounds."

In April the government announced it would provide free laptops, tablets and 4G wireless routers to enable disadvantaged children to access remote learning during the coronavirus pandemic.

The devices are available for care leavers, children with a social worker and disadvantaged Year 10 pupils.

On 9 June, Education Secretary Gavin Williamson told the House of Commons that 230,000 computers would be given out under the scheme by the end of the month.

The latest update , externalon the scheme, released by the Department for Education on Wednesday, showed that as of 30 June 202,212 laptops and tablets had been delivered along with 47,416 4G wireless routers.

Almost a quarter of laptops and tablets were delivered or dispatched in the last week meaning that many children have waited two and a half months from the announcement of the scheme to receive them.

The "cautious, careful, phased return" of pupils so far has succeeded and leaves England's schools in a position to welcome more back in September, Gavin Williamson says. The creation of safe environments will happen for all pupils, he adds.

Jenny Harries, deputy chief medical officer for England, says "a lot" is now known about transmission of coronavirus among children. There are "principles of control", including social distancing, that apply in schools and all other environments, she adds.

Williamson is asked about the disruption to schools that could be caused by localised lockdown measures.

He says the government recognises the "continuity of education" and the value of a return to face-to-face learning.

He says it would be "misleading" to imply schools played "any kind of role" in the spike in Leicester.

Jenny Harries, deputy chief medical officer for England, says guidance on schools will also cover areas such as transport.

It will cover areas such as for parents to "control their teenagers outside coming in".

There's a question about access to online learning for children, particularly during local lockdown.

Williamson says the government has already given out 200,000 laptops to the most disadvantaged children.

He says ministers are looking to build on online resources offered to children already.

Asked about out-of-school clubs, Gavin Williamson says they are "vital" and that's why guidance for schools on making them available is being issued.

He adds that he wants them to open alongside the "full opening" of schools from September.

Exams will get back to normal next summer as far as possible, Gavin Williamson says. And attendance at school will be mandatory once again from September.

Williamson says he's confident schools will be in the "best possible position" to recover.

The government is following the "best scientific advice" on how to get children back in school, Williamson says. With infection rates falling, safety bubbles can be relaxed in early-years settings, he adds.

Schools are being asked to make sure they minimise contacts between pupils, Williamson says. Ideas include staggering classes and ensuring limited contact in corridors, he adds.

Distancing and bubbles may be more challenging in schools where many pupils have special educational needs, he says.

The briefing is under way. Education Secretary Gavin Williamson says getting children in England back to school is a "vital part" of national recovery.

More parents are being "reassured" by safety measures being put in place he adds, saying 1.6 million children are back in schools.

We're expecting Education Secretary Gavin Williamson to get this afternoon’s Downing Street press conference under way very shortly.

You can watch the briefing by clicking the video link above, and we’ll be bringing you the latest updates here.

Image source, Getty Images

Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernandez is to be discharged from hospital after falling ill with coronavirus.

President Hernandez needed oxygen after being hospitalised with Covid-19 last month.

But now his doctors have seen enough improvement for him to return home.

"Over the last few days he has gradually presented clear improvement in his general condition, with a decrease in respiratory symptoms and a significant decrease in inflammation," said Alicia Jimenez, a doctor at the military hospital where Hernandez was being treated.

Image source, Reuters

It’s been over a week since a UK minister gave a press conference in Downing Street – after daily briefings ended on 23 June.

But for the first time since then, we’re expecting Education Secretary Gavin Williamson to take to the podium at 17.00 BST.

It comes after the government published its safety plans for getting all children back to school in England in September.

He’ll be speaking alongside Jenny Harries, England’s deputy chief medical officer.

Image source, Getty Images

More than 70,000 people have now tested positive for coronavirus in Sweden, while the death toll stands at 5,411.

Forty-one more people died in the last 24 hours, health agency statistics show.

Sweden's response to the pandemic has been very different to other European countries. There has been no lockdown, with schools and cafes staying open, but large gatherings have been banned and most Swedes observe social distancing.

But the country has seen a far higher mortality rate than its nearest neighbours that imposed strict lockdowns. Denmark has registered 606 deaths, Finland 328 and Norway 251.

Sweden's controversial decision not to impose a strict lockdown led to too many deaths, the man behind the policy, Anders Tegnell, acknowledged last month.

Image source, Reuters

Fans will be allowed to attend the French Open when it begins in September, the French Tennis Federation has said.

A statement published on the tournament's website (in French), external said ticket sales would begin from 9 July. The reservations would remain flexible, with ticket seats only confirmed to buyers in mid-September.

Up to four people will be allowed to sit together, with one seat left free between each group, up to a total of 50-60% of the normal capacity. According to the AFP news agency, this represents up to 20,000 people on each day of the tournament, which runs from 27 September until 11 October.

More tickets may be released closer to the time if the public health situation permits, the tournament said, while some of the original tickets may be reimbursed if the situation deteriorates.

Almost 30,000 people have died with coronavirus in France, and there have been more than 200,000 confirmed cases, according to Johns Hopkins University.

Image source, Getty Images

US President Donald Trump is planning to go ahead with an Independence Day celebration at Mt Rushmore in South Dakota on Friday, despite warnings from public health officials and environmental and tribal leaders.

The event will not feature social distancing, and will be open to more than 7,000 attendees, the South Dakota governor said.

National Park officials have also warned that the event's pyrotechnics display could spark a brushfire due to dry conditions.

Ben Hunte
LGBT correspondent

There has been a significant rise during lockdown in the UK in the number of LGBT people seeking suicide-prevention support.

Support group LGBT Hero reports 11,000 people have accessed its suicide-prevention web pages - up over 44% on the first three months of the year.

And other LGBT charities have service users who have killed themselves.

The government considers LGBT people to be at higher risk of suicide but no national data on LGBT suicides is kept.

Image source, Reuters

Africa has lost an estimated $55bn (£43bn) in travel and tourism over the last three months due to the coronavirus pandemic, a commissioner for the African Union has said.

Amani Abou-Zeid told an online news conference that the sector was worth almost 10% of the continent's GDP and that millions of people's livelihoods depended on it.

Continued coronavirus measures mean some airlines may not survive, she added.

In March, the World Travel and Tourism Council predicted that up to 50 million jobs could be at risk globally because of the pandemic. A number of airlines across the world have since announced job cuts and even bankruptcy protection.

Kerry Allen
BBC Monitoring, Chinese Media Analyst

There are fresh concerns in China that, as a result of new, strict guidelines, many students may find themselves unable to sit their final year high school exams.

The Ministry of Education announced that students sitting the annual Gaokao - China's version of A-Levels - will be denied entry to their examination room if they have a temperature of higher than 37.3 degrees Celsius. The exams take place nationwide on 7-8 July.

At many academic institutes, special quarantine rooms will be available to isolate a maximum of four students (in different corners of the room), but in Beijing, which is still high-risk for the virus, students will not be able to sit their exams.

Image source, Getty Images

The decision by the ministry has sparked fierce debate. Many say that the temperatures should be increased, factoring in student stress, and the local climate. Many areas of China experience temperatures in the high 30s this time of year, with temperatures of around 35 are expected in Beijing – in the north of the country - alone.

More than 10 million students will sit these exams next week, and official media call it “the largest organised gathering event in China since the start of the Covid-19 outbreak”.

Samira Hussain
New York business correspondent

American firms continue to hire workers, for a second straight month in a row. Many of the job gains were in the manufacturing, hospitality and retail sectors.

President Donald Trump has celebrated a government reportshowing the country gained 4.8 million jobs last month.

"Today's announcement proves that our economy is roaringback," Trump said. "These are historic numbers."

But many economists say this may not tell the entire story. The data was collected BEFORE the United States saw a surge in coronavirus cases.

For the fifth time in little more than a week, America recorded another single day record for positive cases of the virus. Layoffs could accelerate again as some US states have started ordering businesses to close their doors once more.

At the same time, another 1.4 million Americans filed for unemployment benefits in the last week, more than the week before.

These weekly jobless claims are the most up to date information on the labour market. The increase in weekly claims show the pandemic continues to put pressure on the American economy.

Let us introduce you now to the lovely Betty Paddon.

At the age of 102, she has been having a boogie to TikTok dances after workers at her Plymouth care home in England introduced residents to the social media app.

The staff at Abbeyfield Tamar House have been making TikTok videos during lockdown to boost morale and show the residents how social media works.

Betty is "very young at heart", said Francesca Fletcher, the registered care manager, explaining that she likes learning the new moves and watching herself back on the videos as they make her laugh.

Go Betty!