Reality Check

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been talking about the government’s plans to drop quarantine requirements for travellers returning to England from a list of 59 countries and territories.

The change comes into effect from 10 July.

But there is no sign at the moment that these are all reciprocal arrangements. In fact, according to current advice from the Foreign Office, external, about half of the 59 have some kind of restriction on people coming from the UK.

This includes Japan, which will just not let you in at all, and Iceland, where you can either choose to pay for a test or go into quarantine. Cyprus is also on the list but you are not allowed to enter Cyprus if you have been in the UK in the last 14 days.

These restrictions may change. France, for example, has had a voluntary quarantine for UK travellers entering the country but it’s understood this will be lifted when the UK lifts its restrictions for French travellers.

Image source, PA Media

In te next question, Boris Johnson is asked whether people should limit themselves when it comes to alcohol at the weekend.

The PM says he would urge people to "enjoy summer safely".

He adds: "I do want people to feel it is safe to enjoy themselves... but it has got to be done in responsible way.

"If not, the risks are there and are obvious."

Johnson says the evidence is clear in other countries "we know and love well", adding we "don't want to go down that route".

And he concludes we can avoid a resurgence in the virus "if we do it together".

Jonathan Blake
BBC political correspondent

Boris Johnson said the government would set out a timetable next week on how arts and entertainment venues could reopen.

His comments will be seized upon and perhaps provide some hope for a sector that feels as if it has been forgotten.

Some theatres have been forced to close permanently and others have begun making staff redundant - they and music venues face the difficulty of the job retention scheme ending, yet not being able to reopen.

The creative industries do not need to be told that they have had “an incredibly tough time” as the prime minister put it, but they are desperate to hear how the government intends to help them survive.

Questioned by BBC political correspondent Alex Forsyth, Boris Johnson says the government's priority is public health but this is the "moment cautiously to reopen the hospitality sector".

On the removal of quarantine for people coming from dozens of countries, he adds that different parts of the UK - where different measures will be in place - are following "generally similar paths".

Chris Whitty says it is a difficult balance between going too fast or slow in winding down coronavirus restrictions. It is important to "balance the multiple risks" faced, including economic deprivation, he adds. There is "no risk-free next step", Prof Whitty says.

Jonathan Blake
BBC political correspondent

If you were expecting the prime minister to arrive with a smile on his face and declare England (and its pubs) open for business, you’d have been mistaken.

On the eve of the most significant relaxation yet of lockdown restrictions, Boris Johnson has so far sought to reassure people about the government’s approach to local outbreaks.

In explaining at some length the response to an increase in cases in Leicester and elsewhere the PM is perhaps trying to pre-empt claims that a second wave of cases may be coming.

Easing restrictions is a calculated risk and although infection rates and deaths from coronavirus are coming down, the impact of allowing more businesses to open and larger groups to gather cannot be fully known.

Ministers repeatedly say the reason they can relax the rules is because people have stuck to them so far, but with fewer rules and greater freedom how will the public respond?

The second question from the public is on how the government is planning to tackle the risk of a second waves of the virus.

Boris Johnson says it is at the "forefront of our minds" and the government is "keeping all sorts of measures in our reserve".

He says they will focus on local lockdowns, but a "national lockdown is the response of ultimate resort" even though the government "really don't want to do that again".

Chief medical officer Chris Whitty says "everybody realises it is a possibility" that there could be a second wave and that risk "will exist with us for a very long time".

He urges people to stick to the rules, or the risk of a second wave "goes up very quickly".

He also warns winter could "work to the virus's advantage and we have to be ready for that possibility".

Asked about the effect of coronavirus restrictions on the events industry, the PM says it's had an "incredibly tough time". He adds that he understands people working in it are "anxious" to know when measures can be eased.

He repeats that a timetable will be set out next week and the government will do "everything we reasonably can" to support the arts and events in the meantime.

Image source, PA Media

The PM says the businesses' success is dependent on "every single one of us acting responsibly - we must not let them down".

And he warns the virus is "still with us", adding: "We are not out of the woods yet."

"Anyone who flouts social distancing and Covid-secure rules is not only putting us all at risk but letting down those businesses and workers who have done so much to prepare for this new normal."

"As we take this next step, our biggest step yet, on the road to recovery I urge the British people to do so safely."

Looking forward to the weekend, Boris Johnson says there will be a "moment of remembrance" on Saturday to mark those who have lost their lives.

He also says there will be a clap to mark the NHS's birthday on Sunday.

"Tomorrow is about supporting the livelihoods of business owners and their employees up and down the country - all of whom are opening their doors for the first time in more than three months," he adds.

"All these businesses and their workers have put in a heroic effort to prepare their venues for this reopening, to work out a way to trade in a way that keeps their customers safe."

Boris Johnson sets out his plan for dealing with localised coronavirus spikes.

He says local data will be available to the public. He adds that if local problems are identified, health workers will look for solutions and keep people in the area informed "at every stage".

The prime minister says there is now a "substantial" nationwide testing capacity and that this can be targeted towards areas with high levels of infection.

Targeted restrictions are also possible, with "hotspots" - premises that are affected - being closed, Mr Johnson says.

Full local lockdowns will happen if the previous measures haven't worked, the PM says. These could include asking people to stay at home.

Boris Johnson confirms there will be a timetable announced next week for the re-opening of other businesses which remain closed this weekend.

"We must move from blanket national measures to targeted local measures," he says, focusing on "specific premises or local areas".

He refers to a hospital in Weston-Super-Mare as an example and the fact schools will be closed from September if there are small breakouts.

Pointing again to Leicester, he says the area had three times the next highest infection rate of any other city.

"It made sense to take action locally rather than reintroduce restrictions on the whole country," says the PM.

But he adds the government is "learning all the time" on the best way to control local outbreaks.

Boris Johnson begins the press conference saying the UK has "continued to make progress nationally against the virus".

The UK prime minister says there are now fewer than 1,000 new cases each day and the R number - how many people an infected person themselves infects - remains between 0.7 and 0.9 in the UK.

He says the number of people dying is still "too high" but numbers continue to fall.

He points to Leicester, saying it is "not universal" that things are improving, and local lockdowns will be "a feature of our lives for some time to come".

But, the PM adds: "That should not take away from the great progress we have made as a country against this vicious disease."

Boris Johnson has taken to the lectern for his press conference ahead of lockdown easing in England.

He is joined by chief medical officer Chris Whitty and chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance.

We will bring you all the updates from his speech here.

With Boris Johnson due to talk about pubs reopening in England in a few minutes, read our guide on what the rules are if you are planning to head to your local.

And watch our video on what to expect in Northern Ireland, as pubs have already opened their doors.

A further 137 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in the UK.

The Department of Health and Social Care just tweeted the figure, which brings the UK total to 44,131.

New lockdown rules from 4 July mean changes for people living in England.

Now one household can spend time with another one indoors so long as they follow social distancing guidelines.

This is on top of the rules about meeting outside - where you can still to meet in groups of up to six from different households - again, keeping your distance.

In Northern Ireland, you can meet up to 30 people outdoors, or up to six people indoors - while maintaining social distancing.

In Wales, you can only meet up outdoors and with one other household at a time.

While in Scotland, one household can see no more than two others, outdoors, in a single day.

But how best to keep your guests - and yourself - safe? The handy video below explains all.

Image source, PA Media

We should be hearing from the UK prime minister in the next 30 minutes as he leads a press briefing ahead of lockdown measures being eased in England tomorrow.

But let’s take a look at the latest from the country first:

• A full list of countries for which quarantine will not apply to people arriving back in England has been published by the government
• Scotland and Wales are yet to decide whether to ease travel restrictions and described the changes as "shambolic"
• The ONS released data showing almost 20,000 died with coronavirus in care homes between March and June
• Police say they are bracing themselves for a busy weekend as pubs open across England
• Leicester remains the only place in England to keep its lockdown measures after a spike in cases in the area

Image source, Getty Images

Tens of thousands of people are getting ready to watch Hamilton, one of Broadway's most popular musicals, as it becomes available to stream today.

There are about 40,000 tweets from people watching a filmed stage version of the musical on Disney+ - including Lin Manuel Miranda, who created the show.

The excitement around Hamilton comes as the theatre industry is in crisis.

Theatres around the world are closed because of the coronavirus, unable to accommodate social distancing and other health regulations. Some theatres in the UK, faced with huge costs and no income, have closed for good.

Image source, Getty Images

The Russian Orthodox Church has expelled a member of the clergy after he seized control of a convent in the Urals.

Father Sergiy - who calls himself Nikolai Romanov, after Russia's last tsar - has called the Covid-19 crisis "a pseudo-pandemic" and condemned the closure of churches during lockdown.

The local Church court found he had broken monastic rules, after taking over the Sredneuralsk Convent in June and posting armed guards.

There have been allegations of child abuse at the convent under Fr Sergiy's leadership, and the Church court called for a thorough investigation of the allegations by the Russian authorities.

The Church is also carrying out its own investigation.

Read more about the case here.

Image source, Getty Images

Recreational cricket will not be allowed to resume yet in England because of the risk of "communal teas and dressing rooms", Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said.

That's despite the fact that other sports, including tennis and basketball, are now allowed.

"It's the teas, it's the changing rooms and so on and so forth," the prime minister told LBC Radio, adding that the ball itself was not the issue. "There are other factors involved that generate proximity which you might not get in a game of tennis."

But his comments have been criticised by cricketers.

Former England captain Michael Vaughan said Mr Johnson's explanation was "utter garbage", while the England and Wales Cricket Board said the risks of exposure to coronavirus from the sport were "very low".

Read more here.