Yahoo News What time is Boris Johnson's coronavirus press conference today? Daily updates on the PM's speeches
The Government will hold its daily briefing today to update the nation on the latest measures and developments in the UK's fight against coronavirus.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson or another member of the Government will address the country via a live broadcast, which can also be viewed on news channels and YouTube.
Tuesday's press briefing saw Minister for the Cabinet Office, Michael Gove, announce that thousands of ventilators would be dispatched to UK hospitals next week.
As of March 31, a total of 143,186 people had been tested for Covid-19 in the UK, of which 25,150 tested positive. The death toll stands at 1,789.
What time is Boris Johnson's press conference today?
The Prime Minister or another member of the Government will be back in front of the nation today to continue the daily press briefings which have been arranged amid the Covid-19 pandemic.
The time of the daily televised press conference is usually between 4 or 6pm, according to Number 10, but it varies from day-to-day.
What Mr Johnson, his ministers and advisors have to say will be reported on our live blog, here.
March 31 updates:
Here is a summary of the briefing held by Minister for the Cabinet Office Michael Gove and deputy Chief Medical Officer Dr Jenny Harries:
It was said that thousands of new ventilators will be distributed to hospitals across to UK next week.
To help the NHS deal with coronavirus, the Chancellor will waive some taxes on medical equipment.
Medics whose visas will expire before October 1 will have them automatically renewed.
Around 25,000 people have been tested for the Covid-19 strain by April
The UK death toll had its biggest daily increase of 381 fatalities.
March 30 updates:
Here is a summary of the briefing held by Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab, Professor Yvonne Doyle, medical director at Public Health England, and Patrick Vallance, the Government’s chief scientific adviser:
Mr Raab announced a £75 million package to help Brits stranded abroad get home if there are no commercial flights available.
Charter flights will bring back UK nationals from 'priority countries' and travellers in countries where commercial flights are still running will be provided with subsidies for tickets.
Here is a summary of the press conference held by housing secretary Robert Jenrick and deputy chief medical officer Dr Jenny Harries:
Mr Jenrick said that an emergency distribution team would be taking personal protective equipment to people who needed it across the country.
The equipment includes 170,000 face masks and ten million items of cleaning equipment, to be taken to "58,000 NHS trusts and healthcare settings".
Mr Jenrick said the team would be supported by the armed forces and emergency services.
The housing secretary added that the NHS would be providing home deliveries of medicines to the most vulnerable, who can sign up online.
Mr Jenrick said that the Government will also deliver food parcels to vulnerable people, with 50,000 to be delivered this week.
Meanwhile Dr Jenny Harries said that the country may not return to "normal" for six months.
She added that while a complete lockdown would not last for six months, social distancing measures should be phased out "gradually" to avoid a second major outbreak.
Dr Harries said that the quarantine measures would be reviewed after three weeks and then again after three months.
She warned that the Government expects virus-related deaths to increase possibly for the next two weeks.
March 28 updates:
NHS medical director Stephen Powis said that 20,000 deaths related to coronavirus would be a good result for the UK.
He added that "now is not the time to be complacent" about social distancing as the number of deaths continued to rise sharply.
Business secretary Alok Sharma said that the Government was changing insolvency rules to give companies more flexibility amid the ongoing economic fallout from coronavirus.
He said that "red tape" would be cut to allow companies to produce hand sanitiser within a few days.
March 27 updates:
Senior Cabinet minister Michael Gove said that positive tests for Boris Johnson and health secretary Matt Hancock showed that "we are all at risk" from coronavirus.
The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster restated the need for social distancing to slow the spread of the virus.
Mr Gove added that people who were key to the Government's response to coronavirus who showed symptoms are tested.
He announced that the Government has brought together universities, businesses and research institutes to boost testing capacity for frontline workers.
NHS chief executive Sir Simon Stevens said that testing for frontline NHS workers would begin next week.
Mr Gove added that the Government believed that coronavirus infections has been doubling every three to four days.
March 26 updates:
Rishi Sunak announced a "generous and comprehensive" package of support for up to 3.8m self-employed workers.
The scheme will pay a cash grant worth 80 per cent of average monthly trading profit over the past three years, capped at £2,500 a month.
Mr Sunak said the scheme would be available "no later than June".
The scheme is open to anyone with trading profits of up to £50,000 and will be only available to those who make the majority of their income from self-employment.
There is no help available for people who have recently become self-employed.
But Mr Sunak said those who are self-employed can now access Universal Credit in full to help them during the pandemic.
He hinted that he could ask the self-employed to pay more in national insurance once the outbreak is over.
Dr Jenny Harries defended not ordering coronavirus tests earlier, emphasising "every single country is ordering at the same time."
She said the Government may want to test a sample of the population, once an antibody test becomes available, to get a sense of how coronavirus has spread.
March 25 updates:
Here is a summary of the press conference held by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Professor Chris Whitty, the Government’s chief medical adviser, and Sir Patrick Vallance, the Government’s chief scientific adviser:
Mr Johnson revealed that 405,000 people have signed up to be volunteers for the NHS in less than 24 hours.
Professor Whitty said the coronavirus peak would “probably be manageable” for the NHS if people kept to the lockdown rules.
He also blamed global shortages for the fact that the Government was not carrying out more coronavirus tests.
Once the Government is confident antibody tests work, they will initially be used for NHS staff.
Mr Johnson said the Government might introduce wartime-style legislation to outlaw profiteering during the coronavirus pandemic.
Some of the social distancing measures might be in place for “a reasonably long period of time”.
March 24 updates:
Here is a summary of the press briefing held by Matt Hancock and the first where the PM did not make an address to the nation.
Matt Hancock announced that the Government is launching a new scheme to recruit 250,000 volunteers in good health who can help the NHS support the vulnerable.
The Health Secretary also confirmed that a new hospital called the Nightingale Hospital with capacity for 4,000 people will open next week at the Excel Centre in east London after being set up with help from the military.
He added that 35,000 extra NHS staff would be joining the fight against the virus and that 11,788 retired NHS staff responded to the call to return to the service.
The Health Secretary said that enforcement actions would be taken on businesses that remained open despite being ordered to close.
Mr Hancock then announced that a new testing facility would open in Milton Keynes that day and the UK has bought 3.5 million antibody testing kits.
He also said 7.5 million pieces of protective equipment, including facemasks, had been shipped out in the last 24 hours.
March 23 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered during the Prime Minister's pre-recorded address to the nation on Monday, March 23:
Mr Johnson described the Covid-19 crisis as a "moment of national emergency" and announced sweeping restrictions on public life as part of a nationwide lockdown
The Prime Minister said the extraordinary measures would become effective immediately
He added the Government would review the effect of the restrictions in three weeks and relax them if possible
Mr Johnson confirmed police will have the power to enforce the rules by imposing fines on people who do not abide by them and the right to disperse gatherings
The Prime Minister also said the Government was "accelerating" search for treatments, "pioneering work on a vaccine" and purchasing millions of coronavirus testing kits
He warned that "without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope"
March 22 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Sunday, March 22:
The public were urged to uphold social distancing measures
Further information was given about the 1.5 million vulnerable Britons that will be asked to self-isolate for 12 weeks starting on March 23
Social hubs will be set up to provide supplies for those asked to stay in their homes for the next 12 weeks
March 21 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Saturday, March 21:
The public was urged to not panic buy amid the outbreak
NHS England medical director said those who did should be ashamed
The importance of social distancing was reiterated
Later on:
Mr Johnson warned of the NHS being overwhelmed if the public does not heed social distancing advice
He said the UK could be a few weeks away from the situation in Italy if people don't follow the guidance
The Prime Minister encouraged people to not see their parents on Mother's Day , as he urged people to limit their activities
He said the situation was "stark" and acknowledge the measures imposed had never been seen before
March 20 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Friday, March 20:
Mr Johnson ordered the closure of pubs, bars, restaurants and theatres in a bid to curb the spread of coronavirus
The Prime Minister addressed questions about Mother's Day, which falls on March 22, saying "people should really think very carefully" about visiting any elderly person at this time, who may be in a vulnerable position
He also referred to his own mother, 77-year-old Charlotte Johnson, saying he'd "certainly be sending her my very best wishes and hope to get to see her"
Chancellor Rishi Sunak also joined the Prime Minister, outlining the latest financial measures the Government will be taking to help businesses and employees struggling at this time
Mr Sunak stated that the Government would be contributing 80 per cent of wages for employees not working because of coronavirus
March 19 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Thursday, March 19:
Mr Johnson said the UK can "turn the tide" in the fight against coronavirus within the next 12 weeks
The Prime Minister said the first British patient had been put in a randomised trial for a treatment for coronavirus
Mr Johnson added that he expected the government would be able to do mass testing to see if people had contracted Covid-19 relatively soon
The Prime Minister ruled out stopping the Tube service in London, saying there was "no prospect" of him doing so
Mr Johnson did, however, warn that compliance with social distancing rules in some parts of London was "very patchy" and refused to rule out bringing in tougher restriction measures for the capital
Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer, said it would be at least a fortnight before the social distancing measures currently in place might lead to the infection rate slowing
The Prime Minister said he was considering ending the holding of press conferences in a room with journalists because that implied they were not taking social distancing advice seriously
Mr Johnson added that he did want to continue speaking to the media daily, and suggested the conferences might take place remotely in the future instead
March 18 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Wednesday, March 18:
Schools in England will close from Friday for the majority of pupils
Children who are classed as vulnerable or whose parents are key workers will not be affected
May's exams - SATs, GCSEs, AS and A Levels - would not be held
Education Secretary Gavin Williamson said it was no longer in best interest to keep schools open
Mr Johnson said the measures are to slow down the spread of the disease
Emergency measures for tenants were announced so they can't be evicted if struggling during the outbreak
March 17 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Tuesday, March 17:
Loans worth £330 billion were backed by the government to help businesses
Another £20bn in grants was said to be made available as cash grants of £25-30,000 for small businesses
Rishi Sunak vowed to do "whatever it takes" to help the economy
Business rates holiday for small businesses
The new business interruption loan scheme announced at the Budget is being extended to small and medium-sized businesses, providing loans of up to £5 million with no interest due for the first six months, up from £1.2 million
Mr Sunak said the impact on the economy would be “temporary” and that the country "will get through it together"
Boris Johnson warned that Covid-19 is so “dangerous” that without drastic action it will “overwhelm the NHS”, as he said that more “extreme measures” may be needed to protect lives in future
March 16 updates:
Here is a break down of what was covered at the press conference on Monday, March 16:
The Prime Minister urged people to avoid pub, clubs and other social venues and those most vulnerable take that advice particularly seriously
Boris Johnson said "drastic action" is needed
Social distancing measures officially introduced with Mr Johnson saying: "Now is the time for everyone to stop non-essential contact and to stop all non-essential travel."
Anyone living in a household with somebody who has either a persistent cough or temperature must now also isolate themselves for 14 days
London was said to be only a few weeks behind Italy in terms of the extend of the virus spread
Over 70s were told to avoid all social contact for at least 12 weeks
Professor Chris Whitty, Chief Medical Officer, said the advice was particularly important for people above 70 and those with serious or pre-existing health conditions.
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