Summary for Thursday, 10th September
Thanks for joining our rolling coverage of the global coronavirus pandemic - it's Helier Cheung, George Bowden and Yaroslav Lukov with you today in London.
Our team and BBC reporters around the globe will be bringing you all the latest developments – so stay with us for regular updates.
To help you catch up, here are some of the main headlines from across the world:
We’re also expecting to hear from Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, who is facing media questions this morning, as well as Jenny Harries, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England.
The US is still by far the worst hit country, with more than 6.3m cases, and 190,000 deaths - more than a fifth of the total.
Brazil is in second place with more than 128,000 deaths, followed by India with over 75,000 dead.
Mexico and the UK have the fourth and fifth most deaths - 69,000 and 41,000 respectively.
India in particular has been recorded more cases, and deaths, than other countries in recent days - even as some social distancing measures are being lifted.
India has confirmed another record number of daily infections as it recorded 95,735 new cases in the last 24 hours.
But the latest spike comes amid a week which has been dotted with daily infections over 90,000, representative of just how large the caseload is becoming in India.
The rising numbers are partly explained by states across the country actively ramping up their testing - more than one million tests are being carried out every day, according to the health ministry.
But with the country continuing to open up, it's not surprising that cases are mounting. The capital, Delhi, just allowed bars and pubs to re-open this week and schools across India are preparing to open their doors later this month.
With 4.4 million cases, India has the second-highest caseload after the US. But the government and some experts point to the country's high recovery rate as a source of good news. For every 100 confirmed with the virus, nearly 78 have recovered . Consequently, active cases in the country remain low, taking up about 20.6% of total cases.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps tells BBC Breakfast the new rule came about after extensive discussions with medical and scientific advisers.
He concedes the advice is much simpler than previous guidance, adding "you need to set some rules and you need to stick by them".
It also means that he won't be able to invite both his parents to his home from Monday, because there are five people in his household.
Asked about gatherings such as art classes or fitness classes, Shapps says that businesses will have put in measures to ensure they are Covid-secure.
"A professionally organised thing would be suitable but we do ask people to be very sensible and very smart about not gathering in groups more than six where it is not in a formal Covid-secure environment, like a business."
Shapps adds that if the public follows the new advice, the R number - the rate at which an infected person passes the virus to someone else - will come down below 1.
"We know for certain it is somewhere above 1 because it is growing," he says.
Prof Ferguson says contact rates have increased across all age groups in the past three weeks. "So we would expect... that infection will start propagating across all age groups," he said.
He pointed toward the US, where places like Florida and California saw an increase in cases among younger people followed by an uptick in deaths.
Prof Ferguson says new measures announced in England "will take some weeks to have an effect" - he put the timescale around two to three weeks for case numbers to be impacted by the new rules on social gatherings.
The increase in case numbers seen this week does not account for the reopening of schools, he added.

In recent weeks, the government had tried to encourage workers to go back to the office - but Prof Ferguson said this was a tricky balance.
"I'm still working from home, many people I know are still working from home, and certainly I think we should hesitate and maybe pause the headlong rush to get everybody back into offices.
"But some people have to work [away from home] and I completely understand the concerns in many quarters that everyone working at home has an economic impact, especially on city centres."
"People actually generally want to do the right thing, nobody wants to spread this around," he told the BBC.
The creation of coronavirus "marshals" will remind people to wear face coverings and maintain distancing with the police able to enforce the "rule of six" if needed, he said, adding: "This is not going back into a full lockdown."
Lisa Nandy, shadow foreign secretary for the opposition Labour party, told BBC Breakfast she believed the government was right to introduce tighter coronavirus restrictions in England.
However, she added that the timing could confuse people - with restrictions brought in with another weekend to go before they begin.
“Most people want to do the right thing but they also need to understand what that is,” she said.
“I think most of the public do understand that as difficult as this is we do have to make sure as we go into winter, and as the NHS is preparing for winter flu and other outbreaks, that we’ve got to make sure the NHS is protected."
President Donald Trump knew Covid-19 was deadlier than the flu before it hit the country, but decided to "play it down" in his public comments because he didn't want to "create a panic", according to a new book and taped conversations with Bob Woodward.
Woodward, who broke the Watergate scandal and is one of the nation's most respected journalists, interviewed Trump 18 times from December to July.
Trump is quoted Woodward's book Rage as telling him the virus was "deadly stuff", in early February, before the first US death was confirmed.
However, in the weeks that followed, Trump publicly implied the flu was more dangerous than Covid-19, and said: "Just stay calm. It will go away."
After details of the book emerged, Trump's Democratic rival, Joe Biden, described Trump's approach as a "dereliction of duty" and "a life-and-death betrayal of the American people”.
However, Trump has defended his position, saying on Wednesday: "I don't want people to be frightened, I don't want to create panic... certainly I'm not going to drive this country or the world into a frenzy."
Read our full story here.
- More than 900,000 deaths around the world have been linked to coronavirus, a tally from Johns Hopkins University says
- US President Donald Trump said he "played down" the risk of the virus to avoid panic, according to a new book
- UK medical experts have raised doubts over the PM's plan to have "millions" of coronavirus tests processed each day
- Indonesia's capital will bring back restrictions, with the governor warning of an "emergency" situation as hospitals fill up
- India has a record jump in daily Covid-19 infections, with 95,735 new cases detected in a single day
Thanks for joining our rolling coverage of the global coronavirus pandemic - it's Helier Cheung, George Bowden and Yaroslav Lukov with you today in London.
Our team and BBC reporters around the globe will be bringing you all the latest developments – so stay with us for regular updates.
To help you catch up, here are some of the main headlines from across the world:
- Global deaths linked to Covid-19 have now passed 900,000, according to Johns Hopkins University - with the US making up more than a fifth of deaths
- US President Donald Trump admitted earlier this year that he knew Covid-19 was deadly - but said he wanted to "play down" the virus to avoid panic, according to a new book and recording
- Shipping coronavirus vaccines around the world will be the "largest transport challenge ever" and require the equivalent of 8,000 Boeing 747s, according to the airline industry.
- Indonesia’s capital Jakarta will bring back social distancing measures, with the governor warning of an "emergency" situation as hospitals fill up
- The Japan Sumo Association says 18 wrestlers from one stable tested positive, meaning that the entire squad will miss the Autumn Grand Sumo Tournament starting this weekend
Latest from the UK
Meanwhile, here is a quick catch-up on coronavirus news in the UK today:- Scientists and health professionals have raised doubts about Prime Minister Boris Johnson's "Operation Moonshot" plan for mass coronavirus testing - which he hopes will give millions of people results within minutes
- A leaked Whitehall document puts the cost of the plan at £100 billion – almost the cost of the entire NHS England budget, according to the BBC’s Health Editor Hugh Pym
- Businesses and other public settings where people meet socially in England will have to record contact details of anyone on their premises from 18 September to tackle the spread of coronavirus
- Indoor venues in Scotland, including concert halls and theatres, will learn later if they can reopen from Monday - Nicola Sturgeon is due to announce any further changes to lockdown restrictions at her coronavirus briefing
- A private company has agreed to provide Exeter University with thousands of coronavirus tests that give results in 24 hours. The deal is thought to be the first of its kind in the UK
- Christmas is still a few months away - but there are concerns that social distancing restrictions could still be in place then, making it difficult for families to gather to celebrate
We’re also expecting to hear from Transport Secretary Grant Shapps, who is facing media questions this morning, as well as Jenny Harries, Deputy Chief Medical Officer for England.
Latest around Europe
French authorities are watching infection rates in about 20 cities, according to the head of France's scientific council, Jean-François Delfraissy. In the past 24 hours 8,577 new infections have been announced and the head of the Bordeaux area in the south-west, Alain Anziani, says there's a "strong risk" of a local lockdown. But Mr Delfraissy says everything must be done to avoid more lockdowns: "The stakes are as much about society as health." Elsewhere in Europe:- Wearing masks in the Czech Republic is compulsory in enclosed spaces again from today - more than 1,000 coronavirus cases have been declared for a second day in a row
- Spain has reported another 4,410 infections as schools restart today in several areas. Masks are obligatory for anyone aged six and over
- Portugal has registered 646 new infections - its highest since 20 April - and ministers will decide today on new rules for a key moment next week, when children return to class.
Which countries have been hit with the most deaths?
As we mentioned earlier, the global death toll from the coronavirus has passed 900,000, while the number of confirmed infections is nearing 28 million, based on a tally by Johns Hopkins University.The US is still by far the worst hit country, with more than 6.3m cases, and 190,000 deaths - more than a fifth of the total.
Brazil is in second place with more than 128,000 deaths, followed by India with over 75,000 dead.
Mexico and the UK have the fourth and fifth most deaths - 69,000 and 41,000 respectively.
India in particular has been recorded more cases, and deaths, than other countries in recent days - even as some social distancing measures are being lifted.
India sets yet another daily infections record
Krutika Pathi - BBC News, DelhiIndia has confirmed another record number of daily infections as it recorded 95,735 new cases in the last 24 hours.
But the latest spike comes amid a week which has been dotted with daily infections over 90,000, representative of just how large the caseload is becoming in India.
The rising numbers are partly explained by states across the country actively ramping up their testing - more than one million tests are being carried out every day, according to the health ministry.
But with the country continuing to open up, it's not surprising that cases are mounting. The capital, Delhi, just allowed bars and pubs to re-open this week and schools across India are preparing to open their doors later this month.
With 4.4 million cases, India has the second-highest caseload after the US. But the government and some experts point to the country's high recovery rate as a source of good news. For every 100 confirmed with the virus, nearly 78 have recovered . Consequently, active cases in the country remain low, taking up about 20.6% of total cases.
R number is certainly above 1 in England
More now on the new social distancing rules in England, announced yesterday, that will restrict gatherings to six people from Monday.Transport Secretary Grant Shapps tells BBC Breakfast the new rule came about after extensive discussions with medical and scientific advisers.
He concedes the advice is much simpler than previous guidance, adding "you need to set some rules and you need to stick by them".
It also means that he won't be able to invite both his parents to his home from Monday, because there are five people in his household.
Asked about gatherings such as art classes or fitness classes, Shapps says that businesses will have put in measures to ensure they are Covid-secure.
"A professionally organised thing would be suitable but we do ask people to be very sensible and very smart about not gathering in groups more than six where it is not in a formal Covid-secure environment, like a business."
Shapps adds that if the public follows the new advice, the R number - the rate at which an infected person passes the virus to someone else - will come down below 1.
"We know for certain it is somewhere above 1 because it is growing," he says.
UK expert suggests pausing the rush to get workers back to offices
Professor Neil Ferguson, a leading epidemiologist whose modelling work was used by the UK government before the lockdown in March, has told BBC Radio 4's Today programme that coronavirus infections will rise among all age groups - not just the young.Prof Ferguson says contact rates have increased across all age groups in the past three weeks. "So we would expect... that infection will start propagating across all age groups," he said.
He pointed toward the US, where places like Florida and California saw an increase in cases among younger people followed by an uptick in deaths.
Prof Ferguson says new measures announced in England "will take some weeks to have an effect" - he put the timescale around two to three weeks for case numbers to be impacted by the new rules on social gatherings.
The increase in case numbers seen this week does not account for the reopening of schools, he added.

In recent weeks, the government had tried to encourage workers to go back to the office - but Prof Ferguson said this was a tricky balance.
"I'm still working from home, many people I know are still working from home, and certainly I think we should hesitate and maybe pause the headlong rush to get everybody back into offices.
"But some people have to work [away from home] and I completely understand the concerns in many quarters that everyone working at home has an economic impact, especially on city centres."
Shapps: This is not going back into a full lockdown
UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps says that he believes the majority of people will abide by the new "rule of six" in England, the restricts gatherings to no more than six people from Monday."People actually generally want to do the right thing, nobody wants to spread this around," he told the BBC.
The creation of coronavirus "marshals" will remind people to wear face coverings and maintain distancing with the police able to enforce the "rule of six" if needed, he said, adding: "This is not going back into a full lockdown."
Lisa Nandy, shadow foreign secretary for the opposition Labour party, told BBC Breakfast she believed the government was right to introduce tighter coronavirus restrictions in England.
However, she added that the timing could confuse people - with restrictions brought in with another weekend to go before they begin.
“Most people want to do the right thing but they also need to understand what that is,” she said.
“I think most of the public do understand that as difficult as this is we do have to make sure as we go into winter, and as the NHS is preparing for winter flu and other outbreaks, that we’ve got to make sure the NHS is protected."
Trump 'deliberately played down virus to avoid panic'
More now on a story that's dominating news outlets in the US.President Donald Trump knew Covid-19 was deadlier than the flu before it hit the country, but decided to "play it down" in his public comments because he didn't want to "create a panic", according to a new book and taped conversations with Bob Woodward.
Woodward, who broke the Watergate scandal and is one of the nation's most respected journalists, interviewed Trump 18 times from December to July.
Trump is quoted Woodward's book Rage as telling him the virus was "deadly stuff", in early February, before the first US death was confirmed.
However, in the weeks that followed, Trump publicly implied the flu was more dangerous than Covid-19, and said: "Just stay calm. It will go away."
After details of the book emerged, Trump's Democratic rival, Joe Biden, described Trump's approach as a "dereliction of duty" and "a life-and-death betrayal of the American people”.
However, Trump has defended his position, saying on Wednesday: "I don't want people to be frightened, I don't want to create panic... certainly I'm not going to drive this country or the world into a frenzy."
Read our full story here.
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