- Tuesday marks the first anniversary of lockdown being called in the UK
- People are invited to pause in remembrance of those who died in the pandemic, as part of a national day of reflection
- There have been 147,681 deaths in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate; 126,172 within 28 days of a positive test
- A minute's silence will be held at 12:00 GMT; People are being encouraged to stand on their doorsteps with lights at 20:00 GMT
- PM Boris Johnson offers his condolences to those who have lost loved ones
- Patron of end-of-life charity Marie Curie, Prince Charles, pays tribute to the 'dedication shown by so many'
- A £5,000 fine for anyone in England trying to travel abroad without good reason is due to come into force next week
- Germany extends its lockdown to 18 April and will shut down almost completely over the Easter holiday from 1-5 April to slow soaring infections
- Home working and shopping locally are among behaviours likely to remain popular after restrictions are lifted - survey
- The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boot the Covid virus out of the body's cells, say researchers
Good morning and welcome to our coronavirus live page.
Here is a round-up of the main stories this morning:- The UK is marking one year since the first coronavirus lockdown was announced. On 23 March 2020 Boris Johnson outlined measures to stop the spread of Covid-19. Since then, the UK's official total number of deaths within 28 days of a positive test has risen from 364 to 126,172. A minute's silence will be held at midday as part of a day of reflection
- A £5,000 fine for anyone in England trying to travel abroad without good reason is due to come into force next week as part of new coronavirus laws. The penalty is included in legislation that will be voted on by MPs on Thursday
- Working from home, walking and shopping locally are among the lockdown behaviours that look likely to remain popular after pandemic restrictions are lifted, according to a new survey. The study for BBC News and King's College London, conducted by Ipsos MORI, suggests virus regulations may have a lasting impact after Covid
- The virus that causes the common cold can effectively boot the Covid virus out of the body's cells, say researchers. Some viruses are known to compete in order to be the one that causes an infection
- A massive increase in appeals for help over the past year from those suffering domestic abuse has exposed the scale of the problem, say campaigners. Refuge says it recorded an average of 13,162 calls and messages to its National Domestic Abuse helpline every month between April 2020 and February 2021
- Covid-19 vaccines, vaccine passports and faked negative test papers are being sold on the darknet. Prices range between $500 (£360) and $750 for doses of AstraZeneca, Sputnik, Sinopharm or Johnson & Johnson jabs
UK marks first anniversary
The UK is marking one year since the first coronavirus lockdown was announced.
On 23 March 2020 Prime Minister Boris Johnson outlined measures to stop the spread of Covid-19. Since then, the UK's official death toll has risen from 364 to 126,172.
Alongside the lockdown have come tough restrictions on socialising, closures of schools, pubs and shops with many rules currently still in place.
A minute's silence will be held at midday as part of a day of reflection.
A year on, Mr Johnson has praised the "great spirit" shown since that moment and offered his condolences to those who have been bereaved during the pandemic.
People are also being encouraged to stand on their doorsteps at 20:00 GMT with phones, candles and torches to signify a "beacon of remembrance".
Read more here.
Toughest German lockdown so far – latest around Europe
- Germany is extending its current lockdown to 18 April and shutting down almost completely over the Easter holiday from 1-5 April to slow down soaring infections. Chancellor Angela Merkel and state leaders had hoped to loosen the lockdown, but she said they had to “break the exponential growth of the third wave”. Over five days at Easter, only food shops can open for one day on Saturday 3 April and no more than five adults from two households can meet. The slogan is “We’re staying at home”. A further 7,485 infections and 250 deaths have been announced in the past 24 hours.
- Spain’s ministry of health has approved extending the use of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to everyone up to the age of 65 after initially restricting it to under 55s including key workers such firefighters, police and teachers. AZ vaccinations are to resume in Spain tomorrow after a short suspension for safety checks. The jab will also be extended to over-65s if it’s backed by a national health panel.
- While many European countries are seeing a third Covid wave, Denmark has escaped that and its political leaders have agreed a gradual plan to reopen the country. Schools and professions such as hairdressers will start opening up after Easter. A corona pass is being introduced to show whether you have been vaccinated or have a negative test.
- The Czech death toll from the pandemic has passed 25,000. In a separate milestone, a million Czechs have now had at least one dose of vaccine, out of a population of 10.7 million.
- French hospitals have admitted another 471 patients into intensive care in 24 hours, and another 15,792 cases have been reported. The total number in intensive care is over 4,500.
- Bosnia has reported a record 73 daily coronavirus deaths. The capital Sarajevo and majority ethnic-Serb region, Republika Srpska, are both in lockdown.