PM does not want national lockdown 'right now'

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Hello and thank you for following our coverage today.

Here are some of the biggest developments around the world:

• More than 37.6 million coronavirus cases have been reported globally, along with 1.08 million Covid-related deaths, according to a tally by Johns Hopkins University
• America continues to be the world's worst-hit country, with over 7.7 million cases - followed by India and Brazil with 7.1 million and 5 million cases respectively
• The head of the World Health Organisation has spoken out against supporters of a "herd immunity" approach to the pandemic. Tedros Ghebreyesus called the approach "scientifically and ethically problematic" and said the long-term effects of coronavirus were still unknown
• Chinese authorities in Qingdao say they will be testing the city's entire population of nine million people for Covid-19, over a period of five days. It comes after the discovery of a dozen cases linked to a hospital treating coronavirus patients arriving from abroad
• Russia has reported more than 13,500 cases - just short of the most for a single day since the start of the pandemic. More than 1.3 million people have now tested positive for Covid-19 in Russia, the fourth highest number in the world
• Two Catholic priests have been penalised in Rwanda after presiding over Masses that violated coronavirus safety measures. Rwanda's cabinet approved the reopening of places of worship in July but under strict rules, including a compulsory use of face masks

Recent advice from Sage, the government's scientific advisory group for emergencies, has just been published.

It includes recommendations made in a meeting on 21 Sept, which included asking ministers to consider immediately introducing:

• A short "circuit-breaker" lockdown
• A ban on household mixing
• All bars and restaurants should close
• An "urgent" re-imposition of a fresh package of measures

The government has stopped way short of this - perhaps why Prof Chris Whitty was so keen to demonstrate his view that the basic three tiers of measures aren't enough on their own.

It also shows how much the political atmosphere has changed.

At the beginning of the pandemic, ministers were very keen to be seen to be following Sage advice.

This paper makes clear how they are making different decisions now.

Quite the timing too, publishing all this about an hour after a national press conference.

Read more from Laura, here.

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West Ham are against radical plans by Liverpool and Manchester United to reform the English football pyramid, according to a club source.

The proposals, which include reducing the Premier League to 18 clubs and scrapping the EFL Cup, have been put together by Liverpool owner John Henry and Manchester United co-chairman Joel Glazer as part of a plans for a Covid rescue package for English Football League clubs.

Under the controversial plans, nine clubs would be given "special voting rights" on certain issues, based on their extended runs in the Premier League.

West Ham would be one of those nine clubs but it is understood they were unaware of the proposals - and were shocked when they emerged into the public domain on Sunday.

A club insider has told BBC Sport they are "very much against" it.

Read more about the Project Big Picture plans here.

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Hello and thank you for joining our coverage of the coronavirus pandemic.

We've spent a lot of time following today's announcements by UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson. Here are some of the most significant developments across the rest of Europe:

• Two of the continent's worst-hit countries have reported a big jump in cases and hospital admissions. Spain registered nearly 28,000 more cases since Friday, nudging the cumulative total towards 900,000
• Meanwhile in France, nearly 1,000 Covid-19 patients were taken to hospital during the latest 24-hour period for which figures are available
• New measures are being rolled out in Croatia to counter the spread of coronavirus - including a limit on gatherings of no more than 50 people. It comes as authorities reported 181 new cases on Monday, bringing the national toll to 20,621 cases and 327 deaths
• In neighbouring Slovenia, the country's chief Covid-19 adviser has urged people to cancel traditional gatherings planned for 1 November, the Day of Remembrance of the Dead. Bojana Beovic warned that, with cases rising, more restrictions may have to be introduced

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Wales First Minister Mark Drakeford has threatened a travel ban on visitors from Covid hotspots in England coming to Wales if the prime minister does not impose his own.

He said he was giving UK ministers "one final opportunity" before he makes changes in Welsh law.

The UK government announced on Monday that it will advise against non-essential travel from Merseyside - which is facing the toughest coronavirus restrictions in England - but it stopped short of making it illegal, angering Welsh ministers.

Mr Drakeford said he could close the border with England, but that is not his preferred option.

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Much of the focus has been on restrictions changing today in an effort to curb the spread of the virus. Within the health service, preparation for treating patients in a second wave is stepping up.

On an industrial estate in Sunderland, this building could soon be saving lives.

The Nightingale Hospital has 460 beds and until now has never been used. Along with the sites in Harrogate and Manchester, it’s getting ready for the next phase of the pandemic as patient numbers continue to rise.

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It will be up to local clinicians to decide whether the Nightingale beds are used for coronavirus patients, or for those who don’t have the virus and still need urgent treatment.

It’s not surprising that these buildings are now on standby. Figures suggest that out of the ten hardest hit local authorities in the UK, six are in the north of England.

These Nightingale hospitals are getting ready to take some of that pressure.

Away from the PM's announcements today, the pandemic's impact on students continues.

England’s universities minister says it is “simply outrageous” how much students have been charged for food parcels when they are forced into self-isolation.

Michelle Donelan has tapped into the debate about the conditions facing students who have found themselves spending their new term in self-isolation, after Covid outbreaks on campus.

Responding to a question in the House of Commons about isolating students being charged £18 per day for food, she said “no university should seek to profit from students self-isolating” - and she promised to write to universities to “make the point".

"Students self-isolating in catered halls should receive free food, whilst other students should receive food which is either free - like many universities including Sheffield Hallam and Edge Hill are doing - or at a price which can be afforded within a student's budget,” said Ms Donelan.

The University of East Anglia had been charging about £18 per day for food for self-isolating students - but after accusations of taking advantage of students, this was lowered last week to about £12 per day.

The minister also revealed that there were now about 9,000 students with Covid - describing the figure as a “cumulative number of cases over the last seven days”.

The UCU lecturers’ union has questioned why students have been brought back to campus when so many are either catching coronavirus, or being put into social isolation by outbreaks in their accommodation blocks.

Labour MP Richard Burgon accused the government of playing “Russian roulette with the lives of students, staff and local communities”.

Here are the main developments from the prime minister's press conference this evening:

• Boris Johnson says the government's new three-tier alert system is a “balanced package”, adding that the government “could go now for a national lockdown again” but it didn’t “want to go down that extreme route right now'
• He says he wants to "take local authorities with me" but adds that if he can't get agreement "then clearly it is the duty of national government to take the necessary action"
• He also says a relatively normal Christmas is possible, but it depends on the public sticking to his coronavirus rules
• Prof Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, says he is "not confident" that tier three proposals for the "very high" alert areas "would be enough to get on top of" the virus in those areas
• He says there is "a lot of flexibility" for local authorities to add more restrictions on top of the "base" of tier three rules

Here are the main developments from other parts of the UK:

• Wales First Minister Mark Drakeford has threatened a travel ban in Wales on people from English Covid hotspots if the prime minister does not impose his own, saying he is giving UK ministers "one final opportunity" before he makes changes in Welsh law
• The Scottish government will implement a three-tier framework of restrictions later in October, similar to that being introduced in England
• And in Northern Ireland, health officials are understood to have suggested tighter coronavirus measures should last four to six weeks to have the greatest impact

Helen Pidd from the Guardian asks the PM if he accepts that decisions made on the national lockdown were made to suit London and the rest of the South - and asks if that's why the North is seeing such a surge in cases.

The PM says he doesn't accept this, and that the main difference between this "bout" of Covid-19 and the one in April is that it's much more localised this time around.

Pitt also asks Prof Whitty about evidence that curbs on pubs and restaurants work.

Prof Whitty says all the evidence points towards increased transmission of the virus in indoor settings, particularly those where people mix with other households, and without wearing masks.

This situation crops up in hospitality as well as in other sectors, he says - "and that is why the hospitality sector has been involved in restrictions".

England's chief medical officer says there are "two poles" of a response to this virus - a full lockdown to suppress the virus, and no lockdown at all.

"What we're trying to do... is find the right balance between the various things - all of which cause harm, all of which we would not want to do - but which can, collectively, if we do them all together, pull the numbers down," he says.

The question from the Liverpool Echo points to a possible political problem for the Prime Minister.

His big promise at the election was about spreading opportunity beyond London and the South East.

The fact that the virus is currently disproportionately affecting areas of the north of England risks making it look like it’s being hit harder or treated differently.

As Rishi Sunak pointed out, though, these are nationally-applicable measures that any area could expect to see if rates rise

A journalist from the Liverpool Echo asks about financial support for sectors struggling because of the restrictions.

He asks whether people in such industries are "valued less now" than when the government was running the full furlough wage support scheme.

The chancellor says the job support scheme (JSS), which replaces furlough from next month, is a UK-wide scheme which treats businesses in all areas the same.

He adds, though, that the JSS is a package the government believes is "sustainable and affordable for the long term".

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Boris Johnson is asked whether people will be asked to adhere to restrictions for a "year or so" if a vaccine is not found.

He is also asked whether there are "inconsistencies" in the new system in terms of which areas have ended up in which tier.

The prime minister replies that some "anomalies" are "inevitably going to happen".

He adds that medical progress is being made against the disease, but local and national restrictions are the "best utensil" the country has "for now".

Chris Whitty says medical progress is impossible to predict exactly but he is "extremely confident" the country will go into "next winter" in a "much better place".

Beth Rigby from Sky News reads the PM's opening remarks back to him - "we must act now", he said, against the "flashboard warnings" of increasing cases and hospital admissions.

Rigby points out that since Liverpool is the only area facing any vastly more stringent measures, that the PM's "rhetoric is "outstripping the measures".

She suggests the reason for that might be that local leaders are reluctant to accept the government's plans for local restrictions.

But Johnson says he wants to "take local authorities with me" because local knowledge, enforcement and contact tracing are "immensely valuable" in helping to tackle the spread of the virus.

He has a stark message for any local leader who is not willing to agree with the three-tiered system.

"If we can't get agreement, then clearly it is the duty of national government to take the necessary action to protect the public," he says.

Next up, ITV's Robert Peston asks whether more areas in the north of England would be in the "very high" areas without the interventions so far.

Boris Johnson says the government is working "particularly" with badly affected areas in the north of England and "stands ready" to work with all local areas.

Chris Whitty says the data showed the need to "do more" with the extra restrictions.

He adds, though, that it is an "illusion" to think that the virus can be further suppressed "without causing harm" in areas such as the economy.

Boris Johnson’s reference to the Mayor of the Liverpool City Region Steve Rotheram shows the importance of local leaders in all of this.

Some, like the Conservative Mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, are very unhappy about the tier the government has put them into.

He said he was not expecting Birmingham and some surrounding areas to see the restrictions on mixing in pubs and restaurants which have been announced.

It's time for questions from journalists, and the BBC's Laura Kuenssberg asks several - including about whether financial support is enough for people facing restrictions, and whether the restrictions themselves will be enough to curb the spread of the virus.

Prof Whitty says he is "not confident" that tier three proposals for the "very high" alert areas with the highest rates of transmission "would be enough to get on top of" the virus in those areas.

That is why there's "a lot of flexibility" for local authorities to add more restrictions on top of the "base" of tier three rules, he says.

He adds that it's widely agreed by experts that "the base will not be sufficient" to tackle the worst rates of infection.

The PM adds that he believes the R number will come down under the new three-tiered system, "if properly implemented and enforced".

He adds that a return to a national lockdown would be "extreme" and would do "a lot of immediate harm" such as to children who would miss out on school.

As for those calling for no restrictions at all, Johnson says: "I can't support that approach I'm afraid Laura. We have to do a balanced approach."

In a separate question from Kuenssberg, Sunak says his Job Support Scheme, covering two-thirds of wages is "very much in line with our peers" - citing Germany's scheme as an example.

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A member of the public asks what restrictions are likely to be in place over Christmas.

Boris Johnson says he hopes the situation will be "as close as possible" to normal.

But he adds this will depend on the level of success in tackling the virus, and following the guidance will be required to see "anything like" a normal festive period.

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Helen from Derby is the first member of the public to ask a question.

What support is there for industries such as the events sector, that have been shut down since March, she says?

Sunak says a business rates reduction programme has helped those people, as well as cash grants, so far.

But he accepts there are some sectors that cannot trade at all.

"The Job Support Scheme allows companies that are open but not trading... to bring employees back. That wage subsidy will help," he says.

As for nightclubs or other venues that have been told to close, Sunak says they will benefit from the "JSS" - which expands beyond the furlough scheme, he says.

"We are all keen to try and find away to get our economy going and get your businesses back to life," he tells Helen.

Continuing, Chris Whitty says there are "very variable" rates of infection in different age groups.

He says the "first rapid rise" is among younger people, but with the same pattern "seen at a much lower rate" among older age groups.

Hospital admissions are rising in each age group, but "in particular" among the older age groups, people over 65, 70 and 85.

He says a rise in cases will lead "inexorably" to more hospitalisations.