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The number of coronavirus cases in the UK has now reached 373, a rise of 54 from Monday’s figure.
It comes as a man in his early 80s became the sixth person to die in the UK with the virus.
Meanwhile, airlines have cut thousands of flights including to and from Italy after the country was put on lockdown.
Earlier, England’s deputy chief medical officer defended the decision to delay closing schools and introducing other stringent measures.
Dr Jenny Harries said experts are assessing new cases on an hourly basis to achieve a “balanced response”.
The latest figures as of 9:00 GMT on Tuesday include 324 cases in England, 27 in Scotland, 16 in Northern Ireland and six in Wales.
Of the cases in England, there are 91 in London, with the next highest infected area being the South East, which has 51 cases. Cases by local council area in England can be viewed here.
The latest person to die, on Monday evening, was a man with underlying health conditions who was being treated at Watford General Hospital, the West Hertfordshire Hospitals NHS Trust said.
He caught the virus in the UK and officials are trying to trace who he was in contact with, the country’s chief medical adviser Prof Chris Whitty said.
The UK Foreign Office has warned Britons against all but essential travel to Italy after the country introduced strict travel restrictions.
Italy’s extended quarantine measures require residents to stay home, seek permission for essential travel, and give justification for leaving the country.
‘Enter shops one at a time’
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Hannah Butcher
“We know we’ll have to go into quarantine when we get home.”
“It’s the weirdest holiday I think I’ve ever been on,” said Hannah Butcher, from Newbury, Berkshire, who is in Rome with her husband for their first holiday alone since having a child.
“We arrived on Sunday. The advice then was as long as you’re not going into Italy’s red zone, you’re OK.
“We’re currently sitting in a restaurant and everyone here is in staggered rows because they have to sit one metre apart. It’s quite weird seeing families spread across multiple tables.”
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Hannah Butcher
No queues at Rome’s Colosseum, which is among the attractions to have shut
She added that people are “only allowed to enter shops one at a time”.
“All the attractions are closed; there are queues out the door of supermarkets and the butchers. There are police driving round making sure the rules are enforced and a noticeable armed police presence, presumably to keep order.”
She said they are due to fly home with Ryanair on Wednesday morning and have not been informed of any flight updates.
In other developments:
- The owner of Nottingham Forest FC, Evangelos Marinakis, has tested positive after returning to Greece from the UK
- Staff at chocolate maker Cadbury are having their temperatures taken as a “precautionary measure”
- Great Ormond Street children’s hospital cancelled some non-essential cardiac operations for two weeks after a health worker in its cardiology department tested positive for the virus
- A Sky call centre in Cardiff has been evacuated after a worker was diagnosed with the virus
- Prison campaigners at the Howard League for Penal Reform have raised concerns that “unhygienic” prisons could be “a centre for spreading the virus” as they called on the government to reveal its plan to protect inmates
- Royal Bank of Scotland said it would allow customers to defer mortgage payments if needed
- The NHS partnered with technology firms to help promote official health advice online
- New research showed that, on average, it took five days for people to show symptoms of the virus
British Airways has cancelled all of its flights to and from Italy until 4 April, and has asked staff to take voluntary unpaid leave.
BA said customers due to fly to or from Italy before 4 April can rebook to a later date until the end of May, move their destination to Geneva or Zurich, or receive a full refund.
Easyjet cancelled all of its flights to and from Italy on Tuesday and Wednesday.
It is likely the airline could cancel more in the coming weeks, but it is probable that a handful of flights will operate to ensure that British nationals can return home, BBC transport correspondent Tom Burridge said.
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PA Media
A Holiday Inn hotel near Heathrow Airport has been reserved by the government for people arriving from abroad to self-isolate
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Great Ormond Street children’s hospital in London said a health worker in its cardiology department had tested positive
Ryanair will cancel all its flights to and from Italy from Saturday until 8 April, while Jet2 has cancelled its Italian routes until 26 April.
A Foreign Office spokesman said: “The advice is that anyone who arrives from Italy subsequent to the Italian government decision should now self-isolate for 14 days.”
Downing Street said Italians arriving in the UK were being given the same advice as Britons to self-isolate and that the government had facilities available to accommodate them.
Meanwhile airline Norwegian, which operates from several UK airports, said it was cutting 3,000 flights and reducing staff numbers after a fall in demand it attributed to coronavirus.
Son speaks of father’s death
The son said his father – who had underlying conditions – was “healthy” by his own standards
On Sunday, a 60-year-old man from Greater Manchester became the third person to die after contracting coronavirus. He had recently visited northern Italy.
The man was taken to North Manchester General Hospital and the rest of his family was told to self-isolate.
“Since we cannot go outside we regularly called the ward where he was ill,” the man’s son told BBC Bengali. “They did not allow me to speak to him directly.”
The son said they later received a phone call from the hospital saying his father – who had underlying conditions including arthritis, heart problems, and high cholesterol – had died.
Dr Jenny Harries said the vast majority of those diagnosed with coronavirus in Britain are “pretty well” but that they may “feel a bit rough for a few days”.
She told BBC Breakfast new government measures could follow, as UK cases begin to rise rapidly over the next two weeks.
She added that people with flu-like symptoms will be advised to self-isolate within 10 to 14 days and, at the same time, significant increases in the number of cases are likely to begin.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said “wherever clinically and practically possible” people should access GP appointments “through phones and digital means”.
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The NHS has now unveiled a range of measures as part of its response to try to stop fake news being spread about coronavirus online.
Searches for “coronavirus” on Google, Facebook and YouTube will now promote information from the NHS or the World Health Organization.
Asked about statutory sick pay for workers who are not currently eligible, Health Secretary Matt Hancock told MPs that “whatever the status of people” who are employed, the government will “ensure that they will get the support so they’re not penalised for doing the right thing”.
The UK is currently in the first phase – “containment” – of the government’s four-part plan.
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British nationals who were on board the virus-hit Grand Princess cruise ship are being flown back to the UK where they will go into self-isolation.
There were 142 Britons on the ship, which was stranded off the coast of California for five days.
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