Plus, how stars are shooting TV dramas from home
| | | | At the end of this week the prime minister will reveal his "roadmap" to get the UK out of lockdown. Ahead of that, the BBC has seen what the rules around workplaces might look like. Reduced hot-desking, staggered shifts and continued home-working wherever possible are all among measures being considered. The draft strategy accepts that maintaining distancing of 2m (6ft) between workers will be impossible in some settings so additional hygiene procedures, physical screens and the use of protective equipment (PPE) should be considered. BBC business editor Simon Jack explains why confidence in whatever is implemented will be crucial, while David Shukman looks at the science behind the two-metre rule. Public transport, in particular, is a tricky area and rail unions have written to Boris Johnson with "severe concerns" over plans to increase train services. There are also fears that workplaces could compete with the health and care sector for access to precious PPE. In other news, small businesses needing help to recover from the crisis can, from Monday, apply for so-called "bounce-back loans", guaranteed by the government. An NHS contact-tracing app aimed at limiting a second wave of coronavirus will be tested on the Isle of Wight this week. And a new drug developed by UK scientists to treat sufferers is being trialled in Southampton. Here we answer a fresh tranche of questions from readers on the pandemic, including on the situation facing university students. The government has said those in England will still have to pay full tuition fees even if their courses are taught online in the autumn. | |
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| Experts say a return to normal life will only be possible with a vaccine, and on Monday, countries including the UK, Canada, Japan and Saudi Arabia will co-host an online pledging conference aimed at raising €7.5bn (£6.6bn; $8.3bn) to fund scientific research. President Trump has said he believes the US will have a vaccine by the end of the year, although he acknowledged that even his own scientists would view that as too optimistic. Meanwhile, his Secretary of State, Mike Pompeo, has again reiterated the claim that there is "significant evidence" the virus was created in a Chinese lab. Intelligence agencies say it was not man-made. France, Italy and Spain have registered the lowest daily death tolls for weeks as they begin easing restrictions on public life. The lockdown has caused great hardship though, as poor residents in the Italian city of Naples explain. Elsewhere, in Russia, the virus appears to be advancing, with 10,000 new infections, although the mortality rate remains relatively low. And in Brazil, President Bolsonaro continues to downplay the impact of the pandemic even as case numbers soar. The Amazonian city of Manaus, in particular, has been overwhelmed. Our live page has all the latest developments, and we look at the range of strategies countries are using to lift their lockdowns. And finally, can summer be saved for the worldwide tourism industry? | |
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| | | | | ITV, the BBC and Netflix have found ways to make new TV dramas during lockdown - with the cast and crew at a safe distance. But screen dramas won't be back to normal for a long time. Before coronavirus, the set of a typical TV drama would be a hive of activity, filled with dozens of people busily sorting out everything from cameras to costumes. The making of ITV's Isolation Stories was not like that. Actors like Sheridan Smith and Robert Glenister and their families did all the filming themselves in their own homes, with a director giving advice via Zoom. | |
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| | Ian Youngs | BBC entertainment and arts reporter | |
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| | | | There are plenty of hints in the papers about what post-lockdown workplaces could look like. The Financial Times suggests staff canteens will stay closed and use of lifts will be limited. The i says stations could implement one-way systems. The Daily Telegraph, though, warns the PM he has so far promised nothing more than a menu of options and must "do more than set out a blueprint to an uncertain future". The Times says Boris Johnson is waiting until Sunday, "giving himself more time to examine crucial data from a new study of how the virus is spreading". Year 6 pupils will be the first to return to school, according to the Guardian. They've been deemed a priority because of the vital transition to secondary schools in September. Finally, under the headline "Lockdown OAPs' revolt", the Daily Mirror says former government minister Lady Altmann believes healthy over 70s may "stage a rebellion" if they're made to stay at home longer than other social groups. | |
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