UK tears up laws to help struggling businesses to stay afloat amid coronavirus

Bankruptcy laws and other legislation will be changed in the coming weeks and months to help struggling businesses stay afloat after the coronavirus pandemic, it was announced today.

At a Downing Street press conference held by Business Secretary Alok Sharma and NHS England medical director Professor Stephen Powis it was pledged that measures would be introduced to help businesses and companies on the verge of insolvency.

Also during the press conference Prof Powis warned the UK would ‘do well’ to keep the death toll in the country from the pandemic below 20,000.

Mr Powis said: “The number of deaths that arise out of this epidemic in the UK, if it’s less than 20,000 as Sir Patrick Vallance (the government’s chief scientific adviser) said that would be a good result – although every death as I’ve said is absolutely a tragedy…

“Although that will be a good result, it will only happen if we stop the transmission of the virus.”

Mr Sharma said “red tape” will be reduced to allow new producers of hand sanitiser to bring products to market “in a matter of days”.

“We are also introducing a range of measures to boost the supply of personal protective equipment, such as face masks, to protect frontline NHS staff,” he told the press conference in Downing Street.

“And we’re removing administrative barriers to the production of hand sanitiser.

“By reducing the amount of red tape, new suppliers and businesses that produce ingredients for safe hand sanitiser will be able to bring their products to market in a matter of days.”

Mr Sharma said that workers can now defer their annual leave for another two years.

He added: “This will protect staff from losing out, while providing businesses with flexibility when they need it most.”

Companies required to hold annual general meetings will be be able to do so flexibly in a matter compatible with public health guidance, Mr Sharma said.

“This might include postponing or holding the AGM online, or by phone using only proxy voting,” he said.

Prof Stephen Powis, National Medical Director of NHS England, said the NHS was working “incredibly hard” to increase its bed capacity.

He said the focus was firstly on London, where coronavirus has spread quicker than in other parts of the country.

“We are not at capacity yet within London, but beds are being opened all the time to increase that extra surge capacity,” he said.

“In the first instance we are using theatres and recovery areas; those are areas in hospitals where anaesthetic machines, ventilators, are already used for surgery and can be readily adapted to take critically ill patients.”

He added: “That’s almost doubling the capacity that we have already. We are not using it at the moment, but clearly the number of patients is increasing each day.”

Earlier today it was announced that the number of people who have died after contracting coronavirus in the UK has passed 1,000.

The jump in Covid-19-related deaths in the UK from 759 to 1,019 is an increase of 260.

It is by far the biggest day-on-day rise in the number of deaths since the outbreak began.

More than 120,000 coronavirus tests have taken place, with more than 17,000 positive results across the United Kingdom.

Also today the first images from inside the NHS Nightingale Hospital – a re-purposed ExCel centre in east London – were released.

The latest figures come after Scottish Secretary Alister Jack revealed he had developed mild symptoms of coronavirus and was self-isolating.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is already having to lead the response to the pandemic from isolation in Downing Street after he was diagnosed with the disease, as has England’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

Mr Johnson has been accused of failing to follow his own social distancing rules after Mr Hancock tested positive and England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty began self-isolating with symptoms.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson held a video conference call this morning and continues to lead the Government’s efforts to combat Covid-19 as he self-isolates after testing positive for the illness, Mr Sharma said this evening.

In other developments this weekend:

– NHS workers began being tested for coronavirus at a temporary drive-through testing station in the car park of Chessington World of Adventures in Surrey.

– Photos revealed the inside of the ExCel centre in London which is being made into a temporary hospital with two wards, each for 2,000 people, to help tackle the coronavirus response.

– The British Red Cross said evictions of asylum seekers from Government accommodation are to be halted amid fears about the disease.

– Police urged motorcyclists to stay out of the countryside and told them they cannot claim it is part of their permitted daily exercise under lockdown rules.

The total number of deaths is 34% higher than the equivalent figure on Friday and the largest day-on-day percentage increase since March 18, when the total rose from 71 to 104 (46%).

It took 13 days for the number of deaths in the UK to go from one to more than 100. It has taken a further 10 days for the total to go from more than 100 to more than 1,000.

Meanwhile, the number of people tested in the UK for coronavirus was 120,776 as of 9am on Saturday March 28.

Just under 50,000 tests (47,958) were carried out in the seven days to 9am on Saturday. In the previous seven days the number of tests was 35,072.

The total number of confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK now stands at 17,089, as of 9am on Saturday.

One week ago, on March 21, the total stood at 5,018.

Coronavirus tests for NHS frontline staff are being trialled this weekend to help those who are self-isolating and need to be given the all-clear from the disease to return to work.

The Government’s aim is to carry out about 800 tests at designated sites in hotspot areas such as London and then scale them up in the weeks ahead.

Retailer Boots has opened facilities at its headquarters in Nottingham and at Chessington to support the Government’s testing bid.

One critical care nurse self-isolating in Manchester with mild symptoms, who asked not to be named, said her unit had around a quarter of nursing staff off work – some 50 people.

She told the PA news agency: “I’ve called 111 yesterday and today and called the hospital I work at and our local Boots to ask about testing.

“111 don’t know anything more than the news and neither do the hospital. So no, don’t feel optimistic at all.”

She said it was “very frustrating” and she felt “useless” being stuck at home with another nurse and a doctor.

With training in “extra-corporeal life support”, she said she and a housemate would “be far more use at work if we could just get a test”.

She added: “I feel well enough to work but feel I’ve a responsibility to keep my colleagues safe.”