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FeedSource: [BBCTech]

Time: 2020-03-10 06:05:39 UTC

Original URL: https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-51812326 [bbc.co.uk] using utf-8 encoding.

Title: Coronavirus: NHS targets fake news spreading online

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Coronavirus: NHS targets fake news spreading online

Arthur T Knackerbracket has found the following story [bbc.co.uk]:

The decision to delay closing schools and introduce other strict measures to combat coronavirus has been defended by England's deputy chief medical officer.

Dr Jenny Harries said experts are assessing new cases on an hourly basis to achieve a "balanced response".

She told BBC Breakfast new measures could follow as UK cases begin to rise rapidly over the next two weeks.

In the UK, five people with the virus have died. There were 319 confirmed cases as of 09:00 GMT [twitter.com] on Monday.

Dr 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 added: "Within 10-14 days we will be likely to advise people with symptoms to self-isolate and we are expecting that start of the peak [of coronavirus cases] to come during that period."

Dr Harries said cancelling big outdoor events like football matches would not necessarily be a decision supported by science.

"The virus will not survive very long outside," she said. "Many outdoor events, particularly, are relatively safe."

Dr Harries' comments come as the UK Foreign Office warned British residents against all but essential travel to Italy and airlines cancelled flights.

British Airways has cancelled all of its flights to and from Italy on Tuesday, while Easyjet cancelled the majority of its flights to and from Milan, Venice and Verona.

An FCO spokesman said: "The advice is that anyone who arrives from Italy subsequent to the Italian government decision should now self-isolate for 14 days."

On Monday the Italian authorities extended strict quarantine measures to the entire country [bbc.co.uk] from Tuesday.

Italian Prime Minister Giuseppe Conte ordered the country's entire population to stay home, seek permission for essential travel and justify leaving the country.

The NHS has unveiled a range of measures as part of its response to try to stop fake news being spread about coronavirus on the internet.

Searches for "coronavirus" on Google, Facebook and YouTube will now promote information from the National Health Service or the World Health Organization.

The NHS said it had worked with Twitter to take down an account claiming to be a hospital and spreading false information [bbc.co.uk], while it is also speaking out against homeopaths promoting false treatments online.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the actions meant the public could access accurate health information "which is more crucial than ever as we continue our response to coronavirus".

The UK is currently in the first phase - "containment" - of the government's four-part plan [www.gov.uk].

On Monday, health officials said people who showed "even minor" signs of respiratory tract infections or a fever would soon be told to self-isolate for seven days in an effort to tackle the outbreak.

The change in advice could happen within the next 10 to 14 days, the UK's chief medical adviser Prof Chris Whitty said.

It came after researchers in the US found it took five days for most people with coronavirus to show symptoms [bbc.co.uk].

Prime Minister Boris Johnson also suggested the elderly and vulnerable could be asked to stay home in the near future.

The environment department, Defra, said by allowing night-time deliveries - currently restricted to avoid disturbing locals - stock would be able to move more quickly from warehouses to shelves.

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps tweeted [twitter.com] that he stood "ready to allow drivers' hours to be safely and temporarily extended, if needed".

He has also written to the European Commission, asking for rules on take-off and landing slot allocations at major airports to be relaxed during the outbreak.

Under European law, if flights are not operated, slots have to be forfeited.

Meanwhile, US authorities are expected to fly home Britons who were on board the virus-hit Grand Princess cruise ship later, according to the Foreign Office.

There were 142 British people on the ship, which spent five days stranded off the coast [bbc.co.uk] of California.

However, one of the Britons on board, Jackie Bissell, told BBC Radio 4's Today programme she had yet to hear from the ship's captain about her departure.

"They haven't said anything about when we can go," she said. "It's very unnerving to be left out here when we don't know what's going to happen."

Elsewhere, crowds exceeding 60,000 are expected on all four days of horse racing's Cheltenham Festival, which starts on Tuesday afternoon.

It comes after Culture Secretary Oliver Dowden said there was no reason to cancel such events due to coronavirus, although many other sporting fixtures, including the Six Nations [bbc.co.uk] and Formula One [bbc.co.uk], have been affected.

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