Coronavirus: UK cases rise to 163, government confirms

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The number of coronavirus cases in the UK has now reached 163, the government has confirmed.

The latest figure includes 147 cases in England, 11 in Scotland, three in Northern Ireland and two in Wales.

It is a jump of 48 cases since Thursday – the biggest increase in one day. More than 20,000 people have been tested.

The UK’s first death linked to the virus was announced on Thursday, after a woman in her 70s with underlying health conditions died in hospital.

As well as her death in the UK, a British man also died from the virus last month after being infected on the Diamond Princess cruise ship off the coast of Japan.

The Department of Health said as of 7:00 GMT on Friday, 20,338 people had been tested.

According to the figures, of the 147 cases in England there are:

• 29 in London
• 24 in the South East
• 22 in the South West
• 21 in the North West
• 13 in the North East and Yorkshire
• 12 in the Midlands
• 11 in the East of England
• 15 not yet confirmed

In Scotland, there are two cases in Fife, three in Grampian, two in Forth Valley and one each in Lothian, Tayside, Ayrshire & Arran and Greater Glasgow & Clyde.

Earlier, the UK government pledged to spend £46m on urgent work to find a vaccine for the virus – which causes the disease Covid-19 – and develop a rapid test for the disease.

The money will fund work on eight possible vaccines which are already in development as well as a lab in Bedford to try to create a test that could provide results within 20 minutes.

Currently, tests take a couple of days to provide results.

In other developments:

• British Airways said two members of their staff – believed to be from the baggage team – had tested positive for Covid-19. The two employees are now self-isolating at home
• More than 140 British nationals – including 21 crew members – are stranded on a cruise ship which has been prevented from docking in San Francisco while tests are carried out
• A church in Devon has been closed for a deep clean after a parishioner tested positive and a Hare Krishna temple near Watford has also closed because of a coronavirus case among its congregation
• The latest drive-through coronavirus test centre has opened, this time in north-east Wales, where people do not need to leave their cars to be tested

On Thursday, Health Secretary Matt Hancock told a BBC Question Time audience he was “absolutely confident” food supplies would not run out, amid concerns some people were stockpiling.

But a supermarket executive told the BBC sales of cupboard basics had “gone through the roof” and he was not sure the government could guarantee food supply in all instances.

Meanwhile, the prime minister’s official spokesman previously said it was “highly likely the virus is going to spread in a significant way”.

The government said the UK was still in the first phase of its four-part plan to tackle the virus outbreak, which is made up of: contain, delay, research and mitigate.

But officials were ramping up work to prepare for the next phase, the PM’s spokesman added.

The government is still deciding what measures will be taken in the delay phase, but has previously said this could include banning big events, closing schools, encouraging people to work from home and discouraging the use of public transport.