The UK has outlined its official emergency plans for tackling the spread of coronavirus.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson addressed the country at a press conference on Tuesday, saying it was "highly likely we'll see a growing number of UK cases."
Plans could include seeing up to one in five off work, as well as mass school closures, reducing social gatherings and working from home.
They state police may need to focus on responding to only the most serious crimes, while the military could also be called in to help with emergency services if needs be.
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He stated the government would be assessing the situation over a 12 week period and decide when is best to implement the plans as not to disrupt life unnecessarily.
Johnson also stated the government would ensure the NHS gets all the support it needs, with the health service expected to come under extreme pressure from a wave of cases.
On Monday, Johnson chaired an emergency Cobra meeting where the official government plan on how to tackle and contain the virus was signed off.
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The prime minister has said the UK "will stop at nothing" in the fight against coronavirus.
Following the meeting, Boris Johnson said the spread of the virus in the UK was "likely".
"We have also agreed a plan so that if and when it starts to spread, as I'm afraid it looks likely it will, we are in a position to take the steps necessary to... contain the spread of the disease as far as we can, and to protect the most vulnerable," he said yesterday.
On Monday, Department of Health UK confirmed the total number of cases in the country had risen by four, bringing the total number to 40.
Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty confirming the patients had previously travelled to Italy. The patients are from Hertfordshire, Devon and Kent, he said on Twitter.
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Many airlines have began cancelling flights in light of the Covid-19 outbreak, including easyJet, Ryanair and British Airways.
British Airways has cancelled flights to Italy, where the number of coronavirus cases now stands at over 2,000. It has also called off flights to France (which now has 191) and Germany, which has 165 cases of the disease.
Meanwhile, easyJet and Ryanair have heavily reduced their number of flights.
Dozens of schools across the country have been closed, meanwhile entire workforces have been told to go home amid fears of a spread.
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Last week, more than 300 workers from US oil company Chevron were sent home from their offices in Canary Wharf, after an employee was sent for coronavirus testing following a trip to one of the countries affected by the deadly virus.
There are now 91,307 reported cases of coronavirus across the globe, with 3,120 deaths.
China still has the highest number of cases, with just over 80,000, while South Korea has a reported 5,186.
See below for the latest coronavirus cases in each country.
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China - 80,152
South Korea - 5,186
Italy - 2,036
Iran - 1,501
Japan - 274
Germany - 165
France - 191
Spain - 120
Singapore - 108
Hong Kong - 100
USA - 103
Kuwait - 56
Bahrain - 49
Thailand - 43
Taiwan - 41
UK - 40
Australia - 34
Malaysia - 29
Canada - 27
Switzerland - 30
Iraq - 26
UAE - 21
Norway - 19
Netherlands - 18
Vietnam - 16
Austria - 18
Sweden - 15
Macao - 10
Israel - 12
Lebanon - 13
San Marino - 8
Belgium - 8
Croatia - 8
Greece - 7
Ecuador - 7
Finland - 7
Oman - 6
India - 6
Mexico - 6
Denmark - 4
Pakistan - 5
Philippines - 3
Algeria - 5
Azerbaijan - 3
Czechia - 4
Georgia - 3
Iceland - 3
Qatar - 7
Romania - 3
Russia - 3
Brazil - 2
Egypt - 2
Indonesia - 2
Portugal - 2
Afghanistan - 1
Andorra - 1
Armenia - 1
Belarus - 1
Cambodia - 1
Dominican Republic - 1
Estonia - 1
Ireland - 1
Jordan - 1
Lithuania - 1
Luxembourg - 1
North Macedonia - 1
Monaco - 1
Nepal - 1
New Zealand - 1
Nigeria - 1
Sri Lanka - 1
Diamond Princess cruise ship - 706
Featured Image Credit: PATopics: Life News, Life, Coronavirus
