Coronavirus news – live: England and Wales death toll passes 40,000 as WHO warns countries lifting lockdowns risk ‘immediate second peak’

China to step up military preparedness amid coronavirus pandemic

China's president. Xi Jinping, has said his nation would step up its preparedness for armed combat and improve its ability to carry out military tasks as the coronavirus pandemic is having a profound impact on national security, state television reported.

China's performance in fighting the new coronavirus has shown the success of military reform, Mr Xi was quoted as saying, adding that the armed forces should explore new ways of training amid the pandemic.

Mr Xi, who chairs China's Central Military Commission, made the comments when attending a plenary meeting of the delegation of the People's Liberation Army and People's Armed Police Force on the sidelines of the annual session of parliament.

Spain to seek highest amount of coronavirus emergency funds possible

Spain will seek the highest amount possible in transfers from the European Union's coronavirus emergency funds, government spokeswoman Maria Jesus Montero has said.

"We will keep fighting so that the transfers are the largest possible and so it doesn't mean debt for Spain's government," she told a news conference following the weekly cabinet meeting.

The European Commission will propose on Wednesday its blueprint for the 27-nation bloc's budget, known as the Multiannual Financial Framework and worth around a trillion euros, and the accompanying coronavirus Recovery Fund.

South Korea reports 19 new cases on day before children return to schoool

South Korea has reported 19 new coronavirus cases on the eve of the return to school for more than 2 million children.

The majority of the new cases were in the Seoul metropolitan area, where officials have been actively tracing transmissions linked to nightclubs and other entertainment venues.

South Korea's Centres for Disease Control and Prevention also reported two more deaths, bringing the country's total to 269 fatalities from 11,225 cases.

Wednesday will see around 2.4 million pupils return to school, and health minister Park Neung-hoo urged school officials to double-check their preventive measures.

A new law has come into force in South Korea requiring people to wear masks on public transport and while using taxis.

Uber cuts 600 jobs in India

Uber has cut about 600 jobs in India as part of plans to reduce its global workforce by 23 per cent, the company has said, joining local rival Ola as the Covid-19 pandemic crushes demand for app-based cab services.

Last week, Uber said it would focus on its core businesses in ride-hailing and food delivery and cut staffing globally in an attempt to become profitable despite the coronavirus pandemic.

"The impact of Covid-19 and the unpredictable nature of the recovery has left Uber India SA with no choice but to reduce the size of its workforce," Uber India and South Asia president Pradeep Parameswaran said.

Laid off employees will receive a minimum of 10 weeks' worth of payout, medical insurance coverage for the next six months and other help, Mr Parameswaran added.

The ride-hailing taxi business in India came to a halt in late March as the government enforced a countrywide lockdown to contain the spread of the virus. The lockdown has since been eased, but companies across sectors face challenges as demand for their services has dropped.

No reason to keep Swedes out when Nordic neighbours reopen borders, insists minister

 Excluding Sweden from moves to open borders across the Nordic region as it recovers from the coronavirus pandemic would be a political decision and not justifiable on health grounds, the country's foreign Ann Linde has said.

With many European countries looking to ease travel restrictions ahead of the summer, there are concerns elsewhere in the Nordic region that allowing Swedish tourists in could increase the risk of new infections.

Sweden has not imposed a sweeping lockdown to stem the spread of coronavirus, and he country's death toll of 4,000 is nearly four times the combined total of the other Nordic countries.

Swedish media has raised concerns that the country could be excluded as curbs on travel are relaxed, both in the Nordic region and elsewhere in Europe.

"It is a very complicated issue, and I think that all politicians in every country should also look at the long term effect before they take very politically motivated decisions," Linde said.

Canadian politician says now is 'great time' to build oil pipelines because lockdown prevents protests

A Canadian politician is facing criticism after suggesting it is a “great time” to build oil pipelines because coronavirus lockdowns are preventing large protests.

Alberta’s energy minister Sonya Savage made the remarks during a podcast on Friday with the Canadian Association of Oilwell Drilling Contractors, reports The Independent's environment correspondent Louise Boyle.

Scottish Tory leader calls for resignation of Dominic Cummings

The leader of the Scottish Conservative Party Jackson Carlaw has called on Boris Johnson’s under-pressure advisor Dominic Cummings to resign.

The MSP said the scandal over the strategist’s trip from London to Durham during the lockdown was proving too much of a distraction.

Carlaw said he had made his view that Cummings should “consider his position” known to Downing Street, according to both the BBC and STV.

It follows the resignation of Douglas Ross, the Under Secretary of State for Scotland, from the government over the issue earlier today.

Coronavirus 'disastrous' for children's rights

Measures to taken by governments to curb the outbreak of coronavirus have had a "disastrous impact" on many children, a report has warned.

School closures affecting 1.5 billion children across 188 countries have left boys and girls more vulnerable to child labour, child marriage, teenage pregnancy, and domestic violence, according to the NGO Kids Right.

It also warns "unprecedented pressure" on healthcare has shut down regular vaccination programmes such as polio and measles and "will cause a spike of hundreds of thousands in additional infant mortality".

The United Nations estimates that an extra 42 to 66 million children could fall into extreme poverty as a result of the crisis this year, the report notes.

Half of all Covid-19 tweets could be from bots spreading conspiracies

Almost half of all Twitter accounts discussing Covid-19 online could be bots pushing conspiracies or so-called cures, new research suggests.

Computer scientists at Carnegie Mellon University processed more than 200 million tweets discussing the Covid-19 virus posted to Twitter since January.

They discovered that about 45 per cent were sent by Twitter accounts that had robotic behaviour, making it possible that millions of automated messages were posted online to disrupt discussion, reports Gino Spocchia.

Researchers added that the tweets appeared to create division in America on coronavirus, but that they could not confirm what individuals or groups are behind the bot accounts.