There now follows a ministerialbroadcast from the Prime Minister. Good evening,the Coronavirus is the biggest threat this country has faced for decades andthis country is not alone. All over the world, we're seeing the devastating impactof this invisible killer and so tonight I want to update you on the latest stepswe're taking to fight the disease and what you can do to help.

Coronavirus: PM Boris Johnson's lockdown statement

And I want tobegin by reminding you why the UK has been taking the approach that we have.Without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will comea moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope because therewon't be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors andnurses and as we've seen elsewhere in other countries that also have fantastichealth care systems, that is the moment of real danger. To put it simply, if toomany people become seriously unwell at one time, the NHS will be unable tohandle it, meaning more people are likely to die not just from Coronavirus, butfrom other illnesses as well.

So it's vital to slow the spread of the diseasebecause that is the way we reduce the number of people needing hospitaltreatment at any one time, so we can protect the NHS's ability to cope andsave more lives and that's why we've been asking people to stay at homeduring this pandemic and though huge numbers are complying, and I thank youall, the time has now come for us all to do more. From this evening, I must givethe British people a very simple instruction, you must stay at homebecause the critical thing we must do to stop the disease spreading betweenhouseholds.

That is why people will only be allowed to leave their home for thefollowing very limited purposes: shopping for basic necessities asinfrequently as possible, one form of exercise a day, for example, a run, walk orcycle alone or with members of your household, any medical need to providecare or to help a vulnerable person and traveling to and from work but onlywhether this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home. That's all.These are the only reasons you should leave your home. You should not bemeeting friends. If your friends ask you to meet you, should say no.

You should not be meeting family members who do not live in your home. You should not begoing shopping except for essentials like food and medicine and you should dothis as little as you can and use food delivery services where you can. If youdon't follow the rules, the police will have the powers toenforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings, to ensurecompliance with the government's instruction to stay at home, we willimmediately close all shops selling non-essential goods, including clothingand electronic stores and other premises including libraries, playgrounds andoutdoor gyms and places of worship. will remain open for exercise but gatherings will be dispersed. No PrimeMinister wants to enact measures like this. I know the damage that thisdisruption is doing and will do to people's lives to their businesses andto their jobs and that's why we've produced a huge and unprecedentedprogram of support, both for workers and for business and I can assure you thatwe will keep these restrictions under constant review.

We will look againin three weeks and relax them, if the evidence shows we are able to but atpresent, there are just no easy options. The way ahead is hard and it is stilltrue that many lives will sadly be lost and it is also true that there is aclear way through day by day, we are strengthening our amazing NHS with 7500former clinicians now coming back to the service. With the time you buy by simplystaying at home, we are increasing our stocks of equipment. We are acceleratingour search for treatments.

We're pioneering work on a vaccine and we arebuying millions of testing kits that will enable us to turn the tide on thisinvisible killer. I want to thank everyone who is working flat-out to beatthe virus. Everyone from the supermarket staff to the transport workers to thecarers to the nurses and doctors on the frontline but in this fight we can be inno doubt that each and every one of us is directly enlisted. Each and every oneof us is now obliged to join together to halt the spread of this disease toprotect our NHS and to save many, many thousands of lives and I know that, asthey have in the past so many times, the people of this country will rise to thatchallenge and we will come through it stronger than ever. We will beat thecoronavirus and we will beat it together and therefore, I urge you at this momentof national emergency to stay at home. Protect our NHS and save lives. Thank you.

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