Hospitals are quieter and shops and cafes are tentatively re-opening. Italy is trying to get back to some kind of normality. But how has the #Covid19 pandemic affected front line workers? Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F The story of Italy’s coronavirus outbreak starts here. On 20 February, there were no known cases of Covid-19 in Europe. The people of Lodi never expected their small hospital to become the epicentre of the outbreak. Head of A&E Dr Stefano Paglia tells Newsnight: “In this situation, to think about going back to normal is a trap. “There has always been this tendency to be in denial. Now we’re in a new phase. “And I see this obsession with getting back to normal. I think we have to accept that this is our new normal. “And we have to deal with it”. International Editor Gabriel Gatehouse reports. Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight

UK PM Boris Johnson’s most senior adviser, Dominic Cummings, has said he acted reasonably and legally after driving across England during lockdown, while he had coronavirus symptoms. But what exactly did he do and when? Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F Dominic Cummings drove 260 miles (418km) from London to Durham, and took a 60-mile round trip from Durham to a nearby town on his wife’s birthday – a trip he says he made to test whether his eyesight was good enough to drive. Mr Cummings is facing calls to resign, both from opposition politicians and members of the governing Conservative Party, whose leader, Boris Johnson, he advises. In a highly unusual move for an adviser, Mr Cummings gave a press conference, which was intended to clear up any details of his whereabouts, but many questions remain. Mr Cummings has said he believed he acted “reasonably” and within the law. He has so far been backed by Mr Johnson and other senior government ministers. But his actions have raised the question – did one of the government’s most senior employees ignore the rules he had helped set for millions of people across the nation? Policy Editor Lewis Goodall takes a look at the holes in the account. In the studio, Emily Maitis is joined by the SNP’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford and Conservative MPs Craig Whittaker and Andrew Bridgen. WATCH MORE OF OUR CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: https://bbc.in/2Vxe5HQ #Newsnight #Coronavirus #BBCNews Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme [More]

Is anyone willing to stand up to one of the world’s most powerful nations? Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F President Trump blamed China for trying to cover up the coronavirus outbreak and has accused the World Health Organisation of failing to hold Beijing to account. But, China’s President, Xi Jinping, has defended his country’s actions during the crisis saying they’ve acted with “openness and transparency”. So, has the virus fundamentally changed relations between the West and China? International Editor Gabriel Gatehouse reports. Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight

While the WHO warns that coronavirus “may never go away”, the hunt for a vaccine remains centre stage. But how close to developing one are we? Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F Testing, tracking and isolation will all reduce the short term impact of the virus, but can we eradicate it? A coronavirus vaccine remains the Holy Grail treatment, and the hunt for find one if the mother of all global competitions at the moment. There are more than 100 potential vaccines being tested at a cost of billions of pounds – but if one is ever developed, is it likely to be a commercially lucrative win or patent-free for the good of humanity? Health Correspondent Deborah Cohen reports. In the studio Kirsty Wark is joined by the director of the Wellcome Trust and SAGE member Jeremy Farrar who told Newsnight that “in retrospect it was” a mistake to drop the test, track and trace strategy in early March and change the UK’s policy towards tackling Covid19. WATCH MORE OF OUR CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: https://bbc.in/2Vxe5HQ #Health #Coronavirus #Newsnight Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight

Throughout the UK’s coronavirus crisis, the government has stressed its response has been guided not by ideology; not by politics – but by the science. So what are the scientific justifications for lockdown? Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F Coronavirus is continuing its spread across the world, with more than three and a half million confirmed cases in 187 countries and over 250,000 people have lost their lives. So how is the UK government handling the crises? Health Correspondent Deborah Cohen analyses some of the scientific justifications behind the UK’s approach and takes a look at the government’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic. In response to the report, Imperial told Newsnight: “Imperial’s models and projections are updated and published on a daily basis as new information emerges and we continue to communicate estimated levels of uncertainty around them” They added: “Our epidemiologists were, and are, very clear about where their expertise sits, and where other experts or wider society and government would be better placed to grapple with ethical or economic questions.” A government spokesman told Newsnight: “From the very beginning of this crisis, we have listened to the advice of our world-leading scientists and medical experts and taken the right measures at the right time to defeat coronavirus.” WATCH MORE OF OUR CORONAVIRUS COVERAGE: https://bbc.in/2Vxe5HQ #Health #Coronavirus #Covid19 Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight

How is the UK’s contact tracing effort accelerating? And could it become a key way for the UK to ease the strict lockdown measures still in place? Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F In his first appearance back at the daily government briefings, Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared that the UK has past the peak of the coronavirus. Despite stressing that the lockdown must remain in place, he promised to lay out possible exit strategies next week. The government has ramped up plans for contact tracing – a painstaking method used to slow down and contain the spread of infectious outbreaks. It means tracking down people who have been in prolonged contact with Covid-19 sufferers, to potentially ask them to self-isolate. So can Britain catch up to the likes of South Korea? Their early and extensive adoption of contact tracing has been praised and today they reported no new local coronavirus cases… Policy Editor Lewis Goodall reports. Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight

The government’s daily stats and graphs tell one story about how coronavirus has impacted the UK – but data released today reveals much more. Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F Each day a government minister, flanked by scientists and officials, reveals the latest data on how severe the UK’s coronavirus pandemic has become. But other data, such as that revealed by the Office for National Statistics, adds vital context and information to the story told by the government. Has the profound attempt to protect the NHS from being overwhelmed by coronavirus had a secondary impact on medical care more generally? James Clayton reports and Kirsty Wark is joined by former health minister Philip Dunne MP, and LSE Assistant Professor in Global Health Clare Wenham #Coronavirus #Covid19 Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has tested positive for coronavirus and is self-isolating in Downing Street. Subscribe to our channel here: https://goo.gl/31Q53F He said he had experienced mild symptoms over the past 24 hours, including a temperature and cough, but would continue to lead the government. England’s Health Secretary Matt Hancock said he had also tested positive while England’s Chief Medical Officer, Prof Chris Whitty, has shown symptoms. Another 181 people died with the virus in the past day, figures showed. It takes the total number of UK deaths to 759, with 14,543 confirmed cases. #Coronavirus #Covid19 #Corona Newsnight is the BBC’s flagship news and current affairs TV programme – with analysis, debate, exclusives, and robust interviews. Website: https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsnight Twitter: https://twitter.com/BBCNewsnight Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/bbcnewsnight