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Coronavirus Outbreak Update

IMPORTANT INFORMATION: WE’LL NO LONGER BE UPDATING THIS PAGE. PLEASE CLICK HERE FOR THE LATEST INFORMATION. 

UPDATE: 03/03/20

Situation update correct as of 16.00 03 March 2020

  • As of 09:00 on 3 March 2020, a total of 13,911 people have been tested in the UK for Covid-19, of which 13,860 were confirmed negative
  • On 3 March, Chief Medical Officer announced 12 further people in England have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of cases in England to 48. The total for the UK now stands at 51. which includes one case in Wales, one in Northern Ireland and one in Scotland. 15 cases have been discharged following two consecutive negative test results.
  • Globally as of 09:00 on 2 March 2020 there have been 90,961 confirmed cases, of which 80151 are in China, 4,812 are in South Korea, 2,036 are in Italy and 1,501 in Iran
  • The fatalities to date are 3,100. A total of 157 fatalities have occurred outside of Mainland China, Iran (Islamic Republic of) (54), Italy (52), Republic of Korea (28), Japan (5), cases on Diamond Princess Cruise ship (6), France (3), USA (2), Hong Kong SAR (2), Taiwan (1), Philippines (1), Thailand (1), Australia (1), San Marino (1)

UK Picture

Today the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, and his Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty, set out the options for consideration by Government to tackle the COVID-19 virus. The document, published this morning outlines;

  • A possible delay strategy could be used to move the peak of the outbreak to warmer months so that it does not overlap with normal flu and allows more time for research
  • There are plans ready for a range of outcomes, from mild pandemic with low impact on services (like Swine Flu in 2009) through to severe and prolonged pandemic
  • There are plans for the Ministry of Defence to provide support to Civilian Authorities if requested
  • If the disease becomes established in the UK, further measures to be considered include school closures, home working and reducing large-scale gatherings
  • Police would concentrate on serious crimes and maintaining public order if a lot of officers are on sick leave, in the case of the disease being fully established
  • There could well be an increase in deaths, particularly amongst the vulnerable and elderly
  • Concessions may be made by tax officials if businesses struggle to pay tax bills
  • Some non-urgent care in the NHS may be delayed to focus on treating coronavirus patients.
  • Recently retired staff may be called back

Read the full coronavirus action plan on gov.uk

Other travel measures, advice and updates 

  • On 2 March Ryanair announced that they will be cancelling up to 25% of their Italian short haul flights from 17 March-8 April in response to the Covid-19 virus. Affected passengers were notified by email on 2 March
  • Wendy Wu Tours issued a statement saying in light of ‘The Chinese Ministry of Culture and Tourism are now reviewing all tourist attractions with an expectation that everything will be open from April onwards.’ They expect to operate all their tours in full from 1 April.
  • The US Centres for Disease Control and Prevention issued guidance on 1 March for Institutes of Higher Education (IHE) with students participating in foreign exchange or study abroad program due to the global COVID-19 outbreak.
  • To consider postponing or cancelling student foreign exchange programs
  • IHEs should consider asking students participating in study abroad programs to return to the United States.
  • IHE should consider asking current program participants to return to their home country.

UPDATE: 02/03/20

Situation update correct as of 16.00 02 March 2020

Global and UK Picture

  • As of 09:00 on 2 March 2020, a total of 13,525 people have been tested in the UK for Covid-19, of which 13,485 were confirmed negative
  • The Chief Medical Officer for England has announced that a further four patients in England have tested positive. This brings the UK total to 40, including one case in Northern Ireland, one in Wales and one in Scotland. 15 cases have been discharged following two consecutive negative test results
  • Globally as of 09:00 on 2 March 2020 there have been 89,070 confirmed cases, of which 80,026 are in China, 4,212 are in South Korea, 1,694 are in Italy and 978 in Iran
  • The fatalities to date are 3,043. 131 of these fatalities have occurred outside of Mainland China (Iran (54), Italy (34), Republic of Korea (22), Japan (5), cases on Diamond Princess Cruise ship (6), Hong Kong (2), France (2), Taiwan (1), Philippines (1), USA (2), Thailand (1), Australia (1))
  • WHO continues to advise against the application of travel or trade restrictions to countries experiencing COVID-19 outbreaks.
  • A COBR meeting between the UK Prime Minister, Chief Medical Officers and senior Ministers was held today to finalise a plan for countermeasures
  •  The UK Government advice remains unchanged. Anyone who has travelled, or returned, to the UK since 19 February from Iran, specific lockdown areas in Northern Italy as designated by the Government of Italy, special care zones in South Korea as designated by the Government of the Republic of South Korea, Hubei province (returned in the past 14 days) to call NHS111 to inform them of your recent travel to the area and stay indoors and avoid contact with other people even if you do not have symptoms.
  • The UK Government is also advising is advising anyone who has travelled, or returned, to the UK from Northern Italy (defined by a line above, and not including, Pisa, Florence and Rimini), Vietnam, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar since 19 February and develop symptoms, however mild, to stay indoors at home and avoid contact with other people immediately and call NHS111.
  • Here is the link to the UK Government advice for businesses 

France:

  • The French Government has passed a ban on all indoor public gathering of over 5,000 people, the French Minister of Health, Olivier Véran, announced on Saturday 29 February.
  • The Louvre closed on Sunday 1 March, and remains so. There has been no indication of when it will reopen at this time
  • The French government has advised that where possible, outbound travel should be postponed and that all upcoming school trips should be cancelled. If trips are underway then they should return to France as soon as possible
  • There is no update to the travel advice for UK citizens visiting France

Other travel measures, advice and updates 

Partner Updates 

  • In order to gain a better understanding of the impact of COVID-19 on British trade with China, CBBC are running a survey for all British companies trading with China (either exporting or importing) to collect information on the problems being faced. CBBC will use the information gathered by the survey to work with their members and partners towards identifying practical pathways to help companies resolve their issues. The survey will run close at 5pm (GMT) on Tuesday, 3 March, with a detailed report available soon after. All information provided in this survey will remain anonymous. To complete the survey click here. 
  • The BVEP has shared a couple of advisory documents issues by their members for your information – one is a document prepared by an event safety company on advice to event organisers. The other is advice to staff from Formula E Racing.

 


UPDATE: 02/03/20

Situation update correct as of 16.00 24 February 2020

Global and UK Picture

· As of 24 February, a total of 6,536 people have been tested in the UK, of which 6,527 were confirmed negative and 9 positive. (These figures do not include the 4 confirmed cases from the Diamond Princess cruise ship who arrived in the UK and received test results in Japan. These will be included once we receive the UK tests for these patients).

· Globally as of 24 February at 10.00am there are 79,469 cases of which 77,150 are in China, 833 are in South Korea and 164 are in Italy. The fatalities to date are 2,622 (of which the following are outside China: Hong Kong SAR (2), Iran (12), Cases on Diamond Princess Cruise ship (2), Italy (3), Japan (1), Taiwan (1), France (1), Philippines (1) Republic of Korea (7)).

· The World Health Organisation shared key findings from their Covid-19 China report on Twitter which finds that “The COVID19 epidemic peaked and plateaued between the 23rd of January & the 2nd of February and has been declining steadily since then.”

· At the current time, the WHO assessment is that we are not experiencing a Covid-19 pandemic.

The situation in Italy 

· The Italian government has introduced extraordinary measures that allow regions to implement civil protection measures in response to Covid-19.

· Current measures include the isolation of 10 small towns in Lombardy and one in Veneto. The regions of Lombardy, Veneto, Friuli Venezia Giulia, Piemonte and Emilia Romagna have implemented measures including the suspension of public or private events, the suspension of schools and higher education and the suspension on the opening of museums and cultural institutions for seven days.

· On 22 February the Italian Ministry of Education and Ministry of University and Research has suspended all educational trips of schools within Italy and abroad.

· The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises those who are in the regions affected to follow the instructions of local authorities.

· Based on the advice of the European Center for Disease Control ECDC the Italian government has not suspended the Schengen agreement, as at this time the COVID-19 outbreak in Italy is not significant enough.

The situation in South Korea

· The government of South Korea has designated Deagu and Cheongdo cities as “special care zones” following a growing number of cases of coronavirus.

· The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated their travel advice to South Korea, advising against all but essential travel to Daegu and Cheongdo.

· The FCO is advising UK nationals already in Daegu or Cheongdo to follow the instructions and advice of the local authorities

· The UK Government is advising those returning to the UK or visiting from South Korea to consult the latest advice from the Department of Health and Social Care on actions they should take if they develop symptoms.

Other travel measures, advice and updates 

· The Association of British Insurers (ABI) has produced information on travel insurance implications following the outbreak of Covid-19.

· The Cruise Line International Association (CLIA) has adopted an enhanced member health policy which all CLIA ocean member cruise lines are required to follow to address the coronavirus. This includes guidance on who should be permitted to board cruise ships.

· Due to the ongoing situation with the Coronavirus (COVID-19), the Government in Israel has made the decision to restrict entry into Israel for foreign visitors who have travelled to China (People’s Rep), Hong Kong, Singapore or Thailand in the last 14 days.

· The Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) has updated their advice for travel to and for those returning/visiting from Japan, Thailand, South Korea and Italy.

· Advice for those returning to the UK/ visiting the UK from mainland China, Thailand, Japan, Republic of Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Singapore, Malaysia and Macau remains the same. Visitors and those returning from these areas should consult the latest advice from the Department of Health and Social Care on actions to take if you develop symptoms.

· The World Health Organisation does not recommend any specific health measures for travellers. In case of symptoms suggestive of respiratory illness either during or after travel, travellers are encouraged to seek medical attention and share their travel history with their health care provider.

· The repatriation flight for UK nationals aboard the Diamond Princess arrived in the UK on Saturday 22 February, they are currently in supported isolation.

Practical advice and guidance

· We hope to be able to share the link to the UK Government COVID-19 guidance for employers and for tourism businesses with you as soon as possible, we are still awaiting final sign off.


UPDATE: 14/02/20

The World Health Organisation has confirmed the official name for the novel coronavirus as COVID-19.

Public Health England have published a blog around contact tracing explaining what it is and how it is being used to tackle the spread of COVID-19.

The Business Events Partnership has reported that an individual who has been identified to have COVID-19 attended a conference at QEII conference centre last week. QEII are working closely with Public Health England and the event organisers to trace the delegates and give them advice on the situation as a precaution. The QEII Centre remains fully open and events will continue to take place as normal. Staff and suppliers have been briefed on the situation and actions to take if they have any concerns about their health. A media plan has also been put in place to ensure that everyone has a clear view of the current evolving situation.

As of 14 February, a total of 2,964 people have been tested in the UK, of which 2,955 were confirmed negative and 9 positive.

Globally as of 14 February there are 64,437 cases of which 63,851 are in China.

The fatalities to date are 1,383 (1,380 of these are within China, 1 in the Philippines, 1 in Hong Kong and 1 in Japan).

The China Britain Business Council has shared a regional response update where they outline how local and provincial governments in China are supporting local and foreign businesses, the most common measures include:

– Preferential tax and social security policies, with filing deadlines deferred or suspended

– Direct financial support for heavily affected businesses

– Rent reductions or suspension

– Preferential loan and financing support

– Reduced utility fees

– Bespoke legal and administrative aid

– Employment support and special labour regulations regarding quarantined employees

Travel related updates

· The Cruise Lines International Association (CLIA) issued a statement on 13 February outlining enhanced policies due to the ongoing COVID-19, the enhanced measures include:

– CLIA Members are to deny boarding to all persons who have travelled from, visited or transited via airports in China, including Hong Kong and Macau, within 14 days before embarkation.

– CLIA Members are to deny boarding to all persons who, within 14 days before embarkation, have had close contact with, or helped care for, anyone suspected or diagnosed as having COVID-19, or who is currently subject to health monitoring for possible exposure to COVID-19.

– CLIA Members are to conduct pre-boarding screening necessary to effectuate these prevention measures. Enhanced screening and initial medical support are to be provided, as needed, to any persons exhibiting symptoms of suspected COVID-19.

All other advice remains unchanged


UPDATE: 31/01/20

As you will be aware the situation is developing fast and earlier this week included the significant announcement from BA and Virgin Atlantic of the cancellation of all inbound and outbound flights to mainland China until further notice (currently excluding Hong Kong).

No doubt some of our partners who are active in the Chinese market may now be experiencing the knock on effects from the situation. This may also include a wider geographical market area as time progresses.

Chinese authorities have ordered all their national travel agencies and online travel companies to temporarily suspend business, leisure, group travel and ‘ticket and hotel’ products effective immediately. Whilst individual travel has not been mentioned specifically, the authorities are keen to ensure that the disease is contained.

The Chinese Government are asking travel companies, operators and tourism businesses around the world to facilitate booking changes and cancellations to help reduce the movement of crowds and reduce the spread of the virus. At the moment the Chinese Government are not offering any compensation to cancelled groups.

This is a fast moving situation and the best source of information for any visitors with individual questions or concerns is Public Health England. Visitors can keep up to date with the latest advice from the UK Government’s website here
and here.

VisitBritain also has updates on its website.

Marketing Liverpool is in communication with VisitBritain regarding developments and advice.

We are therefore asking our partners to share with us any information from the ground about if and how this may be effecting your business.

This may include bookings, cancellations, communications with group tour operators etc.

Your co-operation will be much appreciated. We would be grateful if you could communicate this to us by email to James Wood jwood@lccdigitalserver.co.uk.

We are actively monitoring this situation and should further developments happen, we will update this web page.