Fury as key workers are forced to wait 20 MINUTES to cram on to London’s packed Tube trains AGAIN

London’s Tube trains are packed again today as Sadiq Khan was accused of ‘risking lives’ after he claimed he had no choice but to slash services at a time of national emergency because one in five staff are already off sick.

MailOnline can reveal that during rush hour today some London Underground lines are currently only running one train up to every twenty minutes causing more crammed conditions in ‘death trap’ carriages and on platforms. 

The Mayor of London is facing mounting fury over his decision to run reduced services, ‘herding’ workers into crammed trains and buses with some NHS workers claiming they are now more worried about travelling to work than treating coronavirus patients in hospital.

Key worker Tony Drew tweeted: ‘No-one is listening to you and don’t need to reduce the service as much as you have. You need to get more trains on and stop putting the lives of key workers like me at risk’.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said last night there is ‘no good reason’ Tube services have been slashed and Boris Johnson also questioned why up to three quarters of services had been axed in a call with Mr Khan yesterday,

Commuters have today vented their fury at the lack of trains, with one tweeting Mr Khan this morning with the plea: ‘You are herding key workers into a smaller space. Your decision is a difficult one but is directly risking lives. Please rethink this for our health workers so they can at least feel safe going to work’. Another NHS worker said: ‘Please sort the tubes out, this is risking lives. Emergency workers have to use TFL! Help now’.

Today 500 police officers were deployed at major stations to remind passengers that only those making essential journeys for work should be using the Tube and trains – but huge numbers have no choice but to head to work.

Mr Khan has blamed commuters for flouting a ban on ‘all non-essential travel’ and urged people to avoid rush hour ‘to save lives’ – claiming he does not have enough staff to return services to normal.   

Mr Hancock went on the attack as he was asked at a Downing Street press conference this evening why NHS staff and other key workers were being forced to put themselves at risk on crowded transport.

He said: ‘When it comes to the Tube, the first and the best answer is that Transport for London should have the Tube running in full so that people travelling on the tube are spaced out and can be further apart – obeying the two-metre rule wherever possible.

‘And there is no good reason in the information that I’ve seen that the current levels of tube provision should be as low as they are. We should have more tube trains running.’

Earlier, commuters packed in like sardines hit back at the Mayor, who runs the capital’s public transport network, with one victim claiming it was about saving money, tweeting: ‘Using the pandemic to save a few pennies. Nice work helping the people you claim to represent’. Another Londoner wrote: ‘Utter disgrace. We need professional leadership at this time’.

Sharing a horrifying picture of a packed Tube train this morning, NHS sonographer Nicola Smith tweeted: ‘I love my job, but now I’m risking my health just on the journey in?! @SadiqKhan put the tube service back to normal so we can all spread out, or @BorisJohnson start policing who’s getting on. Help me!’. After completing her journey to the Imperial College NHS Trust in west London, she said: ‘I worry for my health more on my commute than actually being in the hospital.’

And there is continuing confusion over who qualifies as a key worker, especially among London’s army of builders, meaning most had no choice but to ride the busy trains to work and run the terrifying risk of catching coronavirus, which has claimed 422 lives so far in the UK.

Boris Johnson also raised concerns about cutbacks in London Underground services with the capital’s Mayor in a call this afternoon and is said to have asked him to put on more trains. His Downing Street spokesman said: ‘The Prime Minister raised with the mayor the issue of reduced services on the tube and its impact on people trying to get to work’. 

British Transport Police has said its officers will stop non-essential workers travelling on the Tube. A spokesman said the force would ‘ensure that only those making essential journeys for work are using the Tube and rail network’, adding: ‘Our officers will be on hand to support rail operators if people are clearly disregarding the advice’.

Hours after the PM said almost all Britons should should stay at home in the most draconian shutdown in modern history, people were nose-to-nose on the Tube, trains and buses despite being told to be two metres apart to avoid exposure to the killer virus.  

To stem the terrifying number of deaths, gatherings of more than two people are now banned and people must only leave their homes for essential supplies, medical help, or to travel to work if it is ‘absolutely’ unavoidable. Going out for exercise is allowed once a day as long as people stay two metres apart to stop the NHS collapsing under the strain of new cases.

But transport union TSSA today called for police to be deployed to make sure only key workers are getting on trains amid claims Tube staff could walk out unless ID checks start immediately because of ‘dangerous’ conditions at London stations. 

General secretary Manuel Cortes said: ‘Sadly, the situation on the London Underground has not improved. We urgently need British Transport Police and other officers at major stations across London’s transport network to ensure only those with a valid reason to travel are doing so in this emergency’.  

Mr Khan’s office hit back at Mr Hancock’s claim there was ‘no good reason’ not to have more frequent services on the Underground tonight.

A spokeswoman for the Mayor said: ‘This is simply not true.

‘The Mayor has told ministers countless times over recent days that TfL simply cannot safely run a full service because of the levels of staff sickness and self-isolation.

‘Nearly a third of staff are already absent – there aren’t enough drivers and control staff to do it.

‘The Government must act urgently to get more people staying at home rather than going to work unnecessarily – that means taking the difficult decisions they are refusing to take to ban non-essential construction work and provide proper financial support to freelancers, the self-employed and those on zero-hours contracts to stay at home.’ 

Mr Khan has demanded that employers enable their staff to work from home ‘unless it’s absolutely necessary’ and avoid rush hour if they can’t, adding: ‘Ignoring these rules means more lives lost. Some of the people on the Tube yesterday and today are not essential workers, I can tell you that’.

But there is ongoing confusion caused by Boris Johnson’s long list of key workers – with many packed on to trains appearing to be labourers legitimately heading to building sites in London after housing secretary Robert Jenrick tweeted last night: ‘If you are working on site, you can continue to do so.’   

As Britain’s 66million people are today beginning a new life in coronavirus lockdown, it has emerged:  

• Police Federation believe it is ‘not realistic’ for officers to enforce stringent coronavirus lockdown rules such as once daily exercise and ‘essential shopping’. Chairman John Apter says forces will have to ignore some crimes;
• FTSE 100 in London opens up four per cent as investors reacted positively to PM’s three week curb on freedom of movement; 
• Supermarket websites crash and delivery slots are booked solid for weeks as lockdown begins;
• There are one million Britons abroad who have been told to come home now as air routes disintegrate – but many can’t get on flights or afford sky-high fares;
• The Army has moved in as soldiers offload supplies to frontline doctors at hospitals today; 
• Fewer school staff may be ‘willing or able’ to work to care for key workers’ children in the absence of clear advice on how to stay safe in schools, headteachers have said;
• Italy’s daily death toll falls for a second consecutive day – in glimmer of hope for Britain – after country’s national lockdown appears to start working after two weeks; 

The Mayor of London told Good Morning Britain today that construction workers should not continue working except for essential public health reasons, such as in an NHS facility.

He said: ‘My message is don’t use public transport unless you really really have to go to work, you work in the NHS, you work in food supply, you work for the police – if you really have to go to work, don’t use rush hour, it’s really important’.

Transport union TSSA has called for police to be deployed at major train stations in London – including London Underground, London Overground and mainline railway stations – to ensure only passengers who are ‘providing vital services’ are travelling.

Aslef union organiser Finn Brennan wrote: ‘Getting lots of reports of early trains being full on the Underground. If the Government doesn’t shut construction sites and pay self employment, people will die’. 

Robert Tay, from Romford, took a picture of a packed London bus this morning and said: ‘@BorisJohnson @TfL @MayorofLondon @SadiqKhan Are you seriously telling me this is a bus full of ‘key workers’?’   

Chris Kaye-York filmed scores of people rushing through a London Tube station’s ticket barriers and said: ‘Still? Really? Get a grip’.

Sadiq Khan said today that 20 per cent of Transport for London staff are now off work because they are either unwell or self-isolating, and said: ‘It is simply not possible for us to increase train and bus services’. He added: ‘I cannot say this more strongly: we must stop all non-essential use of public transport now. Employers: please support your staff to work from home unless it’s absolutely necessary. Ignoring these rules means more lives lost’.

Concerned passengers have shared the shocking images of carriages as cramped as in a normal rush hour and many called for ministers and London Mayor Khan to act.

Platforms were also crowded and there were long queues, with similar scenes on many rail and bus services.

Transport bosses accused commuters of putting lives at risk by ignoring government advice against all but essential travel.

But passengers said the drastically reduced timetable was to blame, causing overcrowding that makes it more likely the virus will spread. Many said they had no choice but to travel as they had to work.

Fred Scott, a commuter on the Hammersmith and City line, wrote on Twitter: ‘On a 6.40 train from Upton Park going to Hammersmith. If one person on here has the virus then that will affect others, who will take that elsewhere. Lockdown needed.’

Fin Brennan, of the Aslef train drivers’ union, said: ‘This is endangering the health of the vital workers who have to use the system.

‘I’m being sent pictures of crush-loaded platforms at some Jubilee line platforms this morning. Drivers and other frontline staff are furious.’

One Tory MP told the Mail: ‘This is exactly the reason why we will have to take additional powers to force people to stay home… It exposes a complete contradiction in the Government’s approach. On the one hand, people are being told to avoid all travel, on the other hand they have no choice but to go into work as normal as their offices are still open.’

Labour transport spokesman Andy McDonald said the images were alarming, adding: ‘The Government must help keep transport workers and the public safe by urgently extending financial assistance to the self-employed and other workers so nobody risks losing their income by staying at home, and make it clear that workers in all non-key sectors of the economy must not travel to work.’

Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said he would speak to Mr Khan about increasing the frequency of trains on the London Underground, where 40 stations have been closed by TfL and some main routes have trains running only once every 18 minutes.

Rail services which had been slashed by up to 50 per cent, with some axed, may be partly restored as ministers fear the reduced service is worsening the spread of the virus. 

The Government had said the changes would discourage unnecessary journeys, allowing key workers to commute safely. 

But in a U-turn yesterday, Mr Shapps said he was ‘concerned’ by the images of crowded trains and added: ‘We are working with train operators to introduce a small number of trains for key workers to have space to be safe.’

The Department for Transport is identifying those lines that need more trains. It said: ‘We are aware of some instances of overcrowding on certain train services this morning, and are working with operators regarding capacity on specific lines as needed to make sure there is space to be safe.’

C2C, which runs commuter services between Essex and London, is thought to have been identified as a line in need of increased capacity.

Passenger watchdog Transport Focus said: ‘The Government should continue to review what measures are needed to make sure social distancing on trains services is safe.’

The RMT union said: ‘We know that many people who are not traditionally employed, whether they are self-employed, on zero-hour contracts or in the gig economy, feel they have no choice but to go to work because of their financial situation. We therefore call on the Government to do far more to help these workers.’

Vernon Everitt of TfL said: ‘To save lives, everyone must follow the Government and Mayor’s instructions to stay at home and only travel if absolutely essential. Only critical workers should be using public transport, and no one else.’

The Prime Minister’s shutdown will last for a minimum of three weeks and the UK’s new state of emergency is unprecedented in modern history. 

Gatherings of more than two people will be banned in the most dramatic curbs on freedom ever seen in Britain in time of peace or war, as the government goes all out to stop the spread of the killer disease.

In a grim address to the nation from Downing Street, Mr Johnson said: ‘Without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope; because there won’t be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors and nurses’, adding: ‘I must give the British people a very simple instruction – you must stay at home’.

He said any family reunions, weddings, baptisms and other social events must be cancelled to stop the NHS collapsing under the strain. Funerals can go ahead attended by just a handful of closest relatives.

People must only leave their homes for essential supplies, medical help, or to travel to work if it is ‘absolutely’ unavoidable. Going out for exercise will be allowed once a day, but parks will be patrolled to make sure there is no abuse of the rules. 

Police will have powers to fine those who do not fall into line, and disperse any public gatherings, in measures to curb movement only seen during the Second World War. Historians have claimed you have to go back to 1666 to find when people were last forced to stay at home en masse, when Britons had to stay at home for 40 days to halt the spread of the Great Plague. 

The PM was finally forced into the draconian move amid fury that many people are still flouting ‘social distancing’ guidance, with parks and Tube trains in London – regarded as the engine of the UK outbreak – still busy despite repeated pleas.  

‘Though huge numbers are complying – and I thank you all – the time has now come for us all to do more,’ Mr Johnson said.

‘From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction – you must stay at home.

‘Because the critical thing we must do is stop the disease spreading between households.’ 

Millions of people will receive a text from the Government today urging them to stay at home.

Ministers have agreed a deal with phone operators to send the alert carrying Boris Johnson’s warning to every mobile in the country 

The government’s Cobra emergency committee met at 5pm and signed off the extraordinary new restrictions – similar to those which have already been imposed across the rest of Europe.

They will last for three weeks initially – but the government’s own experts have suggested the situation could take up to a year to resolve. 

The stringent limits, which came after weeks of mounting pressure for the PM to escalate the response, were welcomed across the political spectrum – in itself a sign of the unprecedented times the country is enduring. However, police officers cautioned that their task would be ‘challenging’. 

London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the rules on who was allowed to travel to work was too loose, suggesting construction employees might feel they were not covered by the ban.  

Mr Johnson spelled out just four reasons why Britons can leave their houses.  

They are: 

• shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible;
• one form of exercise a day – for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household;
• any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person;
• travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home.

He said the government will be acting in three key ways to ‘ensure compliance’.

• closing all shops selling non-essential goods,​ including clothing and electronic stores, and other premises including libraries, playgrounds and outdoor gyms, and places of worship;
• stopping all gatherings of more than two people in public – excluding people you live with;
• stopping all social events​, including weddings, baptisms and other ceremonies, but excluding funerals. 

Stressing that ‘no Prime Minister wants to enact measures like this’, Mr Johnson invoked the wartime spirit by saying he wanted to ‘enlist’ everyone into the battle against coronavirus.

‘Without a huge national effort to halt the growth of this virus, there will come a moment when no health service in the world could possibly cope; because there won’t be enough ventilators, enough intensive care beds, enough doctors and nurses,’ he warned.

‘And as we have seen elsewhere, in other countries that also have fantastic health care systems, that is the moment of real danger.

‘To put it simply, if too many people become seriously unwell at one time, the NHS will be unable to handle it – meaning more people are likely to die, not just from Coronavirus but from other illnesses as well.’   

In his historic speech, delivered from behind a desk in Downing Street, Mr Johnson spelled out the reasons people could go outside.

And he added: ‘That’s all – these are the only reasons you should leave your home.

‘You should not be meeting 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 be going shopping except for essentials like food and medicine — and you should do this as little as you can. And use food delivery services where you can.

‘If you don’t follow the rules the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings.’

Underlining the soul-searching that had gone into the announcement, Mr Johnson said: ‘No Prime Minister wants to enact measures like this.

‘I know the damage that this disruption is doing and will do to people’s lives, to their businesses and to their jobs.

‘And that’s why we have produced a huge and unprecedented programme of support both for workers and for business.

‘And I can assure you that we will keep these restrictions under constant review. We will look again in three weeks, and relax them if the evidence shows we are able to.

‘But at present there are just no easy options. The way ahead is hard, and it is still true that many lives will sadly be lost.

‘And yet it is also true that there is a clear way through.’ 

He added: ‘I know that as they have in the past so many times.

‘The people of this country will rise to that challenge.

‘And we will come through it stronger than ever.

‘We will beat the coronavirus and we will beat it together.’  

A backlash has been mounting against Mr Johnson’s ‘relaxed’ style, with warnings of a ‘full-scale mutiny’ among Cabinet if the lockdown was not extended, and Labour claiming his ‘mixed messages will cost lives’. 

Earlier, Downing Street dodged questions about the prospect of a revolt, and said it was looking at evidence to decide whether social distancing must be enforced. ‘If our analysis is that people haven’t stopped their interaction then we will take further measures,’ the PM’s spokesman said. 

Labour’s official position has shifted to insist it is time to introduce harsher ‘compliance measures’. 

Jeremy Corbyn said this evening: ‘The Prime Minister is right to call for people to stay at home, protect our NHS and save lives.

‘This is the right response to the coronavirus pandemic, and one we have been calling for.

‘There now needs to be clear guidance to employers and workers about which workplaces should close – and the Government must close the loopholes to give security to all workers, including the self-employed, as well as renters and mortgage holders.

‘We welcome these moves and will be working to ensure everybody has the protection and security they need.’

Martin Hewitt, chairman of the National Police Chiefs’ Council, said: ‘Measures to ensure social distancing have so far not had the necessary effect.

‘These new measures are sensible, based on scientific evidence and give people clarity on the exact steps they must take to stop the rapid transmission of this disease.

‘The majority of people are already making real sacrifices to save lives and we urge everyone to follow the advice that is designed to keep us all safe.

‘We are working with the government and other agencies to consider how these new rules can be most effectively enforced.’

However, the chair of the Metropolitan Police Federation warned that the PM was putting officers in a difficult position, and there were ‘mixed messages’.  

Ken Marsh, chairman of the Metropolitan Police Federation, said he was already seeing ‘large amounts of sickness’ among officers across London.

Coronavirus lockdown: Who can still go out and why?

Boris Johnson last night imposed an unprecedented lockdown on the UK and told everyone they ‘must stay at home’ to slow the spread of coronavirus as he set out just four instances when people can go outside.

Describing the crisis as a national emergency, he ordered families to stay in their homes except in special circumstances.

All ‘non-essential’ shops will be closed and public gatherings of more than two people banned. 

Mr Johnson said the measures will be ‘under constant review’ and will be considered for relaxation in three weeks’ time if the evidence allows.

He said that ‘no prime minister wants to enact measures like this’ but the drastic new measures allowing people to only leave home for the ‘very limited purposes’ were necessary to slow the spread of the disease.

‘To put it simply, if too many people become seriously unwell at one time, the NHS will be unable to handle it – meaning more people are likely to die, not just from coronavirus but from other illnesses as well,’ he added.

What are the four reasons that Britons can leave their homes?

• shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible; 
• one form of exercise a day – for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household; 
• any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person; 
• travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home.

Even when doing these activities, you should be minimising time spent outside of the home and ensuring you are six feet (two metres) apart from anyone outside of your household.

What stores will close? And what are the exceptions that will stay open?

• Restaurants – exceptions are food delivery and takeaway that can remain open

• Cafes, including workplace canteens – exceptions are food delivery and takeaway can remain operational. Cafés or canteens at hospitals, care homes or schools; prison and military canteens; services providing food or drink to the homeless.

• Bars and nightclubs, including bars in hotels or members’ clubs

• Hair, beauty and nail salons, including piercing and tattoo parlours

• All retail with notable exceptions – Supermarkets and other food shops, health shops, pharmacies including nondispensing pharmacies, petrol stations, bicycle shops, home and hardware shops, laundrettes and dry cleaners, bicycle shops, garages, car rentals, pet shops, corner shops, newsagents, post offices, and banks.

• Outdoor and indoor markets – exceptions are market stalls which offer essential retail, such as grocery and food.

• Hotels, hostels, BnBs, campsites and boarding houses –  exceptions are where people live in these as interim abodes whilst their primary residence is unavailable they may continue to do so. Key workers can continue to stay in hotels or similar where required.

• Caravan parks/sites for commercial uses – exceptions are where people live permanently in caravan parks or are staying in caravan parks as interim abodes where their primary residence is not available, they may continue to do so.

• Community centres, youth centres and similar – Facilities may remain open for the purpose of hosting essential voluntary or public services, such as food banks or homeless services. We will do everything to support vulnerable people who are without a network of friends and families.

• Places of worship for services – exceptions are for funerals following the social distancing guidance; places of worship should remain open for solitary prayer. Live streaming of a service without audience would be permissible.

• Cinemas, theatres and concert halls – Live streaming of a performance by a small group could be permissible with social distancing observed.

• Bingo halls, casinos and betting shops

• Fitness studios, gyms, swimming pools or other indoor leisure centres

• Arcades, bowling alleys, soft play centres and similar

• Enclosed spaces in parks, including playgrounds, sports courts and pitches, and outdoor gyms or similar

Who are the key workers?

Health and social care – 

• Doctors, nurses, midwives, paramedics, social workers, care workers; producers and distributers of medicines and medical and personal protective equipment. 

Education and childcare – 

• Nursery and teaching staff, social workers and specialist education professionals who must remain active to keep schools running.

Key public services – 

• Those running of the justice system, religious staff, charity workers, undertakers, journalists and public service broadcasters.

Local/national government –  

• ‘Only those administrative occupations essential to the effective delivery of the COVID-19 response or delivering essential public services such as the payment of benefits’.

Food and other vital goods – 

• Those involved in food production, processing, distribution, sale and delivery as well as those essential to the provision of key goods like hygienic and veterinary medicines.

National security – 

• Police and support staff, MoD workers, the armed forces, fire and rescue services, those maintaining border security, prison and probation staff and other national security roles.

Transport – 

• Workers on air, water, road, and rail passenger modes, as well as air, water, road, and rail freight transport modes. 

Utilities, communication and financial services – 

• Staff needed for financial services like banks and stock markets; workers in the oil, gas, electricity and water sectors, the postal service, sewerage and telecoms.

How long will the new restrictions last?

The government’s Cobra emergency committee met at 5pm yesterday and signed off the extraordinary new restrictions – similar to those which have already been imposed across the rest of Europe.

They will last for three weeks initially – but the government’s own experts have suggested the situation could take up to a year to resolve.

What enforcement action will there be? 

In his address to the nation Mr Johnson said if people do not follow the new rules officers ‘will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings’. 

Police will be able to fine people £30 if they ignore the rules and these on-the-spot fines will be ‘ramped up’ if there is widespread flouting, the government has said.

Environmental Health and Trading Standards officers will monitor businesses compliance with the regulations, with police support if necessary. 

Businesses and premises that breach them will be subject to prohibition notices, and potentially unlimited fines. 

What social events can go ahead?

All social events are also being stopped including weddings, baptisms and other religious ceremonies but funerals will still be allowed to go ahead, attended by immediate family only.

The government is banning public gatherings of more than two people, what are the exceptions?

• where the gathering is of a group of people who live together – this means that a parent can, for example, take their children to the shops if there is no option to leave them at home.

• where the gathering is essential for work purposes – but workers should be trying to minimise all meetings and other gatherings in the workplace.  

Are you still allowed to get a takeaway?

Government guidance says people can still access their local takeaway, this includes delivery drivers. But people are not allowed to consume any food or drinks on the premises.  

Venues offering takeaway or delivery services must not include alcoholic beverages in this list if their license does not already permit.

Deserted Britain on day one of coronavirus lockdown: Streets and roads are empty, shops and offices are closed as nation self-isolates… but STILL they queue up at supermarkets at the crack of dawn

Britain entered its first day of coronavirus lockdown today as people were ordered to stay at home and only leave the house for basic food shopping, exercise once a day and essential travel to and from work.

Eerie photographs showed city centres in the likes of London, Bristol, Liverpool, Edinburgh, Cardiff and Birmingham were almost completely empty with much of the UK workforce now setting up their office at home.

But queues again formed early this morning outside supermarkets across the country as shoppers observed the social distancing rules of standing two metres – or more than six feet – apart while waiting to get into stores.

Virtually all shops are now closing in a dramatic escalation of the lockdown, with only supermarkets, pharmacies, specialist food shops, petrol stations, corner shop newsagents, hardware stores and pet shops staying open. 

It comes as military vehicles crossed a near-empty Westminster Bridge this morning after delivering a much-needed batch of protective face masks to frontline NHS nurses and doctors battling the pandemic. 

Soldiers from the Army’s 101 Logistic Brigade dropped off the medical masks at St Thomas’ Hospital in London, following warnings that many doctors feel like ‘lambs to the slaughter’ because of the lack of proper protection. 

Nursing leaders had called upon Mr Johnson to intervene over the lack of protective clothing for NHS staff, telling him that many of those doctors and nurses putting their lives on the line are coming out of retirement.

The Army is now helping deliver protective equipment such as masks, safety glasses and suits round the clock to hospitals – but many staff have raised concerns that there will not be enough to go around all their colleagues. 

The Royal College of Nursing said that not only are frontline staff deeply concerned about contracting the virus themselves, they are anxious about passing it on to the very vulnerable patients in other wards.

Military sources have revealed that 460 personnel are being mobilised over the next few days to help deliver the personal protective equipment (PPE) to hospitals.

There are currently 50 members of the military tasked with getting vital kit to the NHS but there are plans to increase this by nine fold over the course of this week.

The Army have sent dozens of military planners to distribution centres across the UK to help coordinate the operation and their main hub will be in Liverpool. 

A Defence source said: ‘There is a massive hole in the capability to do this. The NHS haven’t got ability to coordinate it so we are sending more army personnel to support that planning.

‘We are talking about huge amounts of kit. They just don’t have the numbers, it is about getting skilled planners to help logistics.’ 

Over the weekend the Doctors’ Association, a grassroots organisation, warned that doctors were being made to feel like ‘lambs to the slaughter’ and ‘cannon fodder’.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said yesterday: ‘I am determined to ensure that the right kit gets to the right hospital, the right ambulance service, the right doctors’ surgery, right across the country.

‘There have been challenges and I can see that. We’re on it and trying to solve all the problems.’

Mr Johnson has placed the UK on lockdown to tackle the coronavirus, threatening police fines for anyone who ignores new measures including a ban on public gatherings of more than two people. 

The Prime Minister detailed a short list of reasons why individuals can leave their homes as he ordered the immediate closure of all shops selling non-essentials items yesterday evening.

He ordered people to only leave the house to shop for basic necessities ‘as infrequently as possible’ and to perform one form of exercise a day. 

Or they could seek medical help, provide care to a vulnerable person or travel to work if ‘absolutely necessary’, he said in a televised address from within Downing Street.

‘That’s all – these are the only reasons you should leave your home,’ he said. ‘You should not be meeting 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.

‘If you don’t follow the rules the police will have the powers to enforce them, including through fines and dispersing gatherings.’

To ensure people follow the rules, Mr Johnson ordered the immediate closure of non-essential stores including those selling electronics and clothing. 

All public gatherings of more than two people – other than those they live with – will be barred, the PM said. Other premises being shuttered are libraries, playgrounds, outdoor gyms and places of worship.

And, while parks will remain open for exercise, all social events including weddings and baptisms will be stopped. Funerals, however, can continue.

Hotels and campsites will now join pubs, cafes and restaurants in being closed to slow the disease’s spread. Government officials said fines will start at £30, but warned they would escalate.

Mr Johnson said the measures will be ‘under constant review’ and will be considered for relaxation in three weeks’ time if the evidence allows.

He said that ‘no prime minister wants to enact measures like this’ as he reminded the public of the support programme to aid ailing businesses and struggling individuals.

But he said the drastic new measures allowing people to only leave home for the ‘very limited purposes’ were necessary to slow the spread of the disease.  

‘To put it simply, if too many people become seriously unwell at one time, the NHS will be unable to handle it – meaning more people are likely to die, not just from coronavirus but from other illnesses as well,’ he added.

Mr Johnson had been facing widespread calls to impose tough restrictions on the nation amid concerns people are ignoring social distancing advice. 

Online supermarkets immediately appeared to buckle under the strain after the announcement with crashes occurring on the Tesco, Sainsbury’s and Asda websites. 

In an earlier escalation of advice, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab told citizens travelling overseas to return to the UK using commercial routes that are still running.

Meanwhile, MPs were debating emergency legislation that could see airports shut and police having the powers to force people with virus symptoms to isolate.

Over the weekend, crowds of people were witnessed visiting open spaces across many parts of the UK, at times flouting official social distancing advice.

There were growing fears that Britain is on a similar trajectory to Italy – scene of the world’s worst outbreak – where the death toll passed 5,000 over the weekend.

The Italian government was one of a number of European countries to announce new or extended restrictions – with Germany banning public gatherings of more than two people not from the same household.