Fears intensify over spread of the virus around Europe

Fears are intensifying over the spread of coronavirus in Europe as France reported its second death and the number of people in Italy with the virus continues to climb.

Authorities in Italy have reported that the number of people infected in the country grew to 322, or up 45% in 24 hours, and 11 have now died.

Austria, Croatia and Switzerland also reported their first cases linked to the outbreak in Italy, while Spain and France recorded new ones, also involving people who had been to northern Italy.

France recorded its second fatality, a 60-year-old Frenchman who died in a Paris hospital.

The first positive test in South America has also been recorded with a 61-year-old Brazilian man who had recently been to northern Italy.

For the first time, the number of new cases officially reported outside China has exceeded new cases reported by Beijing, Reuters has reported.

It said figures from the World Health Organisation (WHO) showed there were 427 new cases reported in 37 countries on Tuesday, compared with 411 reported by Beijing.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock, pictured, told MPs yesterday that 7,132 people in the UK have so far been tested.

Of these, 13 have tested positive, of whom eight have been discharged from hospital.

He said the NHS is looking to extend home testing while a new public information campaign will be launched.

Speaking in the Commons, Mr Hancock suggested that home testing will be rolled out more widely to complement existing hospital testing and the “isolation pods” which have been sited at hospitals in England for people who turn up at A&E with symptoms.

He said: “We now have testing sites at all A&E facilities, as far as we know, across England.

“But we’re also planning to introduce home testing and some of this has started already so that people don’t have to go to the pods in front of A&E which have been put there to ensure that people don’t actually go into A&E where they might infect others.

“Home testing is the safest place to be tested because then you don’t have to go anywhere, and that will allow us to roll out testing to a much larger number of people as well.”

A number of schools in the UK have told staff and pupils to stay at home after returning from ski trips to northern Italy, where several towns in the Lombardy and Veneto regions remain on lockdown.

At least eight schools have closed despite national guidance urging them to stay open.

But Mr Hancock urged schools not to close unless they had a confirmed case of the virus.

He added: “There is no need to close the school or send other students or staff home.”

The Foreign Office in the UK has updated its guidance on travel to Italy, advising against all but essential travel to 10 towns in Lombardy (Codogno, Castiglione d’Adda, Casalpusterlengo, Fombio, Maleo, Somaglia, Bertonico, Terranova dei Passerini, Castelgerundo and San Fiorano) and one in Veneto (Vo’ Euganeo).

The Queen’s granddaughter Zara Tindall and her husband, former England rugby player Mike Tindall, will not be self-isolating following their return from a skiing trip to northern Italy, a spokeswoman for the couple said.

The spokeswoman said the couple were following official government advice, but not self-isolating as they are not showing any symptoms.