Coronavirus declared ‘serious and imminent threat’ to British public, WHO warns just the “tip of the iceberg”

The spread of coronavirus is a “serious and imminent threat” to the British public, the health secretary has said.

The announcement by Matt Hancock gives the government additional powers to fight the spread of the virus, which originated in Wuhan, China and has been confirmed in four people in the UK.

See full statement here

China’s death toll has jumped to 908, with 40,000 confirmed infections.

Another 60 passengers on the stricken Diamond Princess cruise ship in Japan have tested positive for coronavirus, taking the total number of infections on the ship to 130.

Tens of millions of Chinese have gone back to work today after the extended lunar new year break.

The World Health Organization has sent a team of international experts to Beijing to help combat the epidemic.

The WHO boss has warned that confirmed cases of coronavirus being transmitted by people who have never travelled to China could be the “tip of the iceberg”.

Read more via The Guardian