Germany's masks spree, Italy plots 'phase 2': COVID-19 daily bulletin

TOP HEADLINES

- UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been moved to hospital for "precautionary tests" after showing persistent symptoms.

- Germany to purchase "unbelievable amount of face masks," vice chancellor, Olaf Scholz says.

- Italy plans for "phase two" of fight against the virus , once the almost month-long lockdown is eased.

- Malta puts 1,000 migrants under mandatory quarantine after detecting a virus cluster in a camp.

- Europe needs a common "Marshall Plan" and debt mutualization to recover, says Spain's prime minister.

- EU foreign policy chief Josep Borrell says the bloc must help Africa to stop the pandemic resurfacing in Europe.

- Ireland's prime minister Leo Varadkar re-registers for medical practice and will start working one shift a week.

- Scotland's chief medical officer Catherine Calderwoodsteps down after apologizing for breaching lockdown rules.

- British aero-engine maker Rolls-Royce scraps targets, final dividend and shores up finances as airlines around the world ground planes.

- Car maker BMW announces a drop of 20.6 percent in group sales to 47,111 vehicles in the first quarter.

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ACROSS EUROPE

Ira Spitzer in Berlin

Germany's finance minister Olaf Scholz and foreign minister Heiko Maas published a joint opinion piece in several major European newspapers expressing support for using the EU's European Stability Mechanism (ESM) to combat the effects of the coronavirus crisis across the eurozone.

The head of the BDI industry association predicts the German economy will shrink by 3 to 6 percent this year if the disruption from coronavirus is limited to six weeks.

Nawied Jabarkhyl in London

This could be the most crucial week in the UK's fight against the coronavirus with cases expected to peak by next Sunday. The man in charge of the fight, Prime Minister Boris Johnson, was taken to hospital on Sunday evening after being unable to shake off the virus 10 days after he first showed symptoms.

Adding to the worry are fresh figures that show reports of domestic abuse are up 25 percent since the lockdown began. With people forced to stay indoors, the charity Refuge says victims now have fewer escape routes.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been hospitalized. /Pippa Fowles/AFP

Isobel Ewing in Budapest

As the number of infections in Hungary continue to climb and officials warn of an imminent "explosion" of cases in Budapest if the public doesn't adhere to the lockdown restrictions, tensions simmer over Hungary's controversial "protection against coronavirus" law that gives the government more powers with no end date.

On Sunday, foreign minister Péter Szijjarto lambasted the EU, which expressed concerns over the new law, accusing the bloc of "enthusiastically spreading lies, distortions and fake news."

Ross Cullen in Paris

There is growing debate in France about whether to force people to wear masks in public and also when to relax the confinement measures. The strict conditions are set to expire on 15 April, though the government has warned an exit does not mean a total end to the lockdown.

France is enjoying good weather, which has encouraged more people to spend time outdoors – a maximum of one hour of exercise plus any trips to food stores. The police are using heat-seeking drones and traditional patrols to identify people breaking confinement rules.

Germany is in the process of sourcing an 'unbelievable amount of face masks.' /Friso Getsch/Pool/AFP

Rahul Pathak in Madrid

Some good news at last for the government, as the daily death toll dropped for the third day in a row at the weekend. The health ministry reported 674 deaths in the 24 hours between Saturday and Sunday, the lowest figure in 10 days.

There's a feeling that the country is getting on top of the virus, which was echoed by Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez, who said Spain is "close to passing the peak of infections."

Lucy Hough in Brussels

There are some encouraging signs in Belgium that the epidemic is being brought under control. On Sunday, the number of people leaving hospital was higher than the number of new admissions for the first time. There were 499 new admissions, but 504 people were released.

Belgium has doubled the rate of daily tests in a week, to more than 10,000 per day. The Prime Minister, Sophie Wilmes, said in a televised address that "the figures give hope, but we have a long road to reconstruction ahead of us."

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