UK records first coronavirus death

The UK has announced its first fatality from coronavirus as the number of confirmed cases in the country jumped to more than 110.

Iran Press/Europe: Britain is moving into the second of four phases in its plan to tackle the spread of coronavirus, England's Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty said on Thursday, as the UK recorded its first death of a patient and confirmed cases rose.

The news came shortly after the government announced another 30 confirmed cases in the UK, taking the total to 115. It is unclear how 10 of the cases caught the disease. One other British person has died but that was in Japan after the man became infected aboard the Diamond Princess cruise ship. 

Speaking to MPs on Thursday morning, Prof Whitty said the UK was now “mainly in the second stage” of its plan to tackle the spread of the virus and was gradually shifting its focus from containing individual cases to delaying the peak of the outbreak until the summer.

Britain has so far registered 115 cases of the coronavirus known as COVID-19, which started in China, but has held off from introducing measures to restrict movement or cancel large gatherings for fear of hurting the economy.

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