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* UK calls in army to help NHS
* PM Johnson warns of curfews
* Britain tells people: heed our health advice
* More high street names close doors
(Adds Johnson statement time, recasts)
By Kate Holton and Sarah Young
LONDON, March 23 (Reuters) - Britain was to announce new
measures on Monday to halt the spread of coronavirus,
potentially adding fresh restrictions to an already
unprecedented clampdown on daily life, as the army stepped in to
deliver protective equipment to hospitals.
With some doctors saying they felt like "cannon fodder", the
government said the military would help ship millions of items
of personal protective equipment (PPE) including masks to
healthcare workers who have complained of shortages.
Deaths from the virus in Britain jumped to 335 on Monday as
Prime Minister Boris Johnson prepared to lay out new measures in
an address at 2030 GMT, which replaces his daily news
conference.
In a letter pleading with Johnson to increase PPE supplies,
more than 6,000 frontline doctors said they were being asked to
put their lives at risk with out-of-date masks, and low stocks
of equipment.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted there had been issues
but promised action was being taken. He said the army would
drive trucks throughout the day and night to get supplies to
medical staff.
"It's like a war effort - it is a war against this virus and
so the army have been incredibly helpful in getting those
logistics so we can get the supplies to protect people on the
front line," he told the BBC, saying the health service now had
12,000 ventilators, 7,000 more than at the start of the crisis.
Later on Monday, Britain's lower house of parliament is
expected to approve emergency legislation giving authorities
sweeping powers to tackle the outbreak, including the right to
detain people and put them in isolation to protect public
health.
Britain has already brought in a raft of measures to try to
curb the virus and on Monday the government advised citizens
travelling abroad to return home immediately.
A much-reduced rail service was introduced and jury trials
were suspended, just days after Johnson advised people to work
from home if possible and ordered the closure of pubs, gyms and
leisure centres.
Other businesses were shutting voluntarily as demand
collapses.
Fashion and homeware retailer Next said it will
close its stores as of 1800 GMT on Monday until further notice,
and bakery chain Greggs and department store John Lewis
said they would follow suit.
ADVICE IGNORED
Advice to stay at home and avoid social gatherings went
unheeded by millions at the weekend who took advantage of sunny
weather to flock to parks and beauty spots, ignoring
instructions to stay 2 metres (6 feet) apart.
Emyr Williams, chief executive of the Snowdonia National
Park Authority in Wales, said the past 24 hours had been
unprecedented.
The government has warned that Britain would face a shutdown
with curfews and travel restrictions if people continued to
flout the advice.
"We're perfectly prepared to do that if we need to because
the objective here is really clear, which is to stop the spread
of the virus," Hancock told Sky News.
The closure of non-essential shops came as Britain opened
the first part of a 330 billion pound ($384 billion) loan
guarantee scheme for businesses to help small and medium-sized
firms borrow up to 5 million pounds to deal with coronavirus
stoppages.
UK banks are in a "strong position" to further support an
economy that will rebound from the epidemic, the Bank of England
and leading lenders said in a joint statement.
(Additional reporting by Costas Pitas and David Milliken;
Writing by Michael Holden; Editing by Guy Faulconbridge, Alison
Williams and Stephen Addison)
