Darkest day for UK in Covid-19 battle as Nightingale hospital opens its wards on Friday just 13 miles from Atherstone

CONFIRMED CASES, ADMISSIONS AND DEATH TOLL ALL POINTING TO 'PEAK IN COMING DAYS'?

THE UK recorded one of Europe's worst days on record in terms of deaths for Covid-19.

Its tally of 938 victims – going through the 7,000 mark – surpassed the darkest day for Italy (919) which has recorded more deaths (17,669) than anywhere else in the world.

Despite Professor Angela McLean claiming the count of new cases in the UK "day by day over the last few weeks is not accelerating", Britain saw more new cases – 5,491 – than other European states, now seeing falling numbers.

The UK has passed the 60,000 case milestone with deaths at 7,097 – and that figure should be higher as Department of Health figures today did not factor in Northern Ireland, Southampton or Charing Cross due to a processing delay.

Yesterday's UK total death toll of 6,159 did not include Manchester, Leeds or Northern Ireland.

Nearly 2,800 deaths have been recorded in the UK in the last four days.

As Atherstone watches anxiously on the borders of Birmingham, which tops the upper tier local authority league table with 1,462 confirmed cases, the town knows the much-talked-about peak is coming in the next few days.

Its main hospital – the George Eliot – has warned it's on course within a week as Warwickshire's case total rises to 439, a fourfold increase in 11 days and moving up that infamous table from 45th to 28th.

Just 13 miles from the centre of Atherstone, the second NHS Nightingale Hospital, designed to treat COVID-19 patients, will open in Birmingham on Friday – ahead of schedule.

The temporary facility, based at the NEC in Birmingham, will house 500 beds to treat patients, with the capacity to expand to 2,000.

It will have be a tough ask as the Midlands has already recorded 7,806 cases and the University Hospitals Birmingham, which incorporates four hospitals and is the biggest trust in England, is the first to report more than 300 deaths since the outbreak began.

Britain should have moved much faster to mass test the population for coronavirus in a bid to get on top of the outbreak, the Chief Medical Officer has admitted.

After weeks of refusing to admit the nation's ability to test for Covid-19 was below par, Professor Chris Whitty said Britain would have to "learn the lessons" from Germany – where hundreds of thousands are tested each week.

Last week Germany tested over 330,000 people for coronavirus – more than the UK has managed throughout the crisis – which had led to fewer deaths and the curve of their crisis flattening much sooner.

Speaking today at Downing Street, Professor Witty said: "We all know that Germany got ahead in terms of its ability to do testing for the virus and there's a lot to learn from that and we've been trying to learn the lessons from that."

Tonight the UK is slipping down the tests-per-million-population table, now standing 51st – having tested 282,000 people. The US has passed the two million mark.

The UK government – with Dominic Raab in temporary charge while Prime Minister Boris Johnson fights his own coronavirus battle in intensive care at St Thomas's hospital – will hold a Cobra meeting tomorrow to review lockdown measures.

Although they are due for a review on Easter Monday, it is pretty certain restrictions will continue until the anticipated peak of hospital admissions has passed.

Meanwhile, Mr Johnson is preparing to spend another night in the central London hopsital, where his condition is said to be improving and he remains "stable".

The Prime Minister is said to be breathing without the use of a ventilator and is "sitting up in bed".

More than 60,000 people in Europe have now died from coronavirus, which is almost three quarters of the world total of more than 86,000. World cases stand at 1.5 million.

Italy – up 542 today – remains the worst hit country, with 17,669 deaths, followed by Spain with 14,673.

In France, the death toll is rising, with the country reporting 10,869 deaths from the virus.

On Tuesday, it recorded the world's highest daily coronavirus death toll after 1,417 victims died in the previous 24 hours. Today it introduced new lockdown rules – banning all forms of outdoor exercise between 10am and 7pm.

Paris Mayor Anne Hidalgo said people should limit their movement to urgent or indispensable outings.

Across the Atlantic, the US has passed 400,000 cases and recorded 14,369 deaths.

Coronavirus has already stopped a guerrilla war in Thailand and turned a Mexican drugs cartel in missionaries delivering food parcels to the poor and needy. Today it brought a temporary truce to some of the most dangerous streets in the world. A ceasefire has broken out in the notorious, crime-infested townships around Cape Town as rival South African gang leaders stop their turf wars to bring food to households. Everyone is looking at New Zealand which within 10 days has brought its fight against coronavirus under total control. Confirmed cases are falling – there's only been 1,200 in total – and the death stands at ONE. Other interesting virus stories from around the world include the likelihood of a global condom shortage as mass rubber producer Malaysia is in lockdown. Contraceptive maker Karex makes one in every five condoms sold globally, and company boss Goh Miah Kiat said there will "definitely" be a shortage in the coming months. In Wuhan – the city where this all began on November 17 last year – the city's 76-day lockdown was finally lifted and more than 200 flights left on Wednesday. Twitter founder jack Dorsey has donated £810 million to Covid-19 relief– that's $1 billion. Always worried by a second wave of infection, the South Korean capital of Seoul shut down more than 400 hostess bars, night clubs and discos amid concerns over the coronavirus. The measures came a day after two female bar employees were found to have contracted the coronavirus after one of them contacted a pop-star customer who also tested positive.