PRIME Minister Boris Johnson tonight ordered people to stay in their homes or risk fines, as the coronavirus crisis hit lockdown.

After the failure to convince large numbers to observe social distancing rules voluntarily, he said in an address to the nation that only essential shops would stay open. All gatherings apart from funerals would be cancelled.

Parks would stay open for exercise but people are only permitted to go with people they live with – once a day.

The unprecedented measures came as the death toll from the spread of Covid-19 continued to rise and fears continued to grow that the NHS would soon be overwhelmed in a similar fashion to the healthcare system in Italy, where hundreds of people are dying every day. Lockdowns have also been in place in France and Spain.

SEE ALSO BORIS JOHNSON”S LOCKDOWN STATEMENT IN FULL

Mr Johnson said: “From this evening I must give the British people a very simple instruction: you must stay at home. Because the critical thing we must do is stop the disease spreading between households. That is why people will only be allowed to leave their home for the following very limited purposes: shopping for basic necessities, as infrequently as possible, one form of exercise a day – for example a run, walk, or cycle – alone or with members of your household, any medical need, to provide care or to help a vulnerable person and travelling to and from work, but only where this is absolutely necessary and cannot be done from home. That’s all – these are the only reasons you should leave your home.”

He added: “I can assure you that we will keep these restrictions under constant review. We will look again in three weeks, and relax them if the evidence shows we are able to. But at present there are just no easy options. The way ahead is hard, and it is still true that many lives will sadly be lost.”