The following is a timeline of the COVID-19 pandemic in the United Kingdom from January 2020 to June 2020.
There are significant differences in the legislation and the reporting between the countries of the UK: England, Scotland, Northern Ireland, and Wales. The number of cases and deaths are reported on a government Web site updated daily during the pandemic. The UK-wide COVID Symptom Study based on surveys of four million participants, endorsed by authorities in Scotland and Wales, run by health science company ZOE, and analysed by King's College London researchers, publishes daily estimates of the number of new and total current COVID-19 infections (excluding care homes) in UK regions, without restriction to only laboratory-confirmed cases.
Timeline January 2020 23 January – The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all but essential travel to the city of Wuhan, the original epicentre of the outbreak. 25 January – The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all travel to China's Hubei Province, where the city of Wuhan is located. 27 January – The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock, tells the House of Commons that 200 British citizens trapped in Wuhan, China, will be offered repatriation to the UK, in light of the COVID-19 outbreak there. 28 January – The Foreign and Commonwealth Office updates its travel advisory, advising against all but essential travel to the rest of Mainland China. 29 January – British Airways suspends all flights to and from mainland China with immediate effect, due to the ongoing COVID-19 threat. 30 January – The first two cases of COVID-19 in the United Kingdom are confirmed, two Chinese nationals staying in York.
February 2020 6 February – A third case of COVID-19 is confirmed in the UK. 10 February – The total number of cases in the UK reaches eight as four further cases are confirmed in people linked to an affected man from Brighton. 11 February – A ninth case is confirmed in London. 23 February – The DHSC confirms a total of 13 cases in the UK as four new cases in passengers on the cruise ship Diamond Princess are detected. They are transferred to hospitals in the UK. 25 February – Government guidance states that travellers returning from Hubei, Iran, and certain regions of South Korea should self-isolate on reaching home or their destination, even if they have no symptoms. 26/27 February – There is a COVID-19 outbreak at a Nike conference in Edinburgh from which at least 25 people linked to the event are thought to have contracted the virus, including 8 residents of Scotland. Health Protection Scotland establishes an incident management team, and full contact tracing is done for delegates who have tested positive. 27 February The total number of confirmed cases in the UK is reported as 16. Authorities confirm the first case of COVID-19 in Northern Ireland. 28 February The first British death from the disease is confirmed by the Japanese Health Ministry; a man quarantined on the Diamond Princess cruise ship. Authorities confirm the first case of COVID-19 in Wales, an individual who recently returned from holiday in Italy. 29 February Three further cases of the virus are confirmed, bringing the total number of confirmed cases to 23, after 10,483 people have been tested. Two of the three affected people had recently returned from Italy while the third had come back from Asia. Around 442,675 calls were made to the non-emergency line 111 in the last week of February.
March 2020 1–10 March 1 March – A further 13 cases are reported, adding Greater Manchester to the list of areas affected and bringing the total to 36, three of which are believed to be contacts of a case in Surrey who had no history of travel abroad. 2 March – The government holds a COBRA meeting, attended by the Prime Minister, to discuss its preparations and response to the virus, as the number of UK cases jumps to 36. 3 March – The government publishes its action plan for dealing with COVID-19. This includes scenarios ranging from a milder pandemic to a "severe prolonged pandemic as experienced in 1918" and warns that a fifth of the national workforce could be absent from work during the infection's peak. The first death of a UK patient was identified in Nottingham in a retrospective study, performed by researchers at the University of Nottingham, of respiratory illness cases admitted to the Queen's Medical Centre 4 March – The total number of confirmed cases increases to 85. 5 March – The first 'official' death from COVID-19 in the UK is confirmed, as the number of cases exceeds 100, with a total of 115 having tested positive. England's Chief Medical Officer, Chris Whitty, tells MPs that the UK has now moved to the second stage of dealing with COVID-19 – from "containment" to the "delay" phase. 6 March – The Prime Minister announces £46 million in funding for research into a COVID-19 vaccine and rapid diagnostic tests. During a visit to a laboratory in Bedfordshire, he says: "It looks like there will be a substantial period of disruption where we have to deal with this outbreak." 7 March – The number of cases rises to over 200. 8 March – A third death from COVID-19 is reported, at North Manchester General Hospital, as the number of cases in the UK reaches 273, the largest single-day increase so far. 9 March The FTSE 100 plunges by more than 8 per cent, its largest intraday fall since 2008, amid concerns over the spread of COVID-19. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all but essential travel to Italy due to the COVID-19 outbreak in the country and the nationwide lockdown. The first three cases are discovered in Dorset. 10 March – Health minister Nadine Dorries becomes the first MP to test positive for COVID-19. HM Government allows the Cheltenham Festival to go ahead. The 3-dayfestival attracted 251,684 visitors. The local NHS trust subsequently recorded twice as many COVID-19 deaths as neighbouring authorities but the local council argued that many factors may have caused this.
11 March The Bank of England cuts its baseline interest rate from 0.75% to 0.25%, back down to the lowest level in history. Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak, presents the Johnson Government's first budget, which includes £30 billion in measures to protect the economy from COVID-19.
12 March The UK Chief Medical Officers raise the risk to the UK from moderate to high. The government advises that anyone with a new continuous cough or a fever should self-isolate for seven days. Schools are asked to cancel trips abroad, and people over 70 and those with pre-existing medical conditions are advised to avoid cruises. Following a recent series of major falls, the FTSE100 plunges again, this time by over 10%, its biggest drop since 1987. Other markets around the world are similarly affected by ongoing economic turmoil. Public Health England stops performing contact tracing, as widespread infections overwhelm capacity. The rules published on 25 February for travellers returning from certain countries are withdrawn; they should now follow the same guidance as other households.
13 March Authorities confirm the first death from COVID-19 in Scotland. The UK Government restricts the export of three drugs being administered to COVID-19 patients in clinical trials in China: Kaletra, Chloroquine phosphate, and Hydroxychloroquine. BBC Radio 1 cancels its Big Weekend music festival, scheduled to take place at the end of May. Organisers subsequently run an alternative event called Big Weekend UK 2020, with acts appearing on one of five virtual stages and performed from their homes; the event also features past performances from previous Big Weekend events. The Premier League and EFL football seasons are suspended.
14 March The number of confirmed cases rises to 1,140. A further 10 people are reported to have died from COVID-19, almost doubling the UK death toll from 11 to 21. The government's aim for a "herd immunity" approach generates controversy. Vice President of the United States, Mike Pence, announces the US is to extend its European COVID-19 travel ban to include the UK from 16 March. UK retailers release a joint letter asking customers not to panic buy products after some supermarkets sell out of items such as pasta, hand gel and toilet paper.
15 March The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all but essential travel to Spain. The FCO advises against all but essential travel to the United States due to the restrictions imposed in response to the pandemic. Health Secretary Matt Hancock says that every UK resident over the age of 70 will be told "within the coming weeks" to self-isolate for "a very long time" to shield them from COVID-19. The government announces plans to hold daily televised press conferences to update the public on the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic, starting on Monday 16 March. London's Old Vic becomes the first West End theatre to cancel a performance because of the pandemic when it ends its run of Samuel Beckett's Endgame two weeks early.
16 March The UK death toll from the pandemic reaches 55, with the number of cases of the illness passing 1,500. Prime Minister Boris Johnson advises everyone in the UK against "non-essential" travel and contact with others, to curb COVID-19, as well as to work from home if possible and avoid visiting social venues such as pubs, clubs or theatres. Pregnant women, people over the age of 70 and those with certain health conditions are urged to consider the advice "particularly important", and will be asked to self-isolate within days. The Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport states "it is advised that large gatherings should not take place". The government issues a call for businesses to support the supply of ventilators and ventilator components; the NHS has access to 8,175 ventilators but it is thought that up to 30,000 may be needed. The BBC delays its planned changes to TV licences for the over-75s from June to August because of the pandemic. Theatres in London, as well as elsewhere around the UK, close following Boris Johnson's advice that people should avoid such venues.
17 March The Chancellor, Rishi Sunak, announces that £330bn will be made available in loan guarantees for businesses affected by the virus. The Foreign and Commonwealth Office advises against all non-essential international travel due to the pandemic and the border restrictions put in place by many countries in response. The UK government provides a £3.2million emergency support package to help rough sleepers into accommodation. With complex physical and mental health needs, in general, homeless people are at a significant risk of catching the virus. The BBC announces major changes to the schedule across the network. While programmes such as Politics Live, Victoria Derbyshire, The Andrew Neil Show, Newswatch, The Travel Show and HARDTalk have been suspended, others such as Newsnight and The Andrew Marr Show will continue with a smaller number of production staff. Question Time is moved to an earlier 8pm Thursday timeslot and will be broadcast without an audience from a fixed location. Podcasts programmes Americast, Beyond Today and The Next Episode are also suspended. Cinema chains Odeon, Cineworld, Vue and Picturehouse announce they will be closing all their UK outlets, in response to the advice to avoid visiting such venues.
18 March Pound sterling falls below $1.18, its lowest level since 1985. Bank of England governor Andrew Bailey, commenting on the UK and wider economic situation, says: "It's obviously an emergency. I think we're living in completely unparalleled times... It's going to be a very big downturn – we know that." The UK death toll from COVID-19 exceeds 100, with 32 new cases taking the total to 104.