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Senin, 04 Mei 2020

Coronavirus: US to borrow record $3tn as spending soars - BBC News

The US has said it wants to borrow a record $3tn (£2.4tn) in the second quarter, as coronavirus-related rescue packages blow up the budget.

The sum is more than five times the previous quarterly record, set at the height of the 2008 financial crisis.

In all of 2019, the country borrowed $1.28tn. The US has approved about $3tn in virus-related relief, including health funding and direct payouts.

Total US government debt is now near $25tn.

The latest spending packages are estimated to be worth about 14% of the country's economy. The government has also extended the annual 15 April deadline for tax payments, adding to the cash crunch.

The new borrowing estimate is more than $3tn above the government's previous estimate, a sign of the impact of the new programmes.

Discussions are under way over further assistance, though some Republicans have expressed concerns about the impact of more spending on the country's skyrocketing national debt.

The US borrows by selling government bonds. It has historically enjoyed relatively low interest rates since its debt is viewed as relatively low-risk by investors around the world.

But even before the coronavirus, the country's debt load had been climbing toward levels many economists consider risky for long-term growth, as the country spent more than it took in.

The US Congressional Budget Office last month predicted the budget deficit would hit $3.7tn this year, while the national debt soared above 100% of GDP.

Last week, the chair of America's central bank, Jerome Powell, said he would have liked to see the US government's books be in better shape before the pandemic.

However, he said spending now was essential to cushion the economic blow, as orders to shut businesses to slow the spread of the virus cost at least 30 million people their jobs.

"It may well be that the economy will need more help from all of us if the recovery is to be a robust one," he said.

As part of its own relief efforts, the Federal Reserve has bought more than $1tn in treasuries in recent weeks.

Investors from foreign countries are also historically significant holders of US debt, with Japan, China and the UK at the top of the pack as of February.

Increased tensions between the US and China in recent years have renewed scrutiny of America's debt position. According to the Washington Post last week, Trump administration officials had discussed cancelling debt obligations to China, but US President Donald Trump reportedly played down the idea, saying "you start playing those games and it's tough".

For now, continued low rates suggest investor appetite for US debt remains, allowing for a borrowing increase, Alan Blinder, a professor of economics and public affairs at Princeton University, told the BBC last month.

"So far, the answer has been everything is fine, as to how much borrowing the United States government can do before investors start to feel satiated with US debt," he said. "But there is a legitimate question."

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2020-05-05 02:44:16Z
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Coronavirus: First workers to trial NHS tracing app - BBC News

05 May 2020
UK

People are seen following social distancing rules as they queue outside a Tesco supermarket in Kensington, as the spread of the coronavirus disease (COVID-19) continues,

An NHS app which aims to track the spread of coronavirus will be rolled out for the first time today, as part of a trial on the Isle of Wight.

Council and healthcare workers will be the first to try the contact-tracing app, with the rest of the island able to download it from Thursday.

If the trial is successful, it could be available nationwide within weeks.

Concerns have been raised over privacy, though ministers say the app has been designed with this "front of mind".

The app aims to quickly trace recent contacts of anyone who tests positive for the virus.

It is part of the government's strategy for coming out of lockdown, which aims to have widespread testing and contact tracing in place to monitor and reduce any future outbreaks.

If the trial is successful, the app will be rolled out across the whole of the UK by the middle of May, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.

How does the app work?

The new app - published on Apple and Google's app stores - works by using a Bluetooth connection.

It records when two people who have the app are within a certain distance of each other for longer than a specified amount of time.

If one of those people later reports having symptoms, all the other app users they came into contact with over the last seven days will be alerted and told to self-isolate.

Mr Hancock urged everyone on the Isle of Wight to download the app when it was available to them. Social distancing rules would still be in place during the trial, he said.

"By downloading the app, you are protecting your own health, you are protecting the health of your loved ones and the health of your community," he said.

"Where the Isle of Wight goes, Britain follows."

The island was chosen for the trial because it has a lower number of new infections, is covered by a single NHS trust and because travel to and from the island is quite restricted.

Matt Hancock said Isle of Wight residents using the app "will be saving lives"

It comes as the the number of coronavirus-related deaths in the UK reached 28,734, an increase of 288.

The daily increase in deaths is lower than at any point since the end of March, but the figures reported at the weekend tend to be lower and are expected to rise, Mr Hancock said.

Chart showing deaths and cases, 4 May - 28,734 deaths and 190,584 cases

Banner image reading 'more about coronavirus'

Privacy debate

The type of approach used to design the app has raised some privacy concerns.

The app has been designed with a "centralised" approach, meaning there is a central computer which works out which phones have matched and should receive an alert.

This is different to the "decentralised" model used by Apple and Google, where the matches take place on users' handsets.

Some have argued a "centralised" approach gives the app advantages, for example by being able to spot hotspots where the disease is spreading. But others say a central system increases the risk from potential hackers.

The UK's data privacy watchdog, the Information Commissioner's Office, said "as a general rule, a decentralised approach" would be more in keeping with its principle that organisations should minimise the amount of personal data they collect.

"But that does not in any way mean that a centralised system can't have the same kind of privacy and security protections," said Information Commissioner Elizabeth Denham on Monday.

At a virtual meeting on Monday, Parliament's Human Rights Committee also discussed privacy fears. Law professor Orla Lynskey said the option on the app for users to opt in and share their location data "poses a big risk".

But NHSX - the part of the health service that developed the app - said the app will be voluntary, and the only personal data stored by the app at the start would be the first part of the user's postcode.

Additional location data will only be recorded if users agree to a further opt-in request, NHSX added.

NHSX chief executive Matthew Gould said: "The app is designed so you don't have to give it your personal details to use it - it does ask for the first half of your postcode but only that.

"You can use it without giving any other personal details at all - it doesn't know who you are, it doesn't know who you've been near, it doesn't know where you've been."

Mr Hancock said the software was "designed with privacy and security front of mind". He said the data was stored on the phone and only sent to the NHS when someone needs a test.

The UK's "test, track and trace" strategy has seen testing be scaled up over the last month, following Mr Hancock's pledge to reach 100,000 tests by the end of April. The UK passed the target, providing more than 122,000 tests on the last day of April. Latest figures show there were 85,186 tests on Sunday.

To track the virus and study how the virus spreads through the population, 20,000 households will be recruited at random and routinely tested over 12 months.

It comes after draft government plans for getting people back to work during the coronavirus pandemic were leaked. It urges employers to stagger shift times and maximise home-working.

Trade unions warned the guidance could compromise workers' safety and asked for stricter rules for businesses.

In other developments:

How have you been affected by coronavirus? Share your experiences by emailing haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk .

Please include a contact number if you are willing to speak to a BBC journalist.