The Foreign Office has announced that a planned flight to take British nationals back to the UK from Wuhan, China, will not take place today

The World Health Organisation (WHO) has declared the “unprecedented” outbreak of coronavirus an international public health emergency, as officials bid to prevent infections in countries with weak healthcare systems. Shortly afterwards, the UK’s four chief medical officers upgraded the risk level in Britain from low to moderate.

The WHO praised China‘s response to the outbreak which began in the city of Wuhan, and said that “we’re all in this together”. Director-general Tedros Adhanom said governments must work together “in a spirit of solidarity” to control the spread of the new pathogen.

Almost 8,000 cases have been recorded, including some 212 deaths. There are about 100 cases in countries outside China, and eight cases of human-to-human transmission in four countries. The announcement came as the UK prepared to bring its nationals back from Wuhan; they will be held in isolation for two weeks at a facility on Merseyside.