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Police will be given powers to detain people with coronavirus under new emergency laws set to be announced next week.

The sweeping measures also allow the government to force schools and nurseries to stay open if they are deemed to have closed 'unnecessarily'.

Both police and border officials will be able to detain people for a 'limited period' if it is feared they could spread the deadly virus, The Times reports.

The drastic package of legislation - which has been seen by the paper - is due to be pushed through Parliament in the next fortnight and will remain in effect for two years.

They come as the number of people infected with COVID-19 in the UK rose by 200 in the space of 24 hours to a total of 798.

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It was warned yesterday that up to 10,000 Brits may also unknowingly be infected with the virus, which has now been declared a global health pandemic.

Care for the elderly is also likely to be reduced.

Under the new laws, councils will be allowed to strip back services offered both to people in care homes and in their own homes without legal challenge - so long as they do not cause 'serious neglect or harm'.

Local authorities can also relax standards in care homes, to allow for staff shortages.

In order to maintain border security in the event of customs and immigration officers falling sick, ministers will be given the power to close ports if there are 'insufficient resources'.

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The government will also be able to stop any vehicle, train, vessel or aircraft.

Worryingly, the legislation warns that the country's 'death management' industry could be rapidly overwhelmed should worst-case scenarios become a reality, and measures to speed up cremations and burials have also been proposed.

The draft reads: "In a reasonable worst-case scenario the death management industry will be rapidly overwhelmed.

"There is a significant gap in body storage requirements to ensure we are prepared for the reasonable worst-case scenario."

Doctors will be permitted to detail the cause of death on medical certificates without seeing a deceased person's body - with other senior health professionals allowed to sign death certificates.

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Requirements for coroners to hold jury inquests will also be lifted.

However, the government has stopped short of declaring a 'state of emergency' under the Civil Contingencies Act 2004, which would have allowed ministers to force through new laws without the approval of Parliament.

Care home visits have also not yet been banned.

Meanwhile, as part of efforts to bring retired NHS staff back to work if needed, registration requirements for doctors, social workers and pharmacists seeking to return to practice will be relaxed.

Care workers close to finishing their qualifications will also be allowed to register.

Finally, the levels of doctors required at clinics under the Mental Health Act are set to be lowered to allow staff to be diverted to hospitals.

Earlier today, World Health Organisation director-general Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus declared Europe the 'epicentre' of the coronavirus pandemic, which originated in Wuhan in China earlier this year.

Italy remains the worst-affected country, followed by Spain.

Boris Johnson is set to ban gathering of more than 500 people next week, including football matches, concerts and festivals, in an effort to reduce pressure on emergency services.