Tens of thousands of travellers' flights to the US will be cancelled today after Donald Trump extended his travel ban to the UK and Ireland, causing chaos for British families and businesses, whose plans are torn up at short notice.

The US president, who said yesterday he was awaiting the result of a coronavirus test, acted after the World Health Organisation designated Europe the epicentre of the pandemic.

Mike Pence, the vice-president, said there had been a "unanimous recommendation" from health experts to extend the ban, adding: "Americans in the UK can come home, legal residents can come home, funnelled through specific airports, and processed."

The number of coronavirus cases in the US has reached 2,499, with 68 killed by the virus, and predictions the nation's intensive care beds could soon be overrun.

Countries around the world continue to tighten travel restrictions in an effort to slow the rise in Covid-19 cases.

British travellers in Spain face difficulty in getting home as the country's government prepares to put its 47 million inhabitants under partial lockdown from tomorrow. An emergency decree was expected last night to order all Spaniards to stay at home except to buy food, go to the pharmacy or hospital, or for emergency work. Bars, restaurants, conference centres and all leisure and sports activities - including cinemas, theatres, swimming pools and football grounds - will be closed. The Foreign Office has warned Britons not to travel to Spain unless their trip is essential.