Bassetlaw MP Brendan Clarke-Smith self-isolates with coronavirus

The MP described his symptoms as a dry, uncontrollable cough and a fever but added ‘I’m through the worst of it now’.

Brendan said he started feeling ill on Sunday evening - constantly ‘coughing and spluttering’ with a temperature of 38 degrees.

Former headteacher Brendan’s wife - who is a doctor - warned him he probably had the virus after spending so much time in London’s Westminster.

Professor Neil Ferguson, of Imperial College, has warned the capital’s central area is the ‘hotspot’ in the UK at the moment.

Brendan, who has been working from home via email with the illness, said: “It’s not been great - like a bad cold really - but I’m through the worst of it already.

“The cough is quite bad - it’s a very dry cough and fairly uncontrollable.

“I had swine flu about 10 years ago and this is nothing compared to that - I’d not had a day off work for eight years before that.”

However the MP warned the risk to those with underlying health conditions and the elderly was very real and stressed the importance of staying at home to control the infection rate.

He said: “I reckon I’ve had it and 80 per cent of cases will be mild like mine but the risk with this is the rate of infection - people are dying of it and not all of them have underlying health conditions.

“For many, passing the infection on to others is the worst part - rather than the infection itself.”

Public Health England advise anyone with coronavirus symptoms to isolate themselves at home for seven days.

Those living in the same household who are still well should isolate for 14 days from the day the infected person began feeling symptoms.

At the time of publication there were 92 cases of coronavirus in Nottinghamshire - with 9,529 cases and 422 deaths in the UK.

On Thursday Bassetlaw Hospital confirmed a patient being treated for the effects of coronavirus had died.