A pandemic of a new strand of coronavirus spread across the world from February 2020. On 1 March, Health Secretary Matt Hancock issued a warning that "all options" were being considered if the virus spread further, including delaying the local elections, for the first time since the 2001 elections which were delayed by a month due to the foot-and-mouth outbreak. On 12 March, the Association of Electoral Administrators asked the government to consider postponing the elections should the situation in the UK deteriorate. The same day, the Electoral Commission recommended that the elections be delayed till the autumn.