A further 15 people have died from coronavirus in the second weekend since pubs, bars and restaurants were able to open their doors to lockdown-weary revellers.
All 15 fatalities are in England, with no deaths reported in Scotland, Wales nor Northern Ireland, according to the preliminary figures.
This brings Britain’s total death toll to 44,813 – however this is likely to be much higher once care homes death numbers are released.
Figures released on Sunday are usually smaller due to a delay in processing over the weekend.
A further 15 people have died from coronavirus in the second weekend since pubs, bars and restaurants were able to open their doors to lockdown-weary revellers
It comes as Prime Minister Boris Johnson (pictured) issued a ‘go back and work if you can’ rallying cry on Friday in a bid to boost the economy
Along with no deaths in Wales – the total number of coronavirus cases increased by just 16 to 15,962.
No new coronavirus deaths were reported in Scotland either, marking the fourth day in a row without any fatalities.
Scotland’s First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has welcomed figures, and wrote on Twitter: ‘Another day y’day with no registered deaths of people who had tested positive for COVID-19.
‘New cases though – 12 more than yesterday. We can expect to see daily variation – but as on Friday, these are being closely examined. And it’s a reminder that the virus hasn’t gone away.’
The latest figures show that 18,359 people have tested positive for the virus in Scotland, up by 19 from 18,340 the day before.
Michael Gove told Sky news it is crucial to ‘fire up the economic engines’ again as the country emerges from lockdown
Current lockdown guidance states that people in the UK should avoid public transport where possible, resulting in empty carriages
Yesterday, 148 Covid-19 deaths were reported in just 24 hours in the UK- more than double last Saturday – three weeks after shops were allowed to reopen in the first major easing of lockdown.
The figure was over twice that of the 67 people who died from the virus the week before and more than triple that of Friday, bringing the total of deaths to 44,798.
Today’s figures come as Michael Gove pleaded with Britons to go back to their offices amid fears of a looming jobs bloodbath on the high street.
The Cabinet minister insisted it is crucial to ‘fire up the economic engines’ again as the country emerges from lockdown.
The UK Government is set to ease restrictions on public transport, such as buses, to encourage more people to go back into offices for work
Boris Johnson was pictured wearing a face mask for the first time in public while out in his Uxbridge constituency on Friday
The call came as the government prepares to relax restrictions on public transport in a bid to encourage the public out of their homes.
It is feared the collapse of the ‘lunchtime economy’ could deal another massive blow to the fortunes of the high street, with warnings that 250,000 jobs could be on the line
Echoing a rallying cry from Boris Johnson on Friday, Mr Gove told Sky News today: ‘We want to see more people back at work on the shop floor in the office where they can be.’
A national survey has found just 12 per cent of people want life to return to the ‘old normal,’ while around 60 per cent still feel uncomfortable using public transport.
Adding to the government’s push to encourage people back into shops, Mr Gove today dismissed the idea of making face coverings compulsory in shops – despite Boris Johnson strongly hinting at the change.
The Cabinet minister said it was best to ‘trust’ the public and wearing a mask was a matter of ‘good manners’.
The intervention comes after the PM said on Friday that he believed the government ‘needs to be stricter in insisting people wear face coverings in confined spaces’.
Meanwhile, Nicola Sturgeon – who has made the rule compulsory in shops in Scotland – said today that masks were the ‘right thing’.
Asked about the issue on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show this morning, Mr Gove said: ‘I don’t think mandatory, no, but I would encourage people to wear face masks when they are inside, in an environment where they are likely to be mixing with others and where the ventilation may not be as good as it might.
‘I think that it is basic good manners, courtesy and consideration, to wear a face mask if you are, for example, in a shop.
‘I trust people’s good sense. Now of course the Government at all times does look at the emerging evidence about what the best way to control the disease is.
‘If necessary, and if tough measures are required and as we have seen in Leicester, obviously a very different situation, then tough measures will be taken.
‘But on the whole… it is always best to trust people’s common sense.’