Coronavirus death toll in UK increases by 674 bringing total to 26,771

More than 26,000 people have died after contracting coronavirus in the UK.

A further 675 people have died with coronavirus in the UK, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has confirmed.

The deaths in hospitals, care homes and the wider community means the toll of fatalities in the UK has risen to 26,771.

In Scotland, a total of 1,475 patients have died after testing positive for coronavirus, up by 60 from 1,415 on Wednesday, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said.

In Wales another 22 people have died in hospitals, bringing the total fatalities there to 908, according to Public Health Wales.

Elsewhere, the coronavirus death toll in Northern Ireland has risen to 347, with nine further deaths reported by the Department of Health.

New hospitals have been set up around the UK to help fight coronavirus. Credit: PA

Speaking at the government's daily coronavirus update for the first time since being admitted into hospital, Mr Johnson said that although deaths are decreasing and the UK is now "past the peak" of the coronavirus outbreak, the PM said any relaxation of lockdown measures now would "risk a second peak" in the virus.

Referring to conditions needed for easing lockdown restrictions, he added: said: "We must be sure that we can continue to protect the NHS and its ability to cope."

"We must see a sustained fall in deaths."

"We must all make sure that the measures we take do not risk a second spike that would overwhelm the NHS."

The PM added: "We have come through the peak, or rather we have come under what could have been a vast peak.

"As though we have been going through some huge Alpine tunnel and we can now see the sunlight and the pasture ahead of us."

The prime minister said he would set out a "road map" for easing lockdown restrictions next week.

Mr Johnson said: "What you are going to get next week is really a road map, a menu of options - the dates and times of each individual measure will be very much driven by where we are in the epidemic, what the data is really saying and we are getting in a lot more data every day now and in the course of the next few days."

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