UK interior minister Priti Patel has repeated the government's message to the public to stay at home as Britain battles the coronavirus outbreak, calling on people to continue to follow the rules as the country was not yet out of danger.
"Our instruction remains clear, people should stay at home, protect the NHS (National Health Service) and save lives," Ms Patel told a news conference on Saturday.
"We know that people are frustrated but we are not out of danger. It is imperative that we continue to follow the rules."
Britain passed the grim milestone of more than 20,000 COVID-19 deaths on Saturday as the daily toll rose 813 to 20,319 people who tested positive for the illness and died in hospital.
The figure does not include those who have died in aged care homes.
Back in mid-March the government's chief scientific adviser said that keeping the death toll below 20,000 would be a "good outcome".
One expert suggested the numbers could now double that tally before the outbreak was brought under control in Britain.
Boris Johnson returns to work
The news came as it was confirmed that Boris Johnson will return to work in Downing Street on Monday after spending three nights in intensive care earlier in April before recovering from the virus.
The Prime Minister has been recuperating at his official country residence at Chequers since being discharged from St Thomas' Hospital in London.
The government is facing growing criticism over its response to the pandemic as the death toll rises. Britain was slower to impose a lockdown than European peers and is struggling to raise its testing capacity.
The country has the fifth highest official coronavirus death toll in the world, after the US, Italy, Spain and France. Scientists have said that the death rate will only start to decline quickly in another couple of weeks.
Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson has faced criticisms over his handling of the crisis. Source: Getty Images Europe
The total number of deaths is likely to be thousands higher with the addition of more comprehensive but lagging figures that include deaths in nursing homes. As of 10 April, the hospital toll was short of the overall toll by around 40 per cent.
Testing shortfall
In Mr Johnson's absence, government ministers have been struggling to explain high death rates, limited testing and shortages of protective equipment for medical workers and carers.
Health ministry data published on Saturday showed that 28,760 tests were carried out on 24 April. That is likely to put further pressure on the government given its target of hitting 100,000 tests per day by the end of April is just days away.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock has promised that number of daily tests by 30 April, but by Friday only 28,760 had been achieved.
It's now been announced eight mobile coronavirus testing units staffed by the army are starting to travel around Britain, with dozens more to follow, to help the government approach its target.
Refitted vehicles will collect throat swabs, which will be sent to laboratories for processing, the Department of Health said in a statement on Sunday.
A further 96 of the units will start operating during May.
Dr Paul Hunter, professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia, said the true death toll is yet to be seen.
"We know for a fact the figures reported every day are an underestimate, possibly a significant underestimate of the total number of deaths."
He said the UK is well on track to hit 30,000 deaths in hospital, perhaps even 40,000 before the pandemic is brought under control.
Spain and Italy
Meanwhile in Spain, officials said more than 3,500 COVID-19 sufferers had recovered from the respiratory disease caused by the virus during the last 24 hours, while there were 3,000 new infections.
In that time, 378 people had died. These are almost half the level of infections and deaths seen at the height of the epidemic in Spain.
These latest figures bring the total number of infections to more than 220,000 in Spain with a death toll of nearly 23,000. More than 95,000 people have recovered.
In Italy, deaths from the COVID-19 epidemic have risen by 415, the smallest daily tally since March 17, the Civil Protection Agency says.
The number of new infections was also the lowest in five days at 2,357 on Saturday from 3,021 on Friday.
Saturday's death toll was slightly down from 420 on Friday.
The total number of fatalities since the outbreak came to light on February 21 now stands at 26,384, the agency said, the second highest in the world after that of the US.
The number of confirmed cases was 195,351, the third highest global tally behind those of the US and Spain.
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