Boris Johnson says the government is "concerned" about Leicester - as it looks increasingly likely the city will be the first to be put into a 'local lockdown.'
It's understood the city's Mayor will meet with Government health officials this afternoon to discuss the suggestion of holding Leicester in lockdown for two weeks after restrictions are lifted on July 4.
According to Public Health England data, almost 3,000 Covid-19 cases have been confirmed in Leicester since the start of the coronavirus epidemic.
Of these, 866 cases were reported in the last two weeks.
The Prime Minister said: "We are concerned about Leicester. We're concerned about any local outbreak.
"And I want to stress to people that we are not out of the woods yet."
Mr Johnson insisted plans to relax lockdown rules across the country were "cautious" and "calibrated".
But he faced criticism this morning from Northern leaders who fear the re-opening of the hospitality sector has not been thought through.
Andy Burnham, Mayor of Greater Manchester, said: "We have a situation looming this Saturday where all the pubs are being opened....for the first time in a long time.
"Who decided in government that it was a good idea to come out of lockdown and open the pubs on a Saturday in the middle of Summer?"
He added: "And no-one consulted us on this, because if they had done, we would have said no, don't do that. Open them on a weekday like everybody else has done around Europe."
Mr Johnson said: "It's very important that we're making these cautious, calibrated steps. We're opening as much of hospitality as we can on July 4, opening as much of the economy as we can - some things, alas, still being closed until they can become Covid-secure.
"But to make all that possible we have to remain vigilant, we have to continue to do the basics, washing our hands and all that, plus we need to have local lockdowns and local 'whack-a-mole' strategies where necessary."
He added: "It's worked in places like Weston Super Mare or where we've had outbreaks in GP surgeries in London.
"And that's the same approach we'll bring to bear in Leicester as well."
The Labour MP for Leicester East, Claudia Webbe, said the Government's lifting of lockdown restrictions on July 4 while her constituency was seeing a new spike in cases would be "reckless".
She said countrywide lockdown measures introduced in late March should be re-introduced in Leicester, such as asking people to stay in their homes as much as possible and the two-metre social distancing restriction.
Speaking on BBC Breakfast, she said: "We're talking about a situation where we need a lockdown, but on July 4, almost a week on, we're talking about the easing of lockdown.
"I think this is reckless when you've got a situation in Leicester where 25% of the cases (in the city) have happened in the last two weeks."
