The UK is past the peak of the coronavirus outbreak but the country is still at a "dangerous" stage of the pandemic, Dominic Raab has said.
The Foreign Secretary said the rate of infection – the R value – was between 0.5 and 0.9 and the number of new cases and daily death toll were both “steadily falling”.
But speaking at today's Downing Street press conference, Mr Raab warned: “The virus is not beaten yet, it remains deadly and infectious.”
He confirmed Boris Johnson will use an address on Sunday to set out the “roadmap” to easing the lockdown.
“This weekend the Prime Minister will set out the next steps which we can responsibly take over the following weeks, guided by the scientific advice and mindful – as we said right from the word go – of taking the right decisions at the right time.
“Now we can start setting out how we will live and work whilst maintaining the necessary social distancing rules, we can also be clear about those measures which are still necessary to prevent a second peak.”
The news comes as the latest figures from the Department of Health show that a total of 30,615 people had died in hospitals, care homes and the wider community after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Wednesday, up by 539 from 30,076 the day before.
Speaking about the latest data from the Government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), Mr Raab added: "We have come through the peak, but it’s a very delicate and, I have said before, a very dangerous moment, so we do need to proceed with caution."
The Foreign Secretary insisted that any short-term changes in the restrictions announced by the Prime Minister on Sunday would be limited.
“Any changes in the short term will be modest, small, incremental and very carefully monitored,” he told the No 10 press conference.
“If we find in the future the R level goes back up or that people aren’t following the rules, we must have the ability then to put back measures in place.”
He added that the existing lockdown rules would still apply over the coming bank holiday weekend.
“For the moment it is really important, particularly as people look towards a warm bank holiday weekend, that we continue to follow the guidance in place at this time," said Mr Raab.
