The UK's Chief Scientific Advisor has said it would be 'remarkable' if only 8,000 people die from coronavirus infections.
Speaking in a press conference this morning, Sir Patrick Vallance said it would be a big achievement if the Covid-19 deathtoll matched that of the average number of annual flu fatalities.
He emphasised that all deaths were 'tragedies' in their own right.
"There are 8,000 or so deaths from flu in an average season," he said at a press conference today.
“It can be more than that in a bad season.
“And if we can contain this down to the sort of level where it looks comparable to that - which would be a remarkable achievement - then that would be an outcome which is really quite remarkable."
The updated confirmed case and death tolls for the UK are due to be released this afternoon.
As of yesterday, 2,626 coronavirus cases were confirmed in the UK, with 103 people having lost their lives.
Iran is one of the worst hit countries and one which UK health authorities will desperately want to avoid emulating.
Today the country's health ministry said that a person in Iran dies on average every ten minutes from Covid-19.
Health ministry spokesperson Kianoush Jahanpour announced that around 50 Iranian were contracting the virus every hour.
Before the UK's death and case toll was updated, Foreign Secretary Dominic Raab warned that a million Brits could be stranded abroad.
The Foreign Secretary warned that some of those still abroad may have to decide whether it’s safer to stay put “for a period” before travelling home.
Mr Raad said that British consular networks were working hard to help those stuck and to provide as much information as possible.
