The UK reported a further 32,000 daily cases of Covid ahead of the Euro 2020 final between England and Italy at Wembley - as a government adviser warned of the risk of coronavirus mutations.
Police urged ticketless England fans to stay away from London and to avoid large gatherings while social distancing guidelines are still in force.
“London still remains in a public health crisis,” said Deputy Assistant Commissioner Laurence Taylor of the Metropolitan Police. “We will enforce legislation proportionately and as appropriate and engage with crowds.”
Dr Mike Tildesley, who sits on the Sage group of advisers, said the rise in infections “challenges the virus” and gives it the opportunity to mutate into a form which could make vaccines less effective.
“We need to be careful. We can’t just say once we’ve broken the link between cases and hospital admissions that we are pretty much safe and no-one gets really sick so it’s fine to have a big wave of cases,” he told Times Radio earlier.
It came as the Academy of Medical Royal Colleges (AoMRC) warned Covid-19 will get worse before it gets better as cases continue to rise “dramatically” across the UK. Bosses said in a statement that despite vaccines preventing spikes in hospital admissions and deaths, people should continue to take measures such as wearing face masks indoors.
Boris Johnson is expected to confirm on Monday that stage four of England’s roadmap out of lockdown will go ahead in nine days.
