More than 60,000 people have now died with coronavirus in the UK, official figures show.
The latest one-day toll of 414 deaths within 28 days of a positive test took Britain past the grim milestone.
Only the US, Brazil, India and Mexico have suffered more fatalities, according to Johns Hopkins University’s global tracking tool.
There were 14,879 new infections recorded in the latest figures.
The UK government dashboard shows that Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate of nearly 70,000 people.
It comes as ministers and the NHS gear up for the distribution of the first coronavirus vaccine, developed by Pfizer and BioNTech.
The jab was approved by the regulator on Wednesday but required further authorisations before it can be distributed to care homes.
Those who recieve the immunisation will have two doses about three weeks apart.
Sir Simon Stevens, head of NHS England, told a briefing on Wednesday that the first jabs would be administered in around 50 hospitals as early as next week, before later being extended to groups of GP practices coming together in 1,000 local vaccination centres across England.
Logistical challenges include storing the vaccine at -70C and breaking up the 975-dose packs in which it is shipped.
