Keir Starmer is to make a televised address to the nation on Wednesday evening in response to Boris Johnson's coronavirus statement.
The Labour leader will get a "right of reply" to the Prime Minister's address in which he warned tougher restrictions could be imposed if the rate does not fall.
A finalised time for Starmer's speech has not been confirmed, but it is expected to be broadcast in a primetime slot on the BBC.
A Labour source said: "He will support what the Government’s announced but also state that another national lockdown isn’t inevitable and what we need to do is follow the rule of law and fix issues such as testing."
Under Johnson's new strategy, the Prime Minister reversed his "get back to work" edict and said office staff should once again be told to work from home. There will also be a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants.
Starmer is likely to pile pressure on the government over failures in the test and trace system at Prime Minister's Questions on Wednesday.
On Tuesday Rachel Reeves, shadow chancellor to the Duchy of Lancaster, criticised the government’s use of the outsourcing firm Serco to deliver the Test & Trace programme and other outsourced contracts in place of central or local government expertise.
Labour has made a concerted effort recently to boost its profile on the airwaves, with senior figures taking up radio slots and Starmer planning monthly press conferences.
The latest polling for Ipsos Mori this week showed the Conservatives slipping five points to 40 per cent but still ahead of Labour on 37 per cent.
Starmer, whose speech to the online Labour conference was overshadowed by coronavirus announcements on Tuesday, is ahead of Boris Johnson in being seen as a capable leader but lags on personality and patriotism.
