The coronavirus ‘R’ number has risen to between 1.1 and 1.3 in the UK, the government's SAGE advisors have announced.
The growth rate of the virus has also crept up - meaning it is now thought to be increasing by between 1% and 6% per day.
Last Friday the R number in the UK was 1.1-1.2, while in England it was 1.1-1.3.
Scientists had warned last week it could be as high as 1.4 in the East of England, and as high as 1.3 in London and the South East.
But today they said it may be as high as 1.5 in the East of England and London, and as high as 1.4 in the South East. In England it is 1.1-1.4, SAGE said.
The R number in Scotland remains around one, Nicola Sturgeon announced as she confirmed the deaths of 47 coronavirus patients and 1,190 new cases in the past 24 hours.
The R number measures how many people an infected person is thought to pass the virus on to on average, and it was also around one in Scotland at the last update a week ago.
