The rise in COVID-19 infections in Britain is "concerning", Health Secretary Matt Hancock said on Monday, but he added that the government was still in control of the pandemic.
The daily number of cases of COVID-19 jumped on Sunday to 2,988, the highest daily rise since May.
"The rise in the number of cases we've seen in the last few days is largely among younger people," Hancock told LBC Radio.
Asked if the government had lost control, he said: "No, but the whole country needs to follow the social distancing because we can only do this as a whole society."
He added that the rise was prevalent amongst younger people from more affluent backgrounds.
(Reporting by Elizabeth Piper and Paul Sandle)
