The UK's coronavirus death toll has risen by 414 in the past 24 hours, with a new record high of 53,135 new cases in one day.
The new number of cases is more than 10,000 higher than yesterday's recorded 41,385 which was the highest since the pandemic began until today.
Last Tuesday the UK recorded 691 deaths and 36,804 new infections.
A surge in infections in coronavirus hotspots has triggered massive queues for beds as hospitals struggle to cope.
Images taken outside the Queen's Hospital in Romford, London, show medics in PPE interacting with patients and paramedics in ambulance parking bays.
The hospital serves patients living in and around the London borough of Havering which has the worst infection rate in the capital.
One unnamed A&E doctor said Queen's was experiencing more cases and was "even more busy than the first wave", leading to a lack of beds.
They told Sky News: "The patients are first being treated by the ambulance staff as they are picked up from their homes. And then when they reach the emergency department they're waiting in the vans until a bed becomes available.
"Treatment is ongoing during that time and then they're waiting in the A&E department until a bed becomes available in the respiratory or intensive care unit. This can take a variable amount of time and is clinically determined."
While a paramedic at Medway Hospital in Kent said there was up to a six-hour wait for some patients arriving in an ambulance.
It comes as the number of coronavirus deaths in UK hospitals increased by 419 as senior doctors warned the NHS is "stretched to the limit".
Today, a further 365 deaths were recorded in England, seven more in Scotland, 14 more deaths were reported in Northern Ireland and Wales said there had been a further 33 fatalities.
Figures could appear larger due to a lag in reporting data over the bank holiday yesterday.
Tomorrow Matt Hancock will announce changes to the country's coronavirus tiers in the House of Commons.
The Health Secretary will reveal whether restrictions in local areas are being ramped up or eased for the final time in 2020.
It is believed Boris Johnson will also discuss plans to keep schools shut for an extra week, over fears the new strain of Covid-19 will spread through pupils.
According to TES, a new plan approved by ministers will see Year 11 and 13 exam students not return from January 4 as planned.
Only vulnerable students and children of key workers will return straight away.
Covid-19 testing in schools will commence the following week, starting on January 11.
And according to the unapproved report not all students would be back in school from the week of January 18.
The Department for Education did not deny the report, but said their position - that they want schools to return in January and that dates remained under review - had not changed.
The Government has come under mounting pressure from both unions and scientists to delay reopening in order to slow the spread of the new mutation.
In addition to keeping secondary schools closed, Government scientists have told the Prime Minister to potentially order a stricter national lockdown than the one in November to prevent the crisis from spiralling further out of control, it is reported.
The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) gave the stark new advice at a meeting last week, an adviser told Politico.
In the November shutdown, all non-essential retail was ordered to close but the Government kept schools open. All household mixing indoors and in private gardens was banned.
Sage's advice was that the R rate might be kept below 1 if schools stay closed in January following the festive beak, the adviser said.
British scientists have suggested that the mutated coronavirus strain could more easily infect children.
