The UK's official coronavirus death toll has risen by 333, the lowest rise since December 2020.
Another 14,101 people have returned positive coronavirus tests, which is the lowest daily figure since December 1.
Last Monday 409 people died from and 18,607 tested positive for coronavirus, compared to 592 and 22,195 the week before that.
Today's toll is the lowest since December 27, when 317 people lost their lives to Covid-19.
Yesterday a further 373 people died, which was a third fewer than the toll of 587 the Sunday before.
The official UK death toll across all settings, including hospitals and care homes, is 112,465.
In another sign that things are starting to go in the right direction, yesterday 278,998 people got their first vaccination - bringing the tally to 2,294,006.
News of the ever rising death and case tolls comes on a day when concerns about the South Africa variant, and how effective the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine is against it, reached a new peak.
Today Boris Johnson failed to rule out keeping lockdown restrictions in place for longer if a new variant does indeed reduces the effectiveness of the jab.
The Prime Minister insisted there was "no doubt that vaccines generally are going to offer a way out" of lockdown.
But Mr Johnson failed to rule out a delay to easing restrictions when pressed on what would happen if the Oxford jab proved less effective against the South African variant.
At least 147 cases of the variant have been found in the UK but an expert warned it is "very possible" the strain is already quite widespread.
The concern centres on a small study of around 2,000 people, which suggested the Oxford jab only offers minimal protection against mild disease of the South Africa variant.
Due to the young age of participants, researchers could not conclude whether the vaccine worked against severe disease.
South Africa has now suspended its rollout of the jab.
On a visit to a Covid-19 test manufacturing firm in Derby, Mr Johnson told reporters: "We're very confident in all the vaccines that we're using.
"And I think it's important for people to bear in mind that all of them, we think, are effective in delivering a high degree of protection against serious illness and death, which is the most important thing."
But the Prime Minister did not rule out a delay to lifting lockdown if there were issues.
Asked if the timetable for easing lockdown could be pushed back, he said: "We think that all the vaccines that we're using, both the vaccines that we're currently using, are effective in stopping serious disease and death.
"We also think, particularly in the case of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine, that there is good evidence that it is stopping transmission as well, I think 67% reduction in transmission with the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine."
