Boris Johnson has heeded Marcus Rashford's impassioned calls to extend free school meals over the summer, offering relief to those families hardest hit by the ongoing coronavirus lockdown.
Number 10 announced a dramatic U-turn at lunchtime today, with the launch of a £120 million Covid Summer Food Fund to prevent 1.3 million children from going hungry.
It comes as the Prime Minister faces mounting pressure to further ease social distancing restrictions, as the outbreak continues to pummel the country's labour market and economy.
Meanwhile, the number of virus-related deaths in the UK passed 53,000, the latest Office for National Statistics data revealed. This is over 10,000 more than the Department of Health's official toll, which sets the current figure at 41,969, as of 5pm yesterday.
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