The UK is recording three times as many Covid cases as it was on England's aborted 'Freedom Day' last month - just 10 days before restrictions are lifted.
On July 19 social distancing laws will be scrapped for the first time since March last year, as the country takes a huge leap of faith by trying to return to normal.
Worrying maps reveal how the number of infections has soared in all parts of England in recent weeks.
On June 21, which was originally supposed to be the day restrictions were lifted on what has been dubbed 'Freedom Day', the Department of Health confirmed 10,467 people had contracted the virus.
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The UK is now recording the highest daily infection rates since January, with more than 32,000 people testing positive on Tuesday.
At the start of Boris Johnson's roadmap out of lockdown in March, infections had fallen to less than 5,000 a day.
There has also been a slight increase in the number of hospitalisations and deaths - but thanks to the vaccine programme these are nowhere near the levels seen in previous peaks.
There are currently half the number of patients being treated in hospital with coronavirus as there were back in March, when nearly 9,500 people were hospitalised.
Experts say the link between infections and admissions is weakening as the number of fully-vaccinated people rises.
The PM has pledged to plough ahead with lifting restrictions in 10 days, even as cases rise fuelled by the Delta variant, amid warnings that the UK could soon be recording 120,000 cases a day.
He predicted that there could be 50,000 daily cases by the time restrictions are lifted, with this number expected to rise still further over the summer.
Sajid Javid, the new Health Secretary, later went further, admitting the number could rise to 100,000 a day.
Professor Neil Ferguson, whose modelling last year panicked the government into belatedly putting the country in lockdown, suggested that 50,000 cases a day could translate to around 50 deaths.
International scientists and doctors have urged the government to delay the unlocking even further until more people are vaccinated, claiming the end of restrictions on July 19 will lead to millions of infections.
Here we look at the changes we've seen so far during the PM's roadmap out of lockdown.
March 8
A panicked Boris Johnson was forced to plunge England into a full lockdown which came into place on January 6, as the Kent variant ripped through the country.
The government came in for fierce criticism over the way it handled school closures, with some opening for just a day before being closed again.
In the first step of the PM's unlocking the country, classrooms were reopened on March 8, by which time the daily number of cases had fallen below 5,000.
People were also allowed to meet in groups of six outdoors.
Number of cases : 4,712
Number of deaths : 65
Patients in hospital with Covid : 9,474
Number of people vaccinated : 22,377,255 (first dose), 1,142,643 (second)
March 29
In the next stage of Mr Johnson's roadmap, the rule of six was reintroduced for outdoor meetings on March 29.
On top of that, outdoor sports was permitted once again, but many restrictions still remained in place.
By this time the number of patients in hospital with coronavirus had dropped below 5,000 and more than 30 millin people had received at least one jab of a Covid vaccine.
Number of cases : 4,654
Number of deaths: 23
Patients in hospital with Covid: 4,196
Number of people vaccinated: 30,682,093 (first dose), 3,848,202 (second)
April 12
This was the day when non-essential shops were permitted to reopen, while pubs and restaurants were allowed to serve customers outdoors.
Hairdressers, gyms and libraries also threw their doors open once again, while holidaying in the UK was permitted as long as you did not mix with other households.
By this time the UK was recording just over 3,500 cases a day.
Number of cases: 3,568
Number of deaths: 13
Patients in hospital with Covid: 2,491
Number of people vaccinated: 32,250,481 (first dose), 7,857,396 (second)
May 17
Things were looking encouraging on the day indoor meetings in groups of up to six were allowed again, with pubs and restaurants finally permitted to serve customers indoors.
The number of people allowed to meet outdoors was raised from six to 30 as families and friends reunited after a bleak winter and spring.
By this point there were less than 2,000 cases being confirmed a day and on May 17 the number of people in hospital had fallen below 1,000 as the vaccine rollout continued at a fast pace.
Number of cases: 1,979
Number of deaths: 5
Patients in hospital with Covid: 971
Number of people vaccinated: 36,811,405 (first dose), 20,546,452 (second)
June 21
This was the day originally mooted as 'Freedom Day', but Boris Johnson last month admitted the spread of the Delta variant meant it was not safe to lift restrictions as planned.
He announced that the date would be put back by nearly a month, to July 12, so that the vaccination programme could be more advanced.
Cases had multiplied by five in just over a month, although encouragingly the number of deaths was continuing to drop.
Number of cases: 10,467
Number of deaths: 5
Patients in hospital with Covid: 1,513
Number of people vaccinated: 43,148,843 (first dose), 31,489,240 (second)
Now
Just days before Freedom Day, the UK is recording an alarming number of new cases - and it looks set to rise still higher.
More than 190,000 people have tested positive in seven, a 43 per cent week-on-week increase.
There were nearly 2,500 hospital admissions in a week - far higher than the levels in May and June.
Figures released on Wednesday showed:
Number of cases: 32,548
Number of deaths: 33
Patients in hospital with Covid: 2,446
Number of people vaccinated: 45,514,492 (first dose), 34,027,302 (second)
What happens next?
Boris Johnson has predicted that there could be 50,000 daily cases by the time restrictions are lifted, with this number expected to rise still further over the summer.
Professor Neil Ferguson, whose modelling last year panicked the government into belatedly putting the country in lockdown, suggested that this could translate to around 50 deaths.
If that is correct and cases do rise above 100,000 per day, the country could soon be seeing around 100 deaths a day - although this is expected to fall as more people get vaccinated.
Prof Ferguson said: “At the peak of the second wave 50,000 cases would translate into something like 500 deaths, but that’s going to be much lower this time, more like 50 or so.
“The challenge is, there’s still the potential of getting very large numbers of cases and so if we get very high numbers of cases a day, 150,000 or 200,000 it could still cause some pressure to the health system.
If that is correct and cases do rise above 100,000 per day, the country could soon be seeing around 100 deaths a day - although this is expected to fall as more people get vaccinated."
More than 100 scientists and doctors from more than a dozen countries have warned that lifting England's remaining restrictions on July 19 is “dangerous and premature”.
Writing in the Lancet, they called on the government to pause reopening until more people are vaccinated.
Ending the remaining legal restrictions will cause millions of infections, provide “fertile ground for the emergence of vaccine-resistant variants” and risk creating a generation with chronic health problems and disability from long Covid, the experts warned.
This would heap further pressure on exhausted NHS staff, further disrupt education and be a burden for deprived communities which have suffered the most during Covid, according to a letter signed by the scientists and doctors.
The letter states: “We believe the government is embarking on a dangerous and unethical experiment and we call on it to pause plans to abandon mitigations on 19 July 2021.
“Instead, the government should delay complete reopening until everyone, including adolescents, have been offered vaccination and uptake is high, and until mitigation measures, especially adequate ventilation … are in place in schools.”
There is still plenty of debate over the wearing of masks.
Sir Paul Nurse, director of the Francis Crick Institute, said people should be able to enjoy the summer after coronavirus restrictions are lifted but "it doesn't mean we have to open the door wide open".
His comments came as Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng said he will "probably" wear a mask on the London Underground after the legal requirement ends.
And leading medics said masks may still be needed in hospitals, particularly in crowded environments such as A&E.
The legal requirement to wear face masks will be lifted in England on so-called Freedom Day - expected on July 19 - although guidance will suggest people might still choose to do so in crowded places.
Sir Paul told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "I think it's not unreasonable for the Government to open the country up more, given the successful vaccine rollout. But it's not sensible to open up so much so fast when the level of infections is rising so quickly.
"This decision is informed by science but it's a political decision. And some factors are important, like the economy, but some of this could be achieved by keeping some of the checks in place.
"It makes no sense not to insist on the wearing of masks. We need sensible, well thought-out, good plans.
