Friday morning news briefing: The new lockdown rules

Now we really will meet again - but at a distance

Family and friends can be reunited. For the first time since March, groups of up to six people can meet outdoors from Monday. People will be able to invite loved-ones to their homes - as long as they stay in the garden and people from different households remain two metres apart. But Prime Minister Boris Johnson warned that the move could be reversed if the coronavirus infection rate began to rise again. Scientists said the R rate remained just below the all-important number of one. Unsure of what you can and cannot do? Read our essential guide to the new lockdown rules and how they affect you. The rules apply to England, which has a different approach to Nicola Sturgeon's in Scotland.

Mr Johnson continued to be dogged by questions over his top aide Dominic Cummings after Durham Police said he may have committed "a minor breach" of lockdown rules. The PM tried to draw a line under the controversy, intervening to prevent his scientific advisers being drawn into the row at his daily coronavirus briefing. But sketchwriter Michael Deacon says it horribly backfired and looked like Prof Chris Whitty and Sir Patrick Vallance were "in a hostage video". And Matt imagines the newfound tourist interest in Barnard Castle in today's hilarious cartoon.

Seven out of 10 who get virus never have symptoms

The vast majority of people who contract coronavirus never show any symptoms, the first analysis of antibody tests by the Office for National Statistics has shown. It has led to fears that the new test, track and trace programme (which encountered major setbacks during its launch yesterday) will not work. Science Editor Sarah Knapton explains figures that show 70 per cent of people testing positive do not have symptoms at the time of the test or in the week before or after. And our guide explains the symptoms - underpinned with advice from leading health experts.

Fatter and drinking more - but Britons are stoical

How have you changed since lockdown began? Social restrictions have seen Britons turn on their neighbours, drink more than usual and gain weight, the first in-depth analysis has shown. King's College London and pollsters at Ipsos MORI have been following more than 2,200 people since the second week of lockdown at the start of April - and have seen significant shifts in behaviour and opinion over time. PS: For an uplifting daily boost, try our You Are Not Alone newsletter. To access all our journalism, try our subscription offer. Take a free one-month trial - then save 50pc on your first three months.

At a glance: More coronavirus headlines

• Masks | NHS workers should wear them at home, says study

• Travel | Britons could be asked to take test before flying

• Education | School day could get longer to help 'Covid generation'

• Newsnight | Emily Maitlis 'overstepped the mark', says BBC

• Testing | Life on the frontline: £10 an hour and no sick pay

Comment and analysis

• Jeremy Warner | A new era of poverty, crisis and global conflict

• Judith Woods | Anger is replacing fear - and it will cost lives

• Ross Clark | Cummings cannot be blamed for fraying lockdown

• Reader letters | Police put the tin lid on Cummings affair

• Ben Kelly | Let's offer Hong Kong's repressed masses freedom

You Are Not Alone: Getting you through lockdown

1. Breaking free | The 10 kinds of Covidiot you'll see in the park this weekend

2. Holiday dreaming? | Three perfect ferry trips to France, according to our expert

3. To have and to hold... on a while longer | What we did on our non-wedding day

Business and money briefing

Furlough scheme | Employers will be required to pay a quarter of the wages of furloughed staff from August, the Chancellor is expected to announce. Rishi Sunak will also explain how people will be able to work part time while still having their wages part-paid by the Job Retention Scheme as he sets out a route for the economy to get going.

• Ambrose Evans-Pritchard | €750bn bailout is too little, too late

• Investment tip | 10pc yield gives our income a nice boost

• Alex cartoon | See our brilliant cartoonist's latest work

Life after lockdown: Dusting off Renaissance culture

For the country that gave the world the sublime genius of Leonardo, Michelangelo and Caravaggio, it will be a symbol of pride and a sign of hope for better times. Italy's monuments and museums are reopening in a "cultural rebirth". Read this dispatch from Nick Squires in Rome and view a gallery of how lockdowns are being lifted around the world.

Also in the news today

Minneapolis burns | Cheering protesters torched a Minneapolis police station overnight in a third day of violent demonstrations. Angry protests have flared across the US over the death of George Floyd, a handcuffed black man who pleaded for air as a white police officer kneeled on his neck. President Donald Trump criticised the "total lack of leadership" in Minneapolis, writing on Twitter: "Any difficulty and we will assume control but - when the looting starts, the shooting starts."

• Hong Kong | Britain leads condemnation of new security laws

• Social | Trump aims to strip Twitter and Facebook of 'liability shield'

• Drought warning | 'Don't water lawns' after driest May on record

• Military | Warning it may have to cut kit and training for budget

• TV reviews | Football, Prince William & Our Mental Health

And finally... for this morning's downtime

Planet Normal | Sick of "gotcha" political coverage? Bored of cynical broadcasters? Then this is the podcast you have been looking for: Planet Normal - because some journalists are normal people too. Listen to Allison Pearson and Liam Halligan's first episode.