UK coronavirus LIVE: Nation prepares for new phase of lockdown from Monday after 'final' Clap for Carers

Family get-togethers in parks and barbecues in gardens are among the measures to be allowed from Monday when the next phase of the coronavirus lockdown in England begins.

Boris Johnson said the UK was ready to "cautiously" enter the next phase of the Government's "road map", as he led Thursday's Downing Street press conference. News of the relaxing of restrictions – which will come into force as many pupils and teachers return to classrooms – came as ministers began to roll out the new national contact tracing system.

NHS Test and Trace officially launched at 9am on Thursday with the help of 25,000 contact tracers. However, the head of the programme allegedly admitted to MPs that the system will not be fully operational at local level until the end of June.

The Prime Minister continued to stand by his senior aide Dominic Cummings during this afternoon's briefing, insisting it was time to "draw a line" under the ongoing fallout. Meanwhile, the country's official death toll rose by 377 to 37,837 overnight and the nation took part in what was expected to be the final round of Clap for Carers.

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