The number of people testing positive for Covid-19 in a day in the UK is back above 90,000.
A further 91,743 lab-confirmed Covid cases have been recorded in the UK as of 9am on Monday, the government said.
A further 44 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19. Infections had fallen below 90,000 over the weekend when testing typically falls off.
It comes as Boris Johnson’s senior ministers met to discuss the rising tide amid warnings the NHS could be overwhelmed without further action to stop the spread of the Omicron variant.
The government’s chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance and England’s chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty briefed an unscheduled meeting of the Cabinet on Monday.
Downing Street denied it was an emergency meeting, saying ministers were being updated on a fast-changing situation.
It comes after the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) warned daily hospital admissions could reach 3,000 without further restrictions.
Earlier, deputy prime minister Dominic Raab refused to rule out the possibility that additional measures could be required before Christmas – now less than a week away.
“I just can’t make hard, fast guarantees,” he told Sky News.
The government has said that it will if necessary recall Parliament to allow MPs to vote on any new regulations it proposes for England.
However, that could prove politically problematic for Johnson, with not only senior ministers objecting to any further controls.
Last week Johnson suffered the biggest backbench rebellion of his premiership with 100 Tory MPs voting against rules requiring Covid passports for entry into nightclubs and other venues.
Any additional proposals could spark another revolt at a time when the Prime Minister is politically weakened by the ongoing row over parties in Downing Street last Christmas and the Tories’ crushing defeat in the North Shropshire by-election.
Johnson has reportedly been presented with a series of options to tackle the spread of the virus, ranging from guidance asking people to limit indoor contacts, to rules on household mixing, social distancing and a curfew on pubs and restaurants, to full lockdown.
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