Coronavirus deaths could spiral for the next two weeks before the NHS sees a decline in Britain's mortality rate, Deputy Chief Medical Officer Jenny Harries has warned.
During the daily Covid-19 conference at Downing Street, Dr Harries said the mortality rate is likely to "get worse over the next week, possibly two".
She said the government anticipates numbers will get worse before it looks to see whether medics have managed to push the curve down.
Her chilling comments come as the Department of Health and Social Care announced a further 209 people across the UK died of the virus overnight.