The number of people who have died in the UK after testing positive for coronavirus has risen to 74,125 – an increase of 613 over 24 hours.
The government said that, as of 9am on Friday, there had been a further 53,285 lab-confirmed cases of coronavirus in the UK.
It brings the total number of cases in the country to 2,542,065.
Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies for deaths where Covid-19 has been mentioned on the death certificate, together with additional data on deaths that have occurred in recent days, show there have now been 90,000 deaths involving Covid-19 in the UK.
The surge in coronavirus cases comes as a busy London hospital is in “disaster medicine mode” and “no longer providing high standard critical care”, according to a memo between clinicians.
The Royal London Hospital in Whitechapel, east London, has more than 90 patients in adult critical care units and the “number of people with Covid continues to rise rapidly”, according to the message.
An email sent to staff at the hospital reportedly on Thursday reads: “We would like to take this opportunity to reiterate the fact we are now in disaster medicine mode.
“We are no longer providing high standard critical care, because we cannot.
“While this is far from ideal, it’s the way things are, and the way they have to be for now.”
A British Medical Association (BMA) survey also found that 67% of doctors reported that current levels of fatigue and exhaustion were higher than normal as they tackle a mounting second wave and a growing backlog of care on top of the usual seasonal demand.
While more than a million people have now received their first coronavirus vaccination, a joint statement from England’s Professor Chris Whitty and the chief medical officers of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland said the public would “understand” and “thank” them for a plan to give first jabs as a priority, delaying the follow-up vaccination for others.
The deployment of the newly approved Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine will begin on Monday, almost a month after the rollout of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine, but second doses of either will now take place within 12 weeks rather than 21 days as initially planned.