The UK has recorded almost 3,000 new cases of Covid-19 in a single day – the largest increase in more than three months.
Government data published on Sunday showed an increase of 2,988 cases over the previous 24 hours.
It was the biggest jump in new cases since May 22, when the positive coronavirus tests of another 2,959 people were reported.
Health secretary Matt Hancock said the rise in cases was “predominantly among younger people”.
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He told Sky News: “We are concerned about this rise in cases, of course we are. And it is predominantly among young people.
“But of course young people can pass on the disease to their grandparents and we don’t want to see that.”
There has been a trend of this happening across Europe, Hancock said.
“It’s so important that we follow social distancing,” he added.
Over the previous week, the UK had reported between 1,295 and 1,940 new Covid-19 cases each day. The UK total stands at 347,152.
Shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth called the increase in cases “deeply concerning”, calling it a “stark reminder there is no room for complacency in suppressing Covid”.
He tweeted: “Combined with ongoing testing fiasco with ill people told to drive for miles, Matt Hancock must come to Commons tomorrow to explain approach”.
However, while there has been a sharp increase in the number of reported cases, the number of people dying in the UK has remained low.
The deaths of two people with Covid-19 were reported in the UK on Sunday.
In comparison, on May 22 – the last time the number of new cases neared 3,000 – the deaths of 222 coronavirus patients were recorded.
The number of people in hospital in the UK with coronavirus has also remained low, with 756 people hospitalised with Covid-19 as of Thursday.
At the height of the crisis in April, there were almost 20,000 people in hospital with coronavirus.
Meanwhile, the UK has seen a significant increase in the number of people being tested for the virus in recent months.
Yvonne Doyle, the medical director of Public Health England, said 2,576 new cases of Covid-19 were reported in England overnight, compared to 1,477 on Saturday.
Doyle said that most of the new cases were people tested in the community.
“There were broad increases in cases of COVID-19 across England and although no single area accounts for the overnight change, Birmingham had the largest increase in overnight cases and the majority of new cases were in the North of England,” she said.
“This is a reminder of the continued risk from this virus. People should continue to follow social distancing rules, wash their hands regularly and wear a face covering in enclosed spaces.
“We continue to monitor the situation. Our local Health Protection teams are working with local councils and Directors of Public Health to manage the increase.”
Paul Hunter, a professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia, said the figures were particularly concerning as reported cases are usually lower on a Sunday.
He said: “Some of that increase may be because of catch-up from delayed tests over the past few days due to the widely reported difficulties the UK testing service has faced dealing with the number of tests being requested.
“Nevertheless, this represents a marked increase in the seven-day rolling average of 1,812 cases per day compared to 1,244 a week ago and 1,040 a week before that.
“Fortunately, the daily reported numbers of deaths due to Covid-19 remain very low, with a seven-day rolling average of just seven deaths per day.
“However, with the new approach to recording deaths, it is difficult to be confident that there are timely statistics.
“Sadly it is beginning to look like we are moving into a period of exponential growth in the UK epidemic, and if so we can expect further increases over coming weeks.”