No 10 considers a tougher lockdown 'with curfews, exercise limits, compulsory masks outside, no support bubbles and nurseries shut' if Covid cases keep rising' - amid suggestion 'people may only be allowed to leave home ONCE a week'

Boris Johnson met cabinet colleagues last night to discuss an even-tougher lockdown with limits on exercise, compulsory mask-wearing outdoors and a ban on social bubbles all being considered by ministers, sources claim.

The Cabinet Office refused to deny that draconian new laws were coming - and instead pointed to Matt Hancock's vague statement earlier today.

The Health Secretary refused to speculate when directly asked if harsher measures - including curfews and nursery closures - might be brought in, and instead said Britons should 'follow the rules that we've got'.

One Whitehall source told MailOnline that the changes discussed today even included introducing a ban on people leaving their homes more than once a week. Under current rules, Britons can exercise with one other person or with their household or support bubble.

But a Government source said the rule is 'being used as an excuse for people to go for a coffee in the park with their friends' and could be tightened, The Daily Telegraph reports.

The UK announced a further 573 coronavirus deaths yesterday in the highest Sunday rise since April, and the third-deadliest Sunday of the entire pandemic as it emerged as many as one in five of all people in England may have had coronavirus, new modelling by Edge Health claims. It could be as high as one in two people in some areas of east London and Essex, the research says.

Infections also continue to be high, with 54,940 announced on Sunday - the thirteenth day in a row they have been above the 50,000 mark.

Crowds of people were seen flocking to beaches and town centres today despite Boris Johnson's pleas for families to stay at home as coronavirus hospital deaths hit 563 - the highest Sunday toll in eight months. Pictured: Visitors on Tynemouth Longsands beach

Big crowds were seen walking through Victoria Park in east London yesterday

Masses of people were spotted walking through Victoria Park in east London yesterday

Boris Johnson held a meeting to discuss an even-tougher lockdown with limits on exercise, compulsory mask-wearing outdoors and no more social bubbles all being floated by ministers, sources claim

The source said the two-person from 2-households 'rule is there for exercise, for people's mental health, particularly for older people who are not going to be going for a run to see someone'.

But many are using their 'imaginations' to make it what they want.

Their concerns came as hordes of people were seen flocking to beaches and town centres over the weekend - despite Boris Johnson's pleas for families to stay at home and help control the mutant Covid variant spreading rapidly through the country.

Officials are also set to encourage shops and workplaces to improve on their social distancing.

Supermarkets will be a key focus of the Government's latest push, with many worried that lax enforcement of the rules means shoppers are at risk.

Tougher punishment for rule breakers is also being considered.

A senior Government science advisor yesterday said it would become clear whether the current lockdown was lowering the spread of coronavirus cases - with deaths now above 80,000 - within a fortnight.

Professor Peter Horby, the chairman of the New and Emerging Respiratory Virus Threats Advisory Group , said: 'If there's any sign that they're not then we're going to have to be even stricter, I'm afraid.'

The UK announced a further 573 coronavirus deaths on Sunday, the highest Sunday figure since April.

Mr Hancock appeared on the BBC's Andrew Marr Programme yesterday morning, where he was asked about a range of measures that could be brought in.

Mr Marr asked: 'Are you considering things like curfews, closing nurseries, ending some of those support bubbles, going back to only an hour of exercise outside and telling people in crowded outdoor spaces to wear masks? Are those the kind of things that you could consider if you don't get this under control very quickly?'

But Mr Hancock replied: 'Well, I don't want to speculate, because the most important message is not whether the government will further strengthen the rules, the most important thing is that people stay at home and follow the rules that we've got. '

Professor Peter Horby, the chairman of virus advisory group NERVTAG, said: 'If there's any sign that they're not then we're going to have to be even stricter, I'm afraid.'

What is a 'reasonable excuse' for going outside?

Under the rules in England, you must not leave or be outside of your home except where you have a 'reasonable excuse'. This will be put in law. The police can take action against you if you leave home without a 'reasonable excuse', and issue you with a fine (Fixed Penalty Notice). You can be given a Fixed Penalty Notice of £200 for the first offence, doubling for further offences up to a maximum of £6,400.

A 'reasonable excuse' includes:

There are further reasonable excuses.

For example, you may leave home to fulfil legal obligations or to carry out activities related to buying, selling, letting or renting a residential property, or where it is reasonably necessary for voting in an election or referendum. In Scotland, coronavirus legislation gives police the power to force entry into people's homes if they have a 'reasonable suspicion' rules are being broken. However, in England, they can only enter in 'exceptional circumstances', which includes if they believe someone inside is infectious. Otherwise, they will require a warrant.

'So the same principles apply. It's about decreasing social contacts and if there are unavoidable social contacts then being as strict as you can about distance and facemasks and hand hygiene and ventilation, etcetera.'

Mr Marr asked: 'So thinking back to March and the spring I can remember you could only go out for an hour for instance for any kind of exercise and there were much stricter rules about meeting other people. Are those are the kind of things we might see coming back if we don't get this under control now?'

To which he said: 'Yes, that's right. You know we have seen in the past very strict measures do work and if the current measures aren't strict enough then it's clear what we have to do.'

Meanwhile Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer warned that lockdown rules may need to be made tougher if they do not arrest a surge in Covid cases - as he demanded nurseries be shut down immediately.

He attacked 'mixed messages' from ministers over the lockdown restrictions as he urged Boris Johnson to front daily press conferences until the lockdown is lifted.

The UK's Covid death toll passed 80,000, after a further 1,035 deaths were recorded yesterday, increasing fears that the total will surpass 100,000 by the end of the month.

But appearing on the BBC's Andrew Marr programme, Sir Keir said: 'They are tough and they're necessary. They may not be tough enough.

'In a sense, I think the most important thing is people get that message about stay at home.

'And it's up to the Government to put that message out there the whole time. We've had mixed messages I'm afraid for the last nine months which is why we've got a problem.

'I would like to see the Prime Minister out there every day with a press conference making sure that message is absolutely getting through.'

It comes as:

Hordes of visitors were spotted having a stroll on Tynemouth Longsands beach in North Tyneside. Car parks in the area were packed as families descended on the coastal beauty spot for a Sunday walk

Flocks of people descended on to the beach in Tyneside. New Government guidelines dictate that daily exercise must be taken in one's local area - but it is unclear how far today's visitors traveled for a welcome breath of fresh air

The Health Secretary refused to speculate when directly asked if measures like curfews, limits to time allows outside homes and making masks compulsory outdoors might be brought in.

The Labour leader attacked 'mixed messages' from ministers over the lockdown restrictions as he urged Boris Johnson to front daily press conferences until the lockdown is lifted

Sir Keir Starmer said nurseries 'probably should be closed', telling the BBC: 'I think there is a case for looking at nursery schools, we're talking to the scientists about that'

Priti Patel defended police as they began strict application of Covid rules that includes £200 fines and less tolerance for rule-breakers.

The Home Secretary warned that officers 'will not hesitate' to take action because the increasing number of new Covid-19 cases proved there was a need for 'strong enforcement' in cases where people were clearly breaking the rules.

Mr Hancock told Sky's Ridge on Sunday more people were obeying the rules than in the November lockdown, but added: 'Absolutely I'm going to back the police. The challenge here is that every flex can be fatal.

'You might look at the rules and think ''well it doesn't matter that much if I just do this or do that'', but these rules are not there as boundaries to be pushed, they're the limit of what people should be doing.'

Asked about the prospect of tighter restrictions later on Marr he added: 'I don't want to speculate because the most important message is not whether the Government will further strengthen the rules.

'The most important thing is that people stay at home and follow the rules that we have got.

'And that, in terms of the scale of the impact on the cases, that is the most important thing we can do collectively as a society.'

Mr Hancock, who gave the interview from his own home via video link, added: 'It is hard, it is not easy. But if you can do something from home and you don't need to go outside of home to do it, then you should.

Covid vaccine could become annual event like flu jab, says Hancock

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said it is 'highly likely' people will be vaccinated against Covid annually, as with the flu.

He told Sky News' Sophy Ridge on Sunday programme: 'I think it's highly likely that there will be a dual-vaccination programme for the foreseeable, this is the medium-term, of flu and Covid.'

He added: 'Flu vaccination rates are at their highest level ever. Over 80 per cent of the over-65s have been vaccinated for flu this year. That's the biggest increase, a jump on last year when it was around 70 per cent.

'That's very good news. It's good news for two reasons. Firstly, to protect people against flu and secondly because it shows the vast, vast majority of over-65s are up for getting vaccinated.'

The Health Secretary said the Government was on course to reach its target of 13 million people vaccinated by mid-February.

He told Ridge: 'Yes we're on course. The rate limiting factor at the moment is supply but that's increasing.

'I'm very glad to say that at the moment we're running at over 200,000 people being vaccinated every day.

'We've now vaccinated around one third of the over-80s in this country so we're making significant progress but there's still further expansion to go.

'This week we're opening mass vaccination centres. Big sites for instance at Epsom racecourse, there's seven going live this week with more to come next week where we will get through very large numbers of people.'

In North Tyneside car parks were jammed and huge queues formed outside cafes selling takeaway hot drinks.

One local resident said: 'It's crazy. I can't believe how busy it is. It's actually busier than usual.

'These people are putting themselves and their families at risk by being here.

'The Government's message is clear. You should act like you have the virus.

'I saw a police van earlier, but it just drove along the seafront, it didn't stop.

'There doesn't seem to be any enforcement of the rules at all.'

The National Police Chiefs' Council's new guidance, issued on Wednesday according to the Sunday Telegraph, said: 'Officers should continue to engage members of the public and explain changes. If necessary they should offer encouragement to comply.

'However if the individual or group does not respond appropriately, then enforcement can follow without repeated attempts to encourage people to comply with the law.

'We police by consent. The initial police response should be to encourage voluntary compliance.'

The previous guidance from December 9, said: 'We police by consent. The initial police response should be to encourage voluntary compliance.'

A Home Office source told the Telegraph police are set to 'move through the gears', warning: 'We are going to see more rapid movement to enforcement.

'Over 1,000 people died yesterday. It is important that everyone sticks to the rules. The rules have been around for long enough.

'If there was a gunman who killed 1,000 people yesterday running around the country and the Government said "stay at home" everyone would say "OK I'll do that, I won't go for a coffee with some friends and walk around the park".'

In Liverpool, police were pictured looking on as football supporters who had gathered outside the Marine v Spurs FA Cup blatantly ignored social distancing rules.

Football fans were packed behind barriers outside the Rossett Park stadium in Crosby to catch a glimpse of players in the Marine AFC v Tottenham Hotspur match on Sunday.

MailOnline asked Merseyside Police if any action had been taken for breaches of Covid laws.

A spokesman said it was 'factually incorrect' to describe the crowds as 'huge', adding police were there 'as a planned response to manage road closures, public safety and coach arrivals as well'.

'It isn't a simple case of clearing an area of people,' he said.

Superintendent Andy Rankine from Merseyside Police told MailOnline: 'Officers are in Crosby this afternoon ahead of Marine FC's FA Cup tie with Tottenham Hotspur.

'A small gathering took place ahead of the arrival of the team coaches, and road closures were put in place to facilitate this arrival safely.

Video of woman being 'arrested for sitting on a bench' was 'STAGE-MANAGED by anti-lockdown protesters', Dorset Police claim

A video of a woman apparently being arrested for sitting on a bench was 'staged-managed' by anti-lockdown protesters, Dorset Police said.

Footage, which has been shared widely online, shows three police officers surrounding a woman in Bournemouth for allegedly leaving her house more than once in a day.

The clip then shows a woman being handcuffed and led away by officers as she repeatedly tells them 'I was sitting on a bench'.

But police said they believed the clip was 'planned, stage-managed and recorded' by members of an anti-lockdown protest group who were present in the town on Saturday.

The force said three people were arrested following the demonstrations, after refusing to give their details to officers who attempted to issue them with fines for breaching coronavirus regulations.

Dorset Police's Assistant Chief Constable Mark Callaghan said: 'We believe this video was planned, stage-managed and recorded by members of the protest group who turned up in multiple areas, several of whom refused to engage and provide their details.

'If people refuse to give their details in such circumstances then it leaves officers with little option but to arrest until the details are established.

'Our officers would only arrest as a last resort.'

Two of those detained were later 'de-arrested' after supplying officers with their details and were subsequently fined, police said.

A third person was also released and fined after their details were verified in custody.

The force said at least seven fixed penalty notices were issued to those who breached lockdown rules on the day.

Police made repeated attempts to contact the protest organisers to request that it did not go ahead, but were unsuccessful, Mr Callaghan said.

'It was clear that the group were deliberately organising their activities, walking around in twos and then trying to come together in a 'flash mob' style approach, as they have done previously,' he said in a statement.

'This activity went on for a couple of hours.'

Some of the protesters were found to have remained in the area for a 'prolonged period of time', despite being warned by police.

Mr Callaghan said some of those taking part had also travelled 'considerably' from outside the Dorset area.

'The vast majority of people present were adhering to social distancing measures and those who were not were advised by officers.

'As we have done throughout this pandemic, we will always strive to encourage people to disperse and go home peacefully.

'But where we face blatant breaches of legislation, people ignoring the restrictions and even obstructing police from carrying out their duty, our officers will not hesitate to take enforcement action.

'Those attending have now left the area and we hope everyone enjoys the occasion safely at home.'

Police in Wales have blasted 'selfish Covid rule-breakers' who are 'blatantly' defying the law and wasting police time.

Their criticism came after more than 100 cars were turned away from Moel Famau - on the border between Flintshire and England - by Saturday lunchtime.

A Wales police and crime commissioner vowed to clamp down on rule breakers - and focus on 'enforcement' rather than engagement.

North Wales Police's rural crime team wrote: 'Another day wasted dealing with Covid rule breakers. So frustrating that we have to deal with these people who simply don't care whilst the vast majority of us do the right thing and stay at home We are seeing people from England and various areas of Wales... so selfish.'

The force said people were arrested overnight and taken to custody for failing to provide their details for breaching Covid restrictions.

Superintendent Nick Evans said: 'Wales is under Alert Level 4 restrictions and infections are dangerously high. Our teams will therefore continue to target those who are blatantly breaching the rules, placing others at risk and putting further demand on our over-stretched NHS.

'Level 4 restrictions state that exercise should start and finish from home and that nobody should be travelling unless essential.

'The restrictions are in place to prevent the spread of the virus, protect the NHS and save lives. They apply to every single one of us and it's disappointing to think that some do not believe the restrictions apply to them.

'The restrictions are all about nudging back the infection rate, so rule breaking, however small, could cost the life of yours or someone else's loved one. '

On Friday, two people had to be rescued by the North East Wales Search and Rescue team after becoming 'disorientated' in severe weather conditions during a walk up Moel Famau.

The pair had gone for a walk from home but they raised the alarm by phoning the policing after losing their bearings as conditions deteriorated rapidly due to snow and poor visibility.

Welsh rules allow for fixed penalty notices to be issued ranging from £60 to £10,000. But the region's police and crime commissioner

Welsh police and crime commissioner Arfon Jones said it is time for a tougher approach. He said: 'I would like to commend most people for behaving responsibly at this difficult time but those who choose not to can expect to be held to account.

'Unfortunately, there are far too many selfish people who are flouting the guidelines and they are turbo-charging the spread of this deadly virus.

'Their actions are totally irresponsible and life-threatening. If they have no regard for their own health, they should think of their loved ones.

'It is now time to forget the mantra of engage, encourage and educate and focus on enforcement so we can clamp down on the Covid rule breakers and prevent this reckless behaviour. The stay home and stay safe message is all more important because the new mutant strain of Covid-19 is even more infectious.

'This has inevitably ramped up the threat of community transmission, with 70 per cent of cases in north Wales linked to the new variant. As a consequence, the people of north Wales are at risk like never before.'

Chris Whitty warns hospitals are facing 'the worst crisis in living memory' as Covid cases soar

Chris Whitty has warned hospitals are facing 'the worst crisis in living memory' as Covid-19 cases continue to soar - with 46,000 medical workers now off sick.

Britons who don't take the coronavirus lockdown seriously will cause 'avoidable deaths' when critically ill patients are turned away at the hospital door, Professor Chris Whitty warned in a scathing article for the Sunday Times.

And almost 50,000 hospital workers are currently off sick with Covid-19, according to the chair of the British Medical Association, Chaand Nagpaul, meaning an already stretched workforce is under even more pressure, reported The Guardian.

He said: 'It is only if the NHS workforce is kept fit and well that we will be able to meet the unprecedented surge in demand that the coming weeks and months will bring as well as delivering the vaccine programme that remains our only hope to end this dreadful pandemic.'

Prof Whitty blasted coronavirus rulebreakers for being the 'link in a chain' that will allow the deadly virus to infect a and kill the elderly and vulnerable.

'We must stay home except for work, exercise and necessary activities. Every unneccesary interaction you have could be the link in the chain of transmission which has a vulnerable person at the end,' he wrote.

The country has two weeks before hospitals are likely to be completely overwhelmed, Prof Whitty added, as the nation is plunged into the 'most dangerous situation' in living history.

But it's not just Britons with coronavirus who are at risk, as patients in need of treatment for other illnesses face 'unsafe' waiting times.

NHS hospitals are treating half the usual number of cancer patients, according to The Sunday Telegraph, as London needs to treat 500 more cancer patients a week to stay on top of demand - but only 122 were treated in the capitals NHS hospitals this week.

It could take the NHS six years of 1990-level waiting lists - meaning patients will be forced to wait years for operations - and more than £900million to get back to where healthcare was pre-Covid, according to Rob Findlay, an expert who produced software for nearly 20 NHS trusts.

He told People the 168,000 patients who have waited a year for treatment will more than double by March after lockdown caused operations to be delayed.

Professor Neil Ferguson said the number of patients with coronavirus in hospitals will sour by 20 per cent. 'It will be quite difficult to avoid another 20,000 deaths,' he added.

A National Police Chiefs Council spokesman said: 'We've been guiding officers since October to move more quickly to issuing a fine where people are clearly breaching Covid regulations and not listening to encouragement.

'This approach continues in this dangerous stage of the pandemic. There is no specific rule on the number of warnings officers should give - officers continue to use their judgement.'

Elsewhere key workers became some of the first to be vaccinated against coronavirus at a mass vaccine hub in Newcastle as the government ramps up distribution of the jabs in the hope of ending lockdown by spring.

It comes after Boris Johnson pledged to vaccinate hundreds of thousands people per day by Friday with the aim of giving 13million the jab before Easter, allowing lockdown restrictions to be significantly loosened.

The mass vaccination hubs - located in Newcastle, Manchester, London, Stevenage, Surrey, Bristol and Birmingham - can treat up to four people per minute and will work alongside GP surgeries and other facilities to try and hit the Prime Minister's ambitious target.

The crackdown comes amid calls from scientists for even stricter restrictions, while No10 pushes an intimidating new ad campaign to try and arrest the spiralling number of coronavirus cases across the country.

In a hard-hitting article in the Sunday Times England's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty blasted coronavirus rulebreakers for being the 'link in a chain' that will allow the deadly virus to infect a and kill the elderly and vulnerable.

The country has two weeks before hospitals are likely to be completely overwhelmed, Prof Whitty added, as the nation is plunged into the 'most dangerous situation' in living history.

While former WHO director Anthony Costello said Britain must go into an 'Asia-style' lockdown now with nurseries and places of worship closed, hotels commandeered as isolation centres and masks worn in every public space, experts have warned.

On Friday, Derbyshire Police faced criticism for taking the lockdown crackdown too far after officers swooped on two friends for driving just seven miles to go for a walk at a beauty spot.

As a result, the 'intimidating' force is reviewing its Covid operations after getting clarification about the rules, with West Mercia Police also mocked for threatening to fine people £200 for playing in the snow.

Nevertheless, the message from Government sources this week is that police should be focusing more on enforcing rather than explaining rules, now nearly 10 months since the very first restrictions came into effect.

In Lincoln, police yesterday fined a man from Chesterfield who it emerged had set a personal goal to try and visit every football ground in the country, despite clear stay-at-home rules.

The driver was pulled over by officers on Friday, close to the cathedral, after a system check revealed the vehicle was registered to an address outside of Lincolnshire.

But when asked what he was doing, police were left bewildered by his response.

Sgt Mike Templeman wrote on Twitter: 'The vehicle was stopped as it was registered in Chesterfield.

'The driver stated he was having a road trip to football grounds around the country.

'You simply couldn't make it up. Covid-19 penalty ticket issued along with the strongest words of advice.'

England's Chief Medical Officer Professor Chris Whitty has appeared in adverts urging us to stay at home as the new variant of the virus rips across the country.

Two terrifying new posters also show a patient dying in hospital and a healthcare worker wearing full PPE, warning Britons: 'If you go out, you can spread it. People will die.'

In Lincoln, police fined a man from Chesterfield who it emerged had set a personal goal to try and visit every football ground in the country, despite clear stay-at-home rules

Three police officers wearing face masks question a man sitting on a bench in St James's Park in central London this morning

All car parks in Snowdonia National Park have now been closed to visitors. Pictured is a police car patrolling the beauty spot last night

Police and Covid marshals patrol the seafront in Bournemouth this morning to spot any people breaking the rules

One MailOnline reader sent a picture of these taped off benches in Ely, Cambridgeshire, claiming they are not allowed to be used because of the pandemic

The UK's vaccination programme will take a major step forward tomorrow as the first 'super-vax' centres, capable of inoculating up to 3,000 people a day, open their doors.

Already 1.5million people have been vaccinated, mostly with the Pfizer jab. Now the mass rollout of the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine heralds a blitz of inoculations.

With more than 1,300 people dying each day, and the pandemic raging across the country, health workers are locked in a race to protect as many vulnerable people from the deadly virus as quickly as possible.

And with a huge acceleration planned this week, tomorrow could mark the start of a fightback that finally suppresses Covid-19 and, eventually, allows our lives to return to normal.

THE SPRING OFFENSIVE

After the plan to inoculate the 15 million most vulnerable people by February 15, the UK's vaccination programme will target the remaining groups who are most at risk of dying from the virus.

NHS bosses hope this second cohort of more than 16 million people will receive the jab by Easter. If so, it will mean that between 90 and 99 per cent of those at risk of dying from Covid-19 will have been protected. The rest of the population – those under 50 – will then be vaccinated.

Those in the second cohort who will receive the jab during the Spring Offensive are:

HOW THE TARGET WILL BE MET

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has set the target of offering vaccination to the UK's 15 million most vulnerable people by February 15. So far, almost 1.5million have received the vaccine

Boris Johnson has set the hugely ambitious target of offering vaccination to the UK's 15 million most vulnerable people by February 15 – in 36 days.

The latest figures, from Thursday, show the NHS had administered 1,468,000 vaccinations over 30 days, or 48,933 daily.

The PM has vowed that this will rise to more than 200,000 a day by Friday.

But to hit his 15 million target, the daily rate needs to be almost 347,000. Every day this is missed, the daily requirement goes up.

WHO IS FIRST IN LINE FOR THE JABS?

Those due to receive the jab in the next five weeks include: Care home residents, frontline NHS and social care workers, those aged 70-plus and those considered to be 'clinically extremely vulnerable'.

Of those who have died of Covid-19, 88 per cent are in these groups, All 420,000 elderly social care residents in England and Wales are at the front of the queue and should receive their vaccination by January 31.

One in four people aged over 80 have received at least one dose.

THE STORY SO FAR

On December 8, Margaret Keenan, then 90, pictured, became the first person in the world outside clinical trials to be given the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine.

Within a fortnight, an estimated 500,000 people had been given the jab, and the UK has ordered a total of 40 million doses.

Margaret Keenan, then 90, pictured, became the first person in the world outside clinical trials to be given the Pfizer-BioNTech vaccine on December 8

Last Monday, Brian Pinker, 82, became the first patient to receive the 'game-changing' vaccine developed by Oxford University and AstraZeneca, which can be kept in a fridge. The UK has 100 million doses on order.

Another 17 million doses of the newly approved Moderna vaccine are expected in the spring.

The UK has outstripped the EU: Four times as many people have been vaccinated here than in Germany, and 300 times more than in France.

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