This is moment of maximum risk, British PM says of Covid-19

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the country is now at the moment of maximum risk in the coronavirus outbreak while urging Britons not to lose patience with the lockdown. 

Speaking outside his Downing Street residence a month and a day since testing positive for the virus which threatened his life, Johnson said, "We are now beginning to turn the tide" on the disease.

He said lockdown would not be relaxed too soon but details on any changes will be set out over the "coming days", reports BBC.

Meanwhile, some paused NHS services, such as cancer care, are to resume.

It comes as the latest daily figures show a further 360 people died with the virus in hospitals, taking the total number of deaths to 21,092.

This number includes 82 NHS staff and 16 care workers who have died in hospital.

Families of front-line NHS and social care staff who die with coronavirus will receive a £60,000 compensation payment, the government has announced.

'Invisible mugger'
The prime minister returned to Downing Street on Sunday after more than three weeks off sick.

Mr Johnson apologised for being "away from my desk for much longer than I would've liked" and thanked his colleagues who stood in for him - as well as the public for their "sheer grit and guts".

In the speech on Monday morning, Mr Johnson said he understood concerns from business owners who were impatient to end the lockdown.

But ending it too soon could lead to a second spike in cases and cause more deaths, "economic disaster" and restrictions being reintroduced, he said.

"I ask you to contain your impatience," Mr Johnson added.

He said there were "real signs now that we are passing through the peak" - including with fewer hospital admissions and fewer Covid-19 patients in intensive care.

And comparing the outbreak to someone being attacked, Mr Johnson said: "If this virus were a physical assailant, an unexpected and invisible mugger - which I can tell you from personal experience, it is - then this is the moment when we have begun together to wrestle it to the floor.

"And so it follows that this is the moment of opportunity, this is the moment when we can press home our advantage, it is also the moment of maximum risk.

"I know there will be many people looking at our apparent success, and beginning to wonder whether now is the time to go easy on those social distancing measures."

Mr Johnson said the UK has "so far collectively shielded our NHS" and "flattened the peak" - but he could not yet say when or which restrictions would be lifted to ease lockdown.

Once the UK is meeting the five tests for easing restrictions - including a consistent fall in the death rate and making sure the NHS can cope - "then that will be the time to move on to the second phase" in the fight against the outbreak, he said.

But he added: "We simply cannot spell out now how fast or slow, or even when those changes will be made though. Clearly, the government will be saying much more about this in the coming days."

A Downing Street spokesman said there could be more on how the government will judge the country's ability to "move forward" by the end of the week.

Labour's environment spokesman Luke Pollard said he welcomed signs the government would be more transparent about exiting lockdown, saying the party had called for the government to publish its strategy.

Speaking at the Scottish government's daily briefing, Ms Sturgeon said it was "not the time to throw caution to the wind" and lift lockdown measures - although there had been "real signs of progress".

NHS services to resume
Health Secretary Matt Hancock, speaking at Downing Street's daily briefing, announced plans to restore some NHS services which were paused to help the health service cope during the outbreak.

Mr Hancock said the "most urgent" services - such as cancer care and mental health support - would be restored first, starting on Tuesday.

"The exact pace of the restoration will be determined by local circumstances on the ground, according to local need and according to the amount of coronavirus cases that that hospital is having to deal with," he said.

The minister has set a target of carrying out 100,000 tests a day across the country.

But latest Department of Health figures show 37,024 tests were carried out on Sunday - still far short of the target.

Mr Hancock said he was confident of reaching the target, which he said would be "big enough" to support the next phase of the government's strategy to "test, track and trace".

Small business loans
Meanwhile, the UK government has announced extra loans for small businesses, after they raised concerns about slow access to existing coronavirus rescue schemes.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak told the House of Commons the scheme would start next week, offering loans to small firms for 25% of turnover, up to £50,000, within days of applying. The loans would be interest free for the first 12 months, he added.

BBC Business editor Faisal Islam said the new scheme has been "aimed at unlocking a backlog of credit checks for smaller loans".

Loans to larger businesses under the coronavirus business interruption loans scheme will continue to get 80% government-backing.

The political could hardly be more personal.

But the prime minister's return to work and return to health is far from a metaphor for the country making a quick recovery from the crisis.

In contrast, Boris Johnson's statement at the lectern this morning was a request to the public to be patient, to keep going, to hold firm through the frustrations of living life mainly behind closed doors for a while longer.

Despite some restlessness among the public, increasing volume in his own party, and from the opposition for a clearer route out of this, for the prime minister it's not yet the time to give more detail - and certainly not yet the time to change any of the restrictions.

And when that time is reached, when the infection rate is deemed low enough, he was clear, that there will be no sudden nirvana - life in the 'next phase' will be a slow return of a more familiar rhythm, acknowledging, but not being swayed by demands to open up the economy much more swiftly.

The PM's return comes as members of the public have been given the chance to ask a question at the government's daily virus update from Downing Street. Anyone over the age of 18 can submit a question, which will be chosen by an independent polling organisation.

Mr Johnson was diagnosed with the virus a month ago. He was admitted to St Thomas' Hospital in central London on 5 April and spent a week there, including three nights in intensive care.

He has not been doing any official government work during his convalescence at his country residence, Chequers, although last week he did speak to the Queen and US President Donald Trump, as well as meeting senior ministers.

Strict limits on daily life - such as requiring people to stay at home, shutting many businesses and preventing gatherings of more than two people - were introduced on 23 March, as the government tried to limit the spread of the virus.

Ministers are required by law to assess whether the rules are working, based on expert advice, every three weeks. The next review is due by next Thursday 7 May.

Testing target
Meanwhile, the government has until this Thursday, the end of April, to hit its target of carrying out 100,000 tests for coronavirus per day.

There were 37,024 tests carried out on Sunday, according to Department of Health figures - far short of the target.

Earlier, Downing Street said it could take a "couple of days or more" before it was clear if Thursday's 100,000 testing target has been met. A spokesman said there was a "time lag" in collating some of the figures, such as on home testing kits.

Mr Hancock said the Government is still aiming to conduct 250,000 tests a day - including antibody tests.

"We want testing to continue to increase. As you will know, the Prime Minister set a goal of 250,000 some time ago - especially for when the antibody tests come on stream.

"But, so far, there isn't one of those that is clinically valid.