Johnson considers compulsory face coverings in shops in England

Boris Johnson has said he is looking at making face masks compulsory inside England’s shops – with an announcement to come as early as tomorrow.

Labour has been urging the government to come up with clear guidance after mixed messages from ministers.

In the last 24 hours – the official number of UK coronavirus deaths has risen by 11 to a total of 44,830 – the figure tends to be lower on a Monday due to delays in reporting deaths over the weekend but it’s still the lowest Monday increase since mid-March.

The Health Secretary Matt Hancock said around 100 virus outbreaks a week were being tackled by targeted action: one cluster is on a farm in Herefordshire where 200 workers have been put into isolation after 74 people tested positive.