Advertisement

Coronavirus news: Sport to return and groups of six can meet to exercise together says government, despite warnings on lockdown easing

Getty
Getty

Elite sport can return behind closed doors from 1 June, the government announced as it eased coronavirus restrictions to allow groups of up to six people to exercise together outdoors.

Culture secretary Oliver Dowden described the move as “a significant moment” despite warnings from scientific advisers that Covid-19 “is spreading too fast to lift lockdown in England” with an estimated 8,000 infections per day.

With the new NHS test and trace system still “untested”, Professor John Edmunds accused ministers of making a “risky” and political decision, saying “Westminster clearly made a decision that this is the sort of level of incidence that they’re willing to tolerate”, despite it being “significantly higher” than similar European nations.

Please allow a moment for the liveblog to load: