Ministers have been told to abandon talk of a coronavirus "exit strategy" as they try to ease public fears about an eventual end to the lockdown by moving towards a gradual "unwinding" of social distancing rules.

The Government has been so successful in convincing people of the need to stay at home that there are concerns it could prove difficult to persuade them it is safe to return to work once the decision is taken to ease the current restrictions.

Dominic Raab, the acting Prime Minister, made clear on Monday that the lockdown will stay in place beyond a legally required review of it this Thursday, but said there were "positive signs" that Britain was "starting to win this struggle".

He is being urged by some members of the Cabinet to announce that the lockdown will be reviewed again next week – rather than next month – to signal that the lifting of some restrictions is under consideration.

Spain and Italy, the two worst-affected nations in Europe, are to start easing their own restrictions to kick-start their economies, adding to pressure from within Government for Britain to follow suit sooner rather than later.

However, senior sources said that, before the lockdown can be eased, the public must first be convinced that it is the right thing to do, in the same way that they accepted the need for social distancing to be imposed to begin with.