The UK coronavirus death toll has jumped by 938 to hit 7,097, the Department of Health has confirmed.

The figure marks an increase on the 786 fatalities recorded yesterday, as the daily death toll continues to grow ahead of the Easter weekend.

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Health officials have warned that the long weekend could see the peak of th epidemic in the UK.

As of 9am this morning, 232,708 people have been tested, of whom 60,733 tested positive.

Just under 13,000 people were tested yesterday, marking a ramping up of testing. However, the figures still lag well behind the government’s target of carrying out 100,000 tests a day by the end of April.

In England a further 828 patients died, bringing the total to 6,483.

Scotland reported a further 70 deaths from the virus, taking its total to 366.

Wales’ death toll has risen to 245 after 33 more deaths, while five further deaths in Northern Ireland took the country’s toll to 78.

It comes as the government is expected to extend strict lockdown measures ordering people to remain except for buying food, medical reasons, exercise or for essential work.

Announcing the restrictions, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the rules would be reviewed by officials after three weeks.

However, health minister Edward Argar today said it was “not the right moment” to consider relaxing the measures.

“We will be led by the scientific evidence of when is the right moment for the changes to be made,” he told Sky News. “At the moment that is not the right moment.”

Wales has already confirmed that it will extend its restrictions into at least next week.

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Johnson remains in intensive care in St Thomas’ Hospital with the virus, and foreign secretary Dominic Raab is now leading the government.

However, chancellor Rishi Sunak today said the Prime Minister’s condition was improving, adding that he had “been sitting up in bed and engaging positively with his clinical team”.