London: Another 16,022 people in Britain have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 15,89,301, according to official figures released Friday.
The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 521 to 57,551, the latest data showed.
The figures came as the British government's Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) warned that the relaxation of coronavirus restrictions over Christmas will increase infections by "potentially a large amount," the Xinhua news agency reported.
"Substantial mixing of people over a short period of time, especially those who do not make contact regularly during a month represents a significant risk for wide-spread transmission," SAGE said in "notes on festive period," a document published Friday.
"The prevalence could easily double during a few days of festive season," it added.
Earlier this week, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a "tougher" three-tiered system of coronavirus restrictions to replace England's current lockdown when it ends on December 2.
However, between December 23 to 27, up to three different households can meet in a private home, a place of worship or outdoor public spaces.
England is currently under a month-long national lockdown, the second of its kind since the coronavirus outbreak in Britain, in a bid to quell the resurgence of coronavirus.
To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States are racing against time to develop coronavirus vaccines.
Meanwhile, overall number of global coronavirus cases has topped 61.5 million, while the deaths have surged to more than 1.44 million, according to the Johns Hopkins University.
In its latest update on Saturday, the University's Center for Systems Science and Engineering (CSSE) revealed that the current global caseload and death toll stood at 61,585,651 and 1,441,875, respectively.
The US is the worst-hit country with the world's highest number of cases and deaths at 13,086,367 and 264,842, respectively, according to the CSSE.
India comes in second place in terms of cases at 9,309,787, while the country's death toll soared to 135,715.
The other countries with more than a million confirmed cases are Brazil (6,238,350), France (2,248,209), Russia (2,196,691), Spain (1,628,208), the UK (1,593,248), Italy (1,538,217), Argentina (1,407,277), Colombia (1,290,510), Mexico (1,078,594) and Germany (1,027,327), the CSSE figures showed.
Brazil currently accounts for the second highest number of fatalities at 171,974.
The countries with a death toll above 20,000 are Mexico (104,242), the UK (57,648), Italy (53,677), France (51,999), Iran (47,095), Spain (44,668), Argentina (38,216), Russia (38,175), Colombia (36,214), Peru (35,785) and South Africa (21,378).
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