THE easing of lockdown restrictions must be done in a "cautious fashion", cabinet office minister Michael Gove has said.

Speaking in the government's daily press conference earlier today, Mr Gove said the public would have to live with "some degree of constraint" until a vaccine was developed.

And he warned it would be "the worst thing to do" to "prematurely" relax measures and risk a second spike in the disease.

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NHS England's national medical director Professor Stephen Powis, also speaking at the press conference, added: "So we're only really four months into any knowledge at all about this virus and it's really difficult to know how this is going to play out in the months and years ahead."

Mr Gove said: "We've all learned to adapt, and we must carry on doing so after the prime minister sets out how we will get back to work later this week.

"His comprehensive plan will explain how we can get our economy moving, how we can get our children back to school, how we can travel to work more safely, and how we can make life in the workplace safer.

"But before we can ease the existing restrictions we must ensure the government's five tests are met - that the number of cases are falling, that death rates are declining, that the NHS has what it needs, and that measures are in place to stop a second peak overwhelming the NHS."

Mr Gove also acknowledged that lockdown measures will have an impact on people's "mental and emotional well-being" as well as economic activity.