Britain is "past the peak" of its coronavirus outbreak, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Thursday, despite recording another 674 deaths in the last 24 hours, taking the toll to 26 711. But Johnson, making his first appearance at a daily government briefing since his own battle with Covid-19, said there were reasons for optimism. "For the first time, we are past the peak of this disease... and we are on the downward slope," he told reporters. "We are coming through the peak or rather we are coming over what could have been a vast peak, as though we have been going through some huge Alpine tunnel. Johnson spent three days in intensive care with the virus, saying his situation could have gone "either way".

Source: News 24 April 30, 2020 17:48 UTC