Coronavirus: 'Sunbathing is against the rules', says health secretary after Britons break lockdown restrictions to enjoy warm weather

'It’s quite unbelievable frankly to see that there are some people who are not following the advice,' says cabinet minister

People sunbathing in parks across the country are breaking government coronavirus restrictions, health secretary Matt Hancock has warned.

Speaking on the warmest weekend of the last six months – and the second the UK has spent in lockdown due to covid-19 – the cabinet minister said while the majority are adhering to the guidelines, it was “unbelievable” some people continued to flout government orders on social distancing.

“There are a small minority of people who are still not doing that – it’s quite unbelievable frankly to see that there are some people who are not following the advice,” he told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge programme.

Pressed on whether sunbathing in public spaces was against the law, Mr Hancock replied: “Sunbathing is against the rules that have been set out for important public health reasons.”

And he warned those ignoring the guidance: “You are putting others’ lives at risk and you are putting yourself in harm’s way.”

On Saturday, Lambeth Council announced that Brockwell Park in south London would be closed for the rest of the week as it claimed many people had flouted the government’s orders on social distancing.

They added: “Despite clear advice, over 3000 people spent today in Brockwell Park, many of them sunbathing or in large groups. This is unacceptable. Unfortunately, the actions of a minority now means that, following police advice, Brockwell Park will be closed tomorrow

"We are sorry we've had to take this decision. This wouldn't need to happen if people followed the clear instructions from the Govt. We are doing this for the wider safety of the public. A minority of people have not followed the guidance - regrettably we have to act."

His remarks come as ministers urged the British public to avoid leaving their homes this weekend for all but essential reasons, as the country experiences some of the warmest weather of the year so far.

The latest government figures show a further 708 people in the UK had lost their lives after contracting coronavirus, including seven healthcare professions, bringing the total death toll to 4,313.

Mr Hancock also insisted Boris Johnson was in “good spirits” as he continues to self-isolate in Downing Street after testing positive for the virus over a week ago. He has “very much got his hand on the tiller – but he’s still got a temperature,” the minister added.

And the health secretary admitted it would be “hard” to meet the government’s target to roll out 100,000 coronavirus tests a day by the end of April, saying it would require “an awful lot of people to put their shoulders to the wheel”.

He continued: “We set a goal of 10,000 tests a day by the end of March and we hit that goal. At the end of February we had under 2,000 tests a day, so we are on a very rapid ramp-up but we clearly need to see that go further.