“In the past 24 hours I developed mild symptoms and tested positive for coronavirus. Now I am isolating myself, but I will continue to lead the country's response by video conference as we fight this virus”, he said via the social network Twitter.

In a video published on the same platform, he said that he is following medical advice and that he remains in remote contact with the team.

The last time Boris Johnson was seen in public was on Thursday night in Downing Street, with Finance Minister Rishi Sunak, when they both joined the popular initiative to applaud healthcare professionals.

In the balance sheet published on Thursday, the British Ministry of Health reported 11,658 positive cases among 104,866 people tested for covid-19, with 578 of those infected having died, 115 more than the 463 deaths declared the day before.