The number of deaths registered in England and Wales has fallen below the five-year average for the first time in six months, the ONS said.

Some 10,987 deaths were registered in the week to 12 March, 4.4 per cent below the average for the corresponding period in 2015-19. It is the first time deaths have been below average since the week to 4 September.

A total of 1,501 deaths registered in England and Wales in the week ending 12 March mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, according to the ONS – the lowest number since the week ending 30 October. The figure is down 29 per cent on the previous week’s total.

Around one in seven (13.7 per cent) of all deaths registered in England and Wales in the week to 12 March mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate.

France will lower the age from which people can be vaccinated against Covid-19 to 70 from 75, Emmanuel Macron has said.

“From Saturday we will accelerate the vaccination campaign,” the president said as he visited a vaccination centre in Valenciennes, northern France.

“First we will go look for all the people over 75 who have not yet been vaccinated, and we will also go down one age bracket and also make vaccination appointments available to those over 70,” Mr Macron added.

France’s Covid-19 figures are going up at a “vertiginous rate” and if the situation does not improve, further lockdown measures may be needed, Frederic Valletoux, president of the French hospital federation, has said.

“The epidemic is gathering pace, and the figures are exploding,” Mr Valletoux, who is also mayor of Fontainebleau just south of Paris, told LCI TV.

Official data published on Monday showed the tally of new Covid-19 cases in France had accelerated further despite the start of a third lockdown over the weekend, with the number of people in intensive care at a new four-month high.

Results from a US trial of Oxford/AstraZeneca’s Covid-19 vaccine may have used “outdated information,” US federal health officials have said.

The Data and Safety Monitoring Board said it was concerned AstraZeneca may have provided an incomplete view of the efficacy data.

On Monday, AstraZeneca reported that its Covid-19 vaccine provided strong protection among adults of all ages in the US study, a finding that could help rebuild public confidence in the shot around the world and move it a step closer to clearance in the US.

In the study of 30,000 people, the vaccine was 79 per cent effective at preventing symptomatic cases of Covid-19 — including in older adults.

AstraZeneca also said the study’s independent safety monitors found no serious side effects, including no increased risk of rare blood clots like those identified in Europe, a scare that led numerous countries to briefly suspend vaccinations last week.

The company aims to file an application with the Food and Drug Administration in the coming weeks, and the government’s outside advisers will publicly debate the evidence before the agency makes a decision.

A member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) has said he was “wrong” about how infectious coronavirus would be at the start of the pandemic.

Professor Calum Semple, asked his thoughts on the last year of lockdown, told Sky News: “The things I reflect on, and I wasn’t a member of Sage right at the start, I really appreciate how infectious this virus was, that was one aspect which I’ll put my hands up and I got wrong.

“The virus undoubtedly is infectious in close-quarters by respiratory aerosol and droplet in close-quarters.

“That’s one of the aspects I certainly didn’t get right.”

He added: “It’s incredibly difficult, what as a society we didn’t appreciate, and as a group of scientists what we didn’t appreciate, was that the virus was going to move into the country essentially through British people returning from holidays in Italy, Spain and France.

“The assumption was that it would be more traditional, long-distance foreign travellers coming back in that would bring the virus in, we hadn’t predicted it would be the surge of our own people coming back.”

Boris Johnson has said coronavirus restrictions will be eased “once and for all” as the UK marks the anniversary of the first national lockdown.

The prime minister offered his “sincere condolences to those who have lost loved ones” and praised the “great spirit” displayed ahead of the nation pausing in remembrance.

However, Mr Johnson warned a third wave of Covid-19 cases being seen in France and Italy could “wash up on our shores as well”.

Ahead of a minute’s silence at midday, Mr Johnson praised those who developed and rolled out vaccines, parents who homeschooled their children and the public who endured social distancing.

“It’s because of every person in this country that lives have been saved, our NHS was protected, and we have started on our cautious road to easing restrictions once and for all,” he said in a statement.

Prince Charles has marked the national day of remembrance on the anniversary of the first UK lockdown.

The nation will pause at midday in remembrance of those who have died during the crisis in the past year, organised by the end-of-life charity Marie Curie.

In a recorded message, the Prince of Wales, who is a patron of the charity, said: “We have all been inspired by the resourcefulness we have witnessed, humbled by the dedication shown by so many, and moved, beyond words, by the sacrifices we have seen.

“Whatever our faith or philosophy may be, let us take a moment together to remember those who have been lost, to give thanks for their lives, and to acknowledge the inexpressible pain of parting.

“In their memory, let us resolve to work for a future inspired by our highest values, that have been displayed so clearly by the people of this country through this most challenging of times.”

There is a “likelihood” of a third wave of coronavirus in the summer, a member of the government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) has said.

Professor Calum Semple told Sky News: “The concern at present is that in countries where there’s less vaccination and a very strong third wave, that’s the perfect breeding ground for further variants of concern.

“So, at this point, Britain has got its act together, the concern is as this third wave is going on elsewhere, that will generate new variations.

“Even within Britain there is a likelihood of a third wave in potentially July and August time when we do unlock society.

“That third wave we would expect to occur in people that are less susceptible to very severe disease.

“It’s inevitable as we unlock there will be an rise in cases, the key here is have we won the race to vaccinate the most vulnerable members of society so we can keep society open this time.”

Scotland’s first minister, Nicola Sturgeon, has commemorated the “heartbreaking sacrifices” people have made during the coronavirus crisis.

She tweeted: “One year on. Thinking today of all those who have lost a loved one to Covid, and to everyone who continues to make heartbreaking sacrifices as we continue to navigate our way through this terrible ordeal, together.

“Also, many people have lost loved ones to causes other than Covid over the past 12 months. The restrictions in place have made the grieving process even more difficult than it would have been – my thoughts are with you too.”

Matt Hancock said it had been “probably the hardest year in a generation” as he reflected on 12 months since the first coronavirus lockdown was introduced.

Asked how he would spend the day of reflection, the health secretary told Sky News: “I’ll be working on the vaccine rollout and trying to get us out of this.

“This has been an incredibly difficult year, probably the hardest year in a generation.

“Yet, we all search for hope as well, don’t we? The hope is that we now have a route out of this and that route is possible because of the wonders of science and the scale of the vaccination programme.”