Pubs and restaurants serving outside can reopen as planned next Monday.

This will include  non-essential shops, gyms and hairdressers, as England’s lockdown is further eased, the PM has said.

But Boris Johnson urged caution, saying: “We can’t be complacent.”

Officials were examining the potential role of Covid status certificates, he told a Downing Street briefing.

Pilot events will take place from mid-April to trial the system, with later events checking vaccinations.

Speaking in Downing Street, the prime minister also said the government was “hopeful” international travel could resume in the next stage of lockdown easing on 17 May, but cautioned against the effects of the surge of coronavirus in other parts of the world.

He said the government would set out “well before 17 May what is reasonable” and aim to give the aviation industry “as much notice as possible”.