The antiviral medicine was developed for Ebola, but initial trials on COVID-19 patients showed it could reduce recovery times by about four days.
Britain's Health Secretary Matt Hancock (Photo: AFP)
UK has recorded 134 new COVID-19 patients have died bringing the total coronavirus-related death toll in the country to 37,048, according to the Department of Health and Social Care.
The figures include deaths in all settings, including hospitals, care homes and the wider community.
As of Tuesday morning, 265,227 people have tested positive in Britain, a daily increase of 2,004, the department said.
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Earlier on Monday, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said that the country could reopen all non-essential retail stores on June 15 if the coronavirus remains contained.
Together with the latest figures in Scotland and Northern Ireland, 46,383 deaths have so far been registered in Britain where COVID-19 was mentioned on the death certificate, according to The Guardian newspaper.
At Downing Street daily briefing, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the government has signed contracts to manufacture 2 million items of personal protective equipment (PPE) in Britain, and has signed deals with more than 100 suppliers around the world.
The antiviral medicine was developed for Ebola, but initial trials on COVID-19 patients showed it could reduce recovery times by about four days.
On Moday, Johnson also announced that primary schools in England are to reopen to some pupils from June 1 as part of the next stage of easing restrictions. The school announcement however was overshadowed by the continuing row over Cummings.
On Friday, Home Secretary Priti Patel said that all the new arrivals must self-isolate for two weeks from June 8, with fines for anyone who breaches the measure designed to prevent a second wave of coronavirus from overseas.
Johnson had said that he could begin to ease a nationwide coronavirus lockdown in the coimg weeks but warned he would do nothing that would risk a new surge of cases.
The Prime Minister in par, while speaking in parliament for the first time since he himself was hospitalised with coronavirus, said the government would review the data and he would set out the next steps.
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