He thanked the country for staying inside during the sunny long weekend,saying the British public had"formed a human shield"around the NHS and progress was being made in the battle against COVID-19,which he described as"a fight we never picked against an enemy we still don’t entirely understand".

In separate messages sent via Twitter,Johnson’s pregnant fiancee Carrie Symonds said she would"never stop thanking"the magnificent NHS staff.

"I will never,ever be able to repay you,"Symonds said."There were times last week that were very dark indeed."

"My heart goes out to all those in similar situations,worried sick about their loved ones."

Nurse Jenny'was quickly identified by Kiwi media as 35-year-old Jenny McGee.

The Otago Daily Times reported while McGree was"overwhelmed by messages",her family back in New Zealand were extremely proud.

''She would give the same level of care to whoever it is that's in that bed needing care and that's what we're so proud of,"father Mike McGee said.

''She says'my job is to get people well and get them back home again'and she does her best.''

Johnson’s recovery came as the UK passed the grim milestone of recording more than 10,000 deaths.

The UK recorded 737 new deaths,taking the total toll to 10,612.

"Today marks a sombre day in the impact of this disease as we join the list of countries who have seen more than 10,000 deaths from coronavirus,"Health Secretary Matt Hancock said.

However,Hancock said the health system still had more capacity than it did when coronavirus first hit Britain’s shores,with 2295 critical care beds available and a total 9775 ventilators. He said those figures did not include new pop-up Nightingale hospitals being built around the country.

Britain's gross domestic product could fall by up to 30 per cent between April and June,Finance Minister Rishi Sunak told his colleagues as members of the cabinet called for the easing of lockdown restrictions,theTimes reported.

The newspaper reported that 10 ministers were pressing for the lockdown to be eased next month,but did not identify those ministers.

The UK logged Europe’s highest single-day toll,980,on Good Friday,breaking the previous record set by Italy.

Italy reported 431 deaths on Sunday,its lowest number of deaths in a single day in three weeks. Italy's death toll now stands at 19,899.

In France,the death toll rose to 14,393,with 561 new deaths recorded. France’s toll is the only one that includes deaths recorded in nursing homes as well as in hospitals.

With Reuters,AAP