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Mr Johnson said he could understand people will feel frustrated with some of the new lockdown rules but insisted many gains had already been “won in the fight against the virus”. “We are trying to do something that has never had to be done before – moving the country out of a full lockdown, in a way which is safe and does not risk sacrificing all of your hard work,” he wrote in a Sunday newspaper article. I recognise what we are now asking is more complex than simply staying at home, but this is a complex problem and we need to trust in the good sense of the British people.

“If we all stick at it, then we’ll be able, gradually, to get rid of the complexities and the restrictions but we must move slowly, and at the right time.”

He added: “Over time we can gradually get closer to a kind of normality – but only if the evidence shows these adjustments are compatible with our five tests.

“And if at any stage we need to tighten the restrictions, we will not hesitate to act. Nothing is more important than saving lives.”

He went on: “We have achieved a lot together so far. Let’s not throw it all away. In return for the small freedoms we are now allowing ourselves, we must stay alert. We must do so in the knowledge our self-discipline will, eventually, lead to the return of our much-missed normality.

“I know this will not be easy – the first baby steps never are. But I hope that, when we look back, the changes we have made during this last week will be seen as an important moment on the road to our nation’s recovery.”

Mr Johnson, who was struck down with the disease himself, has privately told MPs he wants the country to be “near normality” in July.

But hitting the optimistic target means the public sticking to the current lockdown measures.

One MP said: “Boris told us he is determined that the country should be as close to normality again before the end of July.

“But he was clear it all depends on the country meeting the conditions that have been set for tackling the virus.

“Most importantly that means bringing down the infection rate – and that can only be achieved if the continues to obey the rules on social distancing to help stop it spreading”.

The lockdown is currently costing the UK roughly £2.5 billion a day and Mr Johnson is planning a major speech to kickstart growth.

It will include major infrastructure projects – such as Northern Powerhouse rail and broadband, plus education reforms.

It comes as the Government is to invest £93million to bring forward the opening of a new vaccine-manufacturing centre to ensure it is ready to begin production if a coronavirus vaccine is found.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy said the Vaccines Manufacturing and Innovation Centre (VMIC) in Oxfordshire will now open in summer 2021 – 12 months earlier than planned.

The not-for-profit facility, based at the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus in Oxford, will have the capacity to produce enough doses for the entire UK population in as little as six months.

A further £38million is being invested in a rapid deployment facility which will be able to begin manufacturing at scale from the summer of this year if a vaccine becomes available before the new centre is complete.

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