Just over 100 cases of the South African strain have been identified to date across the UK, but this is the first signal of wider community spread.
But freight volumes on routes to mainland Europe from Ireland were up 100 per cent.
"The sun will shine on you again and the clouds will go away."
Boris Johnson will also offer the former Daily Mail editor a peerage, according to reports.
“The heroes of this crisis, the nurses, supermarket staff and the carers, are on the wrong side of the growing divide," Munira Wilson said.
Liz Kendall, Labour’s shadow social care minister, described it as an "appalling loss of life in care homes".
“No-one is safe till the whole world is safe," Vaccines Minister Nadhim Zahawi said.
Some 609,010 people were vaccinated on Saturday across Britain.