Priti Patel said the UK has a “long way to go” before coronavirus restrictions can be eased.

The Home Secretary said it was “too early” to discuss relaxing lockdown rules as Covid deaths and hospital admissions continue to surge across the country.

She told Sky News the Government would not consider lifting any measures until its vaccine priority groups had received their jabs.

Ms Patel said: “We are at a pivotal stage. Our vaccine rollout is under way but we have a long way to go with vaccination.

“We cannot talk about easing restrictions and measures until we are absolutely clear we have vaccinated priority groups.”

Boris Johnson plunged England into its third lockdown in early January after a large rise in coronavirus infections and amid significant pressure on the NHS.

People are cooped up in their homes under the "stay-at-home" order and are only allowed to leave for exercise once a day or travel for essential reasons, such as food shopping.

Asked whether mid-February was still the target for lifting some measures, she said that remained the aim for targeting those in the top four priority groups.

However, she added that it was “no time to speak about” relaxations when the NHS was under such current strain.

Ms Patel added: “Quite frankly, when I look at the incredible work that is taking place in the NHS right now –when we still see hospitalisation figures now standing at over 38,000 people, with the number of people still dying with coronavirus, with the number of hospital admissions increasing – this is no time to speak about the relaxation of measures and we’re not going to do that publicly yet.

“We have a long way to go.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that England was entering a third lockdown period at the beginning of January.

When did the new lockdown period start in England?

The restrictions came into force at midnight on the morning of January 5.

How long will lockdown last?

England was placed under lockdown for an initial period of six weeks.

In a televised address to the nation the Conservative Party leader said that England would be under lockdown measures until at least mid-February.

Prefacing the confirmation of a lockdown, Mr Johnson said: "Our hospitals are under more pressure than ever before – England’s hospitalisations have increased by 30% in the last week.

"On the 29 December, more than 80,000 people tested positive for Covid across the UK - a new record. Deaths are up by 20% in the last week and will rise further.

"It’s clear we need to do more together."

Since then foreign secretary Dominic Raab has said that measures might not be eased until March and that restrictions will be “phased out” in specific parts of the country.

Vaccines minister Nadim Zahawi echoed Raab’s comments, stating that measures would need to be in place until “two to three weeks after the middle of February.”

Reflecting on the vaccine rollout timeline he said: "If we take the mid-February target, two weeks after that you get your protection, pretty much, for the Pfizer/BioNTech, three weeks for the Oxford/AstraZeneca, you are protected.

"One of the things we don't know yet, and the deputy chief medical officer Jonathan Van-Tam is on record as saying 'look give me a couple of months and I'll tell you', is the impact of the vaccine on transmission rates ie on infecting people.

"So there are a number of caveats that stand in the way of us reopening the economy.

"It will be gradually, it will be probably through the tiered system but you're looking at that sort of period, two to three weeks after the middle of February, after we've protected the top four cohorts."

When is the next lockdown review? 

The UK government is bound by law to review measures every two weeks.

The last review was held on Wednesday January 20.