The spread of the coronavirus is speeding up across all parts of England with the number of cases doubling about every week, according to a new study by Imperial College, which will fuel concerns that renewed restrictions may need be introduced, Reuters reported.

The infection rate is rising in all age groups apart from those over 65, and cases are no longer clustering in hospitals or care homes as they were a few months ago, suggesting the virus is circulating more widely, Imperial found.

The study, which involved testing more than 150,000 volunteers, found 13 per 10,000 people were infected in England in the two weeks ending September 7, compared to four per 10,000 in the same period ending August 11.