Coronavirus lockdown: People flouting rules could be hit with £30 fine

On Monday, Boris Johnson said tougher restrictions on people's movements during the crisis would be enforced by police and warned those ignoring them would be fined.

Officers will have powers to disperse gatherings under a ban on meetings of more than two people apart from those who live together.

On Tuesday, Mr Johnson's official spokesman said: ‘The Prime Minister issued a clear instruction on behalf of the Government on the actions the public are required to take to help prevent the spread of the virus, protect the NHS and save lives.

‘As with existing laws, the overwhelming majority of the public can be expected to follow the rules without any need for enforcement action.

‘We would expect that compliance to begin immediately.’

The punishment would be a fixed penalty notice initially set at £30 but ‘we will keep this under review and can increase it significantly if it is necessary to ensure public compliance’.

‘You would expect the police's focus to be dispersal of groups,’ the Prime Minister's spokesman said.

Failure to pay a penalty notice could be subject to criminal proceedings and a conviction, he added.

Regulations will be made by Thursday at the latest to allow police to issue fines under the 1984 Public Health (Control of Diseases) Act for England and Wales.

The emergency legislation going through the House of Commons will provide equivalent powers to Scotland and Northern Ireland.

The head of Britain's biggest police force, Dame Cressida Dick, told the PA news agency that the ‘vast majority’ of people want to obey the new rules.

Speaking while out meeting officers on patrol in south London, she said her force had been planning how to deal with a pandemic for years, and ‘even in the darkest of times, to be able to keep people safe and give a good quality policing service’.

The Metropolitan Police Commissioner said that once the new legislation is in place: ‘My view is that my officers will just carry on talking to people and advising people. The vast majority of people want to comply with the law, the vast majority of people want to keep their society safe.’

Earlier, Sir Peter Fahy, former chief constable of Greater Manchester Police, told BBC Breakfast there was ‘a huge amount of clarification needed’ on the rules.

Police chiefs warned of phone lines being inundated with calls after Mr Johnson's statement, with questions about what movements are still permitted.

John Apter, national chairman of the Police Federation of England and Wales, had previously told the PA news agency he ‘cannot imagine’ how officers would police social distancing, adding: ‘I just cannot rationally think how that would work.’