A man wearing a face mask walks in a shopping mall in London, Britain, on Nov. 23, 2020. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)

If restrictions are changed to allow greater mixing at Christmas then infections will inevitably go up, David Spiegelhalter from the University of Cambridge told Times Radio earlier this week.

LONDON, Nov. 25 (Xinhua) -- The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 696 to 56,533, marking the highest daily death number since May 5, according to official figures released Wednesday.

Another 18,213 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 1,557,007, the data showed.

The figures came as some scientists warned that the British government's plan to relax coronavirus restrictions over Christmas risk "throwing fuel on the COVID fire".

If restrictions are changed to allow greater mixing at Christmas then infections will inevitably go up, David Spiegelhalter from the University of Cambridge told Times Radio earlier this week.

Up to three households can get together during a five-day period over Christmas, British Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove announced Tuesday.

According to Gove, three different households can meet in a private home, a place of worship or outdoor public spaces on Dec. 23-27.

However, the groupings must be "exclusive", which means people cannot get together with those who are not from other two households.

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced Monday a "tougher" tiered system of coronavirus restrictions to replace England's current lockdown when it ends on Dec. 2.

Johnson said he will announce which areas will fall into which tier later this week, probably on Thursday.

England is currently under a month-long national lockdown, the second of its kind since the coronavirus outbreak in Britain, in a bid to quell the resurgence of coronavirus.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States are racing against time to develop coronavirus vaccines.

A person walks through Covent Garden, in London, Britain, on Nov. 23, 2020. (Photo by Tim Ireland/Xinhua)■