British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Thursday announced a further loosening of lockdown restrictions in England, as health authorities announced 337 more people died due to the coronavirus over the past 24 hours.

The Department of Health tweeted: "As of 9 am 28 May, there have been 3,918,079 tests, with 119,587 tests on 27 May. 269,127 people have tested positive."

"As of 5 pm on 27 May, of those tested positive for coronavirus, across all settings, 37,837 have sadly died."

At a daily press briefing, Johnson said that from Monday, people in England will be able to meet outside in groups of six as long as they maintain social distancing. People should still not meet inside each other's homes, and only in gardens or outdoor spaces.

If there are local outbreaks, they will be met with lockdown rules, he said.

The pandemic has claimed more than 357,500 lives in 188 countries and regions since originating in China last December. The U.S. and Europe are currently the world's worst-hit regions.

More than 5.92 million cases have been reported worldwide. Nearly 2.39 million people have recovered so far, according to figures compiled by the U.S.' Johns Hopkins University.