As the day unfolded: Return to lockdown 'highly unlikely' as global COVID-19 cases surpass 5.4 million, Australian death toll stands at 102

Ms Osmond said that “quite a bit” of lobbying was being done behind the scenes to get premiers such as Queensland’s Annastacia Palaszczuk and Western Australia’s Mark McGowan to reconsider border closures.

“The tourism industry has never argued with health being the number one priority. We've been a huge supporter from moment one of putting the health of Australians first,” she said.

“September just seems a very long away when this is not a mandatory exercise, it is an advisory thing. From our point of view, we think July looks very sensible.”

Some passengers and crew members scheduled to board a flight on Monday at New Delhi airport said the mood at the terminal was sombre as security forces implemented strict social distancing norms and passengers donned masks.

While the federal government has not insisted that passengers be quarantined after their flights, some states have implemented their own quarantine measures, creating confusion among travellers.

"Flying to meet my family almost feels like I am entering a war zone, it's the mask and gloves that add to the stress," said Subham Dey, an engineer travelling to the north-eastern state of Assam.

Indian Railways also said it would run an additional 2600 special trains in the next 10 days to help nearly 3.5 million stranded migrant workers get to their homes.

Reuters

Some 20 ruling Conservative Party lawmakers, 14 Church of England bishops and some scientists also expressed anger.

"Johnson has now gone the full Trump," said Pete Broadbent, Bishop of Willesden, comparing Britain's leader to his ever-controversial US ally President Donald Trump.

With a death toll around 43,000, Britain is the worst-hit country in Europe and the government was already under pressure over its handling of the pandemic.

Conservative lawmakers reported being contacted by outraged constituents who had made sacrifices during the lockdown, including staying away from dying relatives.

"I got swamped with even more emails from people who don't have a political axe to grind and who say ... 'it looks as though it's one rule for them and one for us, why should we now abide by government guidance?'," said lawmaker Tim Loughton.

Behavioural scientist Stephen Reicher, a member of a panel which advises the government, said the furore would wreck public confidence.

"In a few short minutes tonight, Boris Johnson has trashed all the advice we have given on how to build trust and secure adherence to the measures necessary to control COVID-19."

Johnson's Downing Street office said Cummings made the journey to his parents' property in County Durham to ensure his four-year-old son could be properly cared for by relatives if he fell ill along with his wife.

At the time, the government's instruction to anyone showing symptoms was not to leave the house for 14 days.

The architect of the successful Brexit campaign in 2016, Cummings, 48, is a polarising figure, accused by many who wanted to stay in the EU of using inflammatory tactics and playing fast and loose with the facts.

Ominously for him and for Johnson, many of the lawmakers and newspaper columnists calling for him to be sacked were Brexit supporters, not his usual critics.

Coming home late on Sunday, Cummings was harangued by neighbours, including a woman who broke down in tears as she leaned out of her window and described the hardship she and her family had endured during the lockdown.

In contrast to Cummings, Scotland's chief medical officer and a senior epidemiologist who advised the government both resigned after admitting they had broken lockdown rules.

Reuters