Boris Johnson’s condition is “improving”, with the UK prime minister now “sitting up in bed” in intensive care and engaging positively with hospital staff, the chancellor said on Wednesday.

Speaking at the daily Downing Street press conference, Rishi Sunak said that despite this progress, Mr Johnson would remain in intensive care. “The prime minister is not only my colleague and my boss but also my friend, and my thoughts are with him and his family,” he added.

Earlier in the day, Mr Johnson’s spokesperson said he was “responding to treatment” and remained “clinically stable”. He is also in “good spirits during his treatment for persistent coronavirus symptoms at St Thomas’ Hospital in London, Downing Street said. He was receiving “standard oxygen treatment and breathing without any other assistance”.