The leader of a London council has warned there’s a “real risk” the Government could ban outside exercise if revellers flocking to parks across the city continue to flout lockdown rules.

Greenwich Council’s Dan Thorpe made the statement on Monday after thousands of people gathered at open spaces across London over the weekend.

The amount of people out in the borough on Sunday led to the authority taking the major step of closing the Greenwich Foot Tunnel, which connects Cutty Sark to the Island Gardens north of the Thames, for the day.

While the tunnel was reopened on Monday to allow essential workers to travel to and from work, Cllr Thorpe said the authority would keep “a close eye on it” and would possibly close it again over the Easter weekend.  

“Greenwich is a popular tourist destination for lots of good reasons, but this is a national emergency, not a holiday. There is a real risk that the Government will ban outside exercise if people don’t stick to the rules, so only use the tunnel if you’re an essential worker getting to and from work,” he said. 

While several boroughs across London have closed all parks within their borders to prevent residents ignoring social distancing precautions, Cllr Thorpe said he had hoped to avoid that within Greenwich.

“For people without gardens, parks are the only opportunity to get outside and enjoy some fresh air during the lockdown. Please, go for a walk, run or bike ride then go home. Do not stop to sunbathe or have a picnic,” he said.

The warning comes as cases of coronavirus in the UK surge past 50,000, the NHS confirmed on Monday, while more than 5,000 have died from the bug.

Following the weekend’s events, London Mayor Sadiq Khan said the “vast majority” were following social distancing precautions, amid a plea for residents to do the right thing.

“The key thing is for all of us to follow the rules…there are many Londoners who haven’t got the luxury of a garden or a bigger home…they need to get out and use these green public spaces and that’s why it’s really important we continue to abid by the rules,” he said on Monday.