PLANS to allow the phased return of spectators into sporting venues in England from October 1 will be put on hold because of the recent rise in coronavirus cases, Michael Gove has announced.

A number of pilot test events, in which capacities have been capped at 1,000 irrespective of the size of grounds, have already taken place including Cherries' trip to Middlesbrough on Saturday.

But the Cabinet Office Minister has said the next phase has been paused.

Gove told BBC Breakfast: “It was the case that we were looking at a staged programme of more people returning.

“It wasn’t going to be the case that we were going to have stadiums thronged with fans, we’re looking at how we can, for the moment, pause that programme.

“But what we do want to do is to make sure is that as and when circumstances allow get more people back.

“We have to look at sporting events with caution.”

Gove added: “We also recognise that sport’s a vital part of the life of the nation and we’re looking at everything we can do to support our athletes and our great clubs at what is a challenging time.

“We have been piloting some open-air venues and we do want people to be watching sport.

“It is the case that we need to be cautious at the moment. A mass reopening would not be appropriate at the moment. We do need to proceed with caution.”

The UK’s chief medical officers recommended on Monday that the COVID-19 alert level should be moved from three to four, which means the transmission of the virus is “high or rising exponentially”.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to outline a number of new measures aimed at tackling the surge in coronavirus cases later on Tuesday.