Preston became the latest part of the north-west of England to have lockdown restrictions tightened following a surge in the infection rate. A ban on households mixing in homes or gardens in large parts of the north is to stay in place for at least another week, and has been extended into Preston from midnight. The reintroduction of restrictions for Preston follow its designation as an “area of intervention” by the government amid a significant rise in cases. The UK added more countries to its quarantine list. The chancellor Rishi Sunak said ministers will “not hesitate” in ordering travellers coming back from countries with high Covid-19 rates to isolate for 14 days, as Belgium, Andorra and the Bahamas lost their exempted status this morning. Travellers returning to the UK from listed nations must enter quarantine, and there are fears those coming back from France could be next, with cases there increasing. The growth rate and R value of coronavirus transmission in the UK has changed slightly since last week – with early indications the value may be increasing, according to figures from Sage. The figures suggest the growth rate was between minus 5% to 0, slightly up from between minus 4% to minus 1% last week. The reproduction number, referred to as R, for the UK as a whole is between 0.8 to 1. In England, the R is between 0.8 and 1, but Sage has indicated it is not confident that R is currently below 1 there. The R value also appears to be close to 1 in all the other regions. Boris Johnson is facing calls to “set the record straight” and prove his chief aide Dominic Cummings did not make a second trip to Durham during the lockdown. Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner called on Downing Street to publish the evidence the adviser says he has to show he did not make the additional journey during the peak of the coronavirus crisis. A couple say they saw Cummings walking in Houghall Woods on 19 April, the weekend after he had returned to work in London, and have criticised Durham police’s investigation into the adviser. Pubs in Scotland will be required by law to take customers’ details for contact tracing purposes from next week. Following localised outbreaks in Scotland, including one in Aberdeen where lockdown restrictions were reintroduced on Wednesday, the first minister Nicola Sturgeon said it will be mandatory for hospitality venues - pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants - to collect customer details from Friday 14 August. She said Police Scotland would enforce the measures if necessary. The Independent Sage group called for the UK government’s test and trace contract with Serco to be scrapped. Sir David King, the former chief scientific adviser who now leads the group, said the funds should instead be used to support local systems based on existing Public Health England infrastructures. Swimming pools, indoor fitness studios, gyms and leisure centres will be able to reopen from Monday in Wales. The first minister Mark Drakeford confirmed children’s indoor play areas will also be able to open their doors as part of the latest changes to Wales’s coronavirus regulations, however, areas such as ball pits, which cannot be easily cleaned, should remain closed. The UK government’s tally of deaths rose to 46,511 following the recording of a further 98 fatalities. And that’s it from me for today on the UK side! Thank you all for following along today. If you would like to continue following the Guardian’s coronavirus coverage, head over to the global live blog.