Coronavirus: The family of the second person to die in the UK have spoken about their loss

They said he died at Milton Keynes Hospital shortly after being advised on Thursday evening that he had tested positive but said the cause of death had not been confirmed.

They also said they had not already spoken to any media outlets “contrary to what has been reported”.

The statement said: “We as a family have lost a truly loving and wonderful person and are trying to come to terms with this. He was 83-years-old and a wonderful husband, dad, grandad and great-grandad who would go to any lengths to support and protect his family.

“We can confirm that he was admitted to hospital on Monday and after observations the decision was made to remove him from the ward as a precaution to carry out more intensive tests.

“On Thursday evening it was confirmed that our loved one tested positive for coronavirus. He passed away shortly after being advised that he tested positive, with us all present at the hospital with him. Whilst he may have tested positive for having the virus, it has not been confirmed what the cause of his death was.

“As he has tested positive, we as a family have been tested and told to self-isolate as a precaution.

“This whole nightmare is not something that we or our loved ones asked for. As we are in isolation currently, we cannot arrange for him to be put to rest and with all the activity that is going around with regards to everyone’s concerns, we cannot grieve him as we would wish to.

“People should perhaps put themselves in our shoes and think how would they feel with some of the hurtful comments that are being made. We would not wish this experience on anyone and we would ask that you have respect for us and allow us to grieve.”