London, Dec 7 (IANS): Another 17,272 people in Britain have tested positive for Covid-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 1,723,242, according to official figures released.

The coronavirus-related deaths in Britain rose by 231 to 61,245, the data showed on Sunday, Xinhua news agency reported.

Earlier Sunday, a Christmas market in northern England's Nottingham city, which is placed in Tier 3 restrictions, has been closed due to large crowds and a lack of social distancing.

The Mellors Group, the organizer of the market, said in a statement: "In light of the unprecedented high footfall seen up and down the country for retail nationally, we have decided to temporarily close the Christmas market."

Meanwhile in London, four men were arrested for such offences as affray and breaking coronavirus regulations, as crowds gathered outside Harrods, a famed department store in central London.

England is currently under a new three-tier system of coronavirus restrictions that replaced the month-long national lockdown in England which ended on December 2. London is one of the Tier 2 areas.

Under the new system, shops are allowed to re-open across England, giving a Christmas bonanza to the struggling retail sector, but all bars and restaurants in the toughest Tier 3 areas remain closed. The system put about 98 percent of England into Tier 2 and 3.

To bring life back to normal, countries such as Britain, China, Germany, Russia and the United States are racing against time to develop coronavirus vaccines.