A further 13 people have died in the UK with coronavirus, bring the official death toll to 41,527.
The number of cases of Covid-19 is continuing to rise, with another 1,735 people testing positive in the past 24 hours – bringing the total to 340,411, according to the Department of Health. The latest figures come after the UK recorded its highest number of weekly cases in three months – though the rise has so far not foreshadowed a significant increase in deaths.
Figures for fatalities cover deaths in all settings, including hospitals, care homes and the wider community, which have occurred 28 days after being diagnosed with the disease.
Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies show there have now been 57,300 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.
The Government added that 799 patients are in hospital, including 80 on ventilators.
In the past 24 hours, 109 patients were admitted to hospital, bringing the total number admitted during the pandemic to 134,821.
It comes after a local lockdown was said to be imminent in Hertfordshire’s Dacorum district, with a spike in the number of cases in Hemel Hempstead, Tring and Berkhamstead.
The local council appealed to residents in Dacorum to ‘pay really close attention’ to the issue, cautioning local business owners their companies could be hit hard by a second lockdown.
That followed the Government being forced into a last-minute U-turn over restrictions in Bolton and Trafford, which remained in place on Wednesday after other areas saw restrictions eased.
Meanwhile, health officials are racing to track down 200 holidaymakers who returned to the UK on a Wizz Air flight from Crete last week.
The authorities failed to tell the airline that eight passengers had tested positive for Covid-19.
