Britain’s daily Covid cases have risen by 5.2 per cent on last week while deaths have dropped by almost a fifth, official figures revealed today.
Department of Health bosses recorded 37,960 positive tests, compared to 36,100 last Monday. It marks the tenth day in-a-row that infections have risen week-on-week.
Meanwhile, another 40 deaths were also posted, down slightly from the 49 lab-confirmed victims registered the week before. No UK-wide hospitalisation figures were available but data from England suggest they are falling by around 15 per cent week-on-week.
Both measures lag several weeks behind cases because of how long it can take for infected patients to become seriously ill.
Meanwhile, 48.7million Britons aged over 16 have now had at least one dose of the vaccine (89.7 per cent), while 44.7million are double-jabbed (82.4 per cent).
The figures come amid fears a fourth wave is just around the corner, with official data suggesting children have started to pass the coronavirus to their parents.
Department of Health statistics show England’s infection rates have been rising for a fortnight, following the return of millions of pupils to classrooms at the start of the month. But infections were only increasing in youngsters, bolstering evidence that the reopening of schools was to blame.
Government data now shows, however, rates have started trending upwards in 35 to 39-year-olds, 40 to 44-year-olds and 45 to 50-year-olds, suggesting that children may have taken the virus home with them.
