Britain records 17,272 new Covid cases with 231 more deaths

Britain has recorded a further 17,272 coronavirus cases today – marking a 42 per cent rise on last Sunday’s total.

The figure – a rise of more than 5,000 cases on the 12,155 reported this time last week – comes on the first weekend since England’s nation-wide lockdown was lifted.

As of Wednesday, all non-essential shops reopened under the tier system and Britons in Tiers one and two were able to return to cafes, pubs and restaurants.

Official figures released today also revealed a further 231 people have died after testing positive for Covid-19 – a 7.4 per cent rise on the 215 deaths reported last Sunday.

Today’s figures bring the UK death total to 61,245, up from yesterday’s figure of 61,014.

The number of new infections over the last seven days stands at 105,918 – which is a drop of 647 (0.6%) from the seven days before that – November 23 to November 29.  

The figure for deaths over the last seven days is now 3,002, a drop of 221 (6.9%) from the previous week. 

Separate regional figures had revealed a further 1,916 cases of coronavirus in Wales. Public Health Wales reported another 14 deaths, taking the total in Wales since the start of the pandemic to 2,709.

Another 11 people have died with Covid-19 in Northern Ireland, the Department of Health has said. A further 419 people tested positive for the virus. 

It comes ahead of the vaccine programme, which starts on Tuesday. 

Britain has recorded a further 17,272 coronavirus cases today – marking a 42 per cent rise on last Sunday’s total

Official figures released today also revealed a further 231 people have died after testing positive for Covid-19 – a 7.4 per cent rise on the 215 deaths reported last Sunday

A further 231 coronavirus deaths have been recorded today with 17,272 new daily cases – a sharp increase on last Sunday’s 12,155 new cases (pictured: training in the Covid-19 Vaccination Clinic at the University Hospital in Coventry)

With 357 million doses ordered by the Government – and 800,000 already being sent by Pfizer – it’s hoped 10 million doses will be here by the year’s end. NHS staff will invite people for jabs by text or phone. 

NHS England said NHS staff were working through the weekend to prepare for the launch of the programme. 

Initially, they will be given at 50 NHS hubs, then by some GP-led primary care networks from December 14.

Over-80s and care home staff will be the first to receive the jab under the vaccination programme – dubbed Operation Courageous.

Hospitals have specialist freezers capable of storing the vaccine, and are able to inject hundreds of people in a short space of time, without having to move doses.

When ready for injection, vials are warmed to room temperature over a two-hour period, diluted and drawn into needles, and then teams have six hours in which to vaccinate patients.

A graphic demonstrates the order of priority in which the vaccine will be rolled out, starting with residents in care homes

A graphic shows how patients will get the jab, including who will provide it and how long it will grant immunity from Covid-19

A graphic shows where in the country the 50 NHS hubs, special jab centres and GP clinics offering the vaccine next week are located

Yesterday the Government said an additional 397 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Saturday, falling by 17 per cent.

Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies for deaths where Covid-19 has been mentioned on the death certificate, together with additional data on deaths that have occurred in recent days, showed there have now been 74,000 deaths involving Covid-19 in the UK. 

The worst of Britain’s resurgence of Covid may well be over, as SAGE has revealed the R rate has fallen for the fourth week in a row and could now be as low as 0.8. 

No10’s scientific advisory panel claimed outbreaks were shrinking in every part of the country. 

And Office for National Statistics data showed the number of daily coronavirus infections in England plummeted by almost half last month, from 47,700 per day to 25,700 in the week ending November 28, in more proof that the disease has began to fade away. 

The report estimated that a total of 521,300 people were carrying the virus in England on November 28, down from 665,000 just two weeks earlier. 

Separate infection estimates produced by the Covid Symptom Study say there are just 15,845 people developing symptoms of coronavirus each day in England, down from a peak of 44,000 at the end of October. 

Although the numbers are different to those made by the ONS, they illustrate the same downward trend.