EVENING UPDATE: More than 2,800 people test positive in Bedford as Government changes way it records cases again

As of last night (January 31), Bedford recorded 2,808 cases, with a total of 50,705 people now diagnosed with the virus, according to the latest figures from Public Health England

The reason behind the giant leap is the Government has decided to change the way it records Covid cases again.

According to its website: "Figures for first episodes (equivalent to the pre-31 January 2022 case definition) and possible reinfections by specimen date have been added for England plus regions and local authorities within England."

Central Bedfordshire recorded 3,711 cases, with a new total of 75,672, while Luton has 4,606, taking the total to 64,563.

There were two deaths in Bedford (577), one in Central Bedfordshire (698) and none in Luton (633).

In Bedford Hospital and Luton & Dunstable Hospital, 181 are currently being treated in hospital and six patients are on ventilation beds.

There is no further breakdown between the two hospitals.

Meanwhile, Buckinghamshire now has 139,354 cases of Covid, Hertfordshire has 316,416 and Milton Keynes has 77,969 cases.

Nationally, the number of coronavirus cases has risen by 92,368 and now stands at 17,315,893. There were 51 deaths, bringing the total to 155,754.

The new figures unfortunately don't include the number of patients who have recovered from Covid-19.

The figures come from the Government website which is available for the public to view here