Cases rise again in town

Today (July 7), Bedford recorded 23 new cases with a total of 1,266 people now diagnosed with the deadly virus, according to the latest figures from Public Health England.

There were, however, no deaths recorded at Bedford Hospital.

In Central Bedfordshire, there are six new cases with a total of 1,219, while Luton has recorded two new cases and has a total of 1,379.

Meanwhile, Buckinghamshire has a total of 1,673 cases, Hertfordshire has 4,097 and Milton Keynes are 853.

Previous data shared by Public Health England relied solely on Pillar 1 (testing from Public Health England and NHS Hospital Trusts), but as of Thursday, July 2, the information includes Pillar 2 (non-clinical and commercial testing).

It has seen a radical overhaul of how coronavirus infection data is presented across the country, with hundreds of new cases emerging in individual authorities.

The new figures are recorded between 5pm the previous day to 5pm.

Nationally, the number of coronavirus cases now stands at 286,349. The number of deaths has been recorded as 44,391.