UPDATE: Bedford has five new cases of coronavirus in 24 hours

As of today (July 29), Bedford has recorded five new cases, with a total of 1,336 people now diagnosed with the deadly virus, according to the latest figures from Public Health England.

Central Bedfordshire also has two new cases, with a total of 1,268 and Luton has seven new cases, with a new total of 1,552.

Meanwhile, Buckinghamshire has 1,735 cases, Hertfordshire has 4,262 and Milton Keynes has 873 cases.

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 301,455. The number of deaths has been recorded as 45,961.

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