UPDATE: Bedford records eight new cases of coronavirus in 24 hours

As of today (September 29), Bedford has recorded eight new cases, with a total of 1,647 people now diagnosed with the deadly virus, according to the latest figures from Public Health England.

There was one death recorded in the town - bringing the total to 171 deaths.

Central Bedfordshire has two new cases, with a total of 1,554 and Luton has 17, with a new total of 2,080.

Nationally, the death toll has been 'recalculated' by officials. The new count is based on a new definition of who has died from Covid-19.

Previously, people in England who died at any stage following a positive test, regardless of the cause of their death, were counted in the figures.

However, there is now a cut off point of 28 days from the first laboratory-confirmed positive COVID test.

Meanwhile, Buckinghamshire has 2,283 cases, Hertfordshire has 5,890 and Milton Keynes has 1,150 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 has risen by 7,143 and now stands at 439,013, The number of deaths has risen by 71 to 42,072.

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