UK Covid deaths rise by 136 as a further 15,650 people test positive

A woman in a face mask in London, after Prime Minister Boris Johnson set out a new three-tier system of alert levels for England following rising coronavirus cases and hospital admissions.
A woman in a face covering crossing Westminster Bridge. Credit: PA

Coronavirus cases in the UK has risen by a further 15,650 as of 9am Friday, the government has said.

The latest lab-confirmed figures bring the total number of cases in the UK to 689,257.

A further 136 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19, as of Friday, bringing the the UK total to 43,429.

Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies show there have now been 58,500 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.

There are currently 4,647 Covid-19 patients in hospital in England on Friday, up from 3,090 a week ago, while 482 were in ventilation beds, up from 367 a week ago.

A total of 706 patients with confirmed Covid-19 were admitted to hospitals in England on Wednesday, compared with 491 a week earlier.

A further 82 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in hospital in England, bringing the total number of confirmed deaths reported in hospitals to 30,825.

In Scotland, 601 Covid-19 patients were in hospital as of Thursday, up from 377 a week earlier, with 51 in ventilation beds, up from 31 a week earlier.

A further nine people have died in Scotland and 1196 new cases have been confirmed.

In Wales, 414 Covid-19 patients were in hospital as of Thursday, up from 284 a week earlier, with 30 in ventilation beds, up from 26 a week earlier.

Public Health Wales said five further deaths had been reported, with the total number of deaths since the beginning of the pandemic rising to 1,703. There have been a further 979 cases of Covid-19 diagnosed in Wales, bringing the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 34,005.

In Northern Ireland, 201 Covid-19 patients were in hospital as of Wednesday, up from 163 a week earlier, with 17 in ventilation beds as of Thursday, up from 11 a week earlier.

There were two deaths in the nation, with 1,299 new cases being reported.

Data on patients with Covid-19 is not comparable across the UK due to differences in the way the figures are reported.