UK coronavirus death toll rises by 282 to 36,675

New daily death total is lowest weekday figure since 26 March

A further 282 people have died from coronavirus in the UK, the government has announced at its daily press conference.

The latest figures bring the total death toll from Covid-19 to 36,675, which includes deaths in hospitals and in the community, such as care homes.

After detailing the newest numbers, the transport secretary Grant Shapps said: “This is not just a list of statistics of course, but a devastating reminder of the cruelty of coronavirus. Our thoughts are with the friends and families of the victims.”

The figures released now – which count those who died on Friday – represent the lowest weekday number of deaths since 26 March.

Deaths reported from coronavirus on Saturdays and Sundays tend to be lower than weekdays due to delays in collating the data.

He also revealed figures on testing for coronavirus. A total of 3.3m tests have now been carried out across the four nations of the UK, including 116,585 yesterday.

So far, 257,000 people have tested positive, an increase of 2,959 from yesterday’s figure.

Some 9,300 people are currently in hospital being treated for Covid-19, a fall of 11 per cent from the previous week.

While the government has been updating the death toll each day of those who die from coronavirus, experts believe the real impact of the pandemic is best captured by looking at how many more people have died from all causes than would be expected compared to previous years.

These excess death statistics, which take longer to be captured and were last updated earlier this month, suggest the real death toll is already more than 50,000.