There were 260,691 positive cases in the UK in the week ending March 3, a 2 per cent increase on the week before.
Some 186 of the UK’s local authority areas, 49 per cent, saw cases rise in the past week, with East Ayrshire in Scotland seeing a surge of 83.4 per cent.
The lifting of many restrictions, waning effectiveness of boosters and the spread of the highly contagious ‘stealth Omicron’ variant have all been touted as potential reasons for rising infection rates.
At neighbourhood level, Covid-19 case rates have been published for the week to March 3.
A message from Jon Ball, your Chad Editor: Enjoy our headlines with fewer distractions and sign up to a digital subscription today - fewer ads, faster load times and all of the stories you need. Your support for our journalism means we can continue supporting our communities for generations to come. Visit chad.co.uk/subscriptions
1 / 10