Coronavirus: Highest daily total as more than 7,100 new cases reported

The total number of infections now stands at 446,156

The UK has reported its largest daily tally for coronavirus infections, after the government said around 7,100 more people had tested positive for the virus.

There had been a further 7,143 lab-confirmed cases of Covid-19 as of 9am on Tuesday, according to government data. It is the highest daily figure for cases to date. 

Experts have previously warned that describing the daily figure as a record could be "misleading" as it is not clear how many people were actually infected during the height of the first wave due to a lack of community testing at the time.

Last week, the UK added daily figures to its total number of infections higher than any reported before. 

The 7,143 new infections reported on Tuesday brought the UK’s case total to 446,156.

The government also said a further 71 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Tuesday. This took the total death toll to 42,072.

Separate figures published by the UK's statistics agencies show there have now been nearly 57,900 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.

Further restrictions have been brought in across the UK amid the surge in cases, including expanded rules over masks in England and a ban on visiting other households in Scotland. 

New local regulations in Northumberland, Newcastle, Gateshead, North and South Tyneside, Sunderland and County Durham came into force at midnight and will see fines imposed if people mix with others from outside their household or bubble in indoor settings, including pubs and restaurants.

The Welsh Government said four local authority areas in North Wales will be placed under local lockdowns. Restrictions will be introduced in Denbighshire, Flintshire, Conwy and Wrexham from 6pm on Thursday to help control the spread of the virus. The announcement on Tuesday evening will affect around 504,000 people and will bring the number of people in Wales under lockdown to more than 2.3 million.

Additional reporting by Press Association