ANOTHER two people have tested positive for coronavirus in Herefordshire in the latest figures released by Public Health England.

The number of coronavirus cases in the county has risen to 749, as of 4.07pm on July 8, up from 747 on July 7. On July 6, there had been 745 positive tests in the county.

Nationwide, a total of 286,979 people have now tested positive for coronavirus, with 630 new cases reported yesterday.

Herefordshire's published case numbers rose significantly last week after Public Health England revealed the results of tests not previously included in cases for local authority areas.

The Pillar 2 Covid-19 testing data for Herefordshire includes swab testing by commercial providers; this includes the tests undertaken at the Merton Meadow mobile testing unit.

Herefordshire Council said the publication of Pillar 2 data does not reflect a sudden increase in cases as 86% of the reported Pillar 2 cases occurred before the end of May.