THE number of coronavirus cases in the Braintree district has increased by more than 150 in the last 24 hours.

A total of 22,344 people had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated yesterday (December 2) – up by 153 from 22,191 on Wednesday.

The rate of infection in Braintree now stands at 14,595 cases per 100,000 people, lower than the England average of 15,489.

There were no new coronavirus deaths recorded in the latest 24-hour period in the district, where the death toll since the pandemic started is 416.

They are among 14,695 deaths recorded across the East of England.

The latest figures show 107,694 people in the district had received both jabs by December 1 – 79 per cent of those aged 12 and over.

Across England, 81 per cent of people aged 12 and above had received a second dose of the jab.