Nine more cases of coronavirus have been recorded-two in the Dorset Council area and seven in the east of the county.

Public Health England figures show that 748 people in the Dorset Council area had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 by 9am on Wednesday, up from 746 the same time on Tuesday.

A total 1,113 people had been confirmed as testing positive in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP), up from 1,106 The health body is now including Pillar 2 tests – those carried out by commercial partners – alongside Pillar 1 tests, which are analysed in NHS or PHE laboratories and which made up the first stage of the Government's mass testing programme.

The rate of infection in Dorset now stands at 198 cases per 100,000 people and 282 in BCP, far lower than the England average of 627.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 6,178 over the period, to 409,729.

Dorset's cases were among the 16,817 recorded across the South West, a figure which rose by 169 over the period.

Cumulative case counts include patients who are currently unwell, have recovered and those that have died.