Scotland records highest number of daily coronavirus cases since pandemic began

Updated

Watch: Sturgeon announces record positive Covid test numbers

A total of 486 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Scotland in the past 24 hours – the highest number of cases the country has recorded in a single day.

Speaking at the Scottish government’s daily briefing, Nicola Sturgeon said two more people had also died with COVID-19, bringing the total number of fatalities to 2,508.

The first minister said the numbers were a “real cause of concern”.

Some 25,495 people have now tested positive in Scotland.

Members of the public wearing face masks walk passed a sign in a bank window in Glasgow. (Photo by Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty Images)
Scotland has recorded the highest number of daily coronavirus cases since the pandemic began. (Getty)

Sturgeon has banned households across Scotland from visiting each other from Wednesday – a rule that goes further than any of the new measures in England announced by Boris Johnson.

She cited data suggesting the ban – which already applied in the west of Scotland – had reduced the spread of the virus, and that extending it to the rest of the country could reduce transmission.

Of the new cases, 224 are in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, 107 are in Lanarkshire and 57 are in Lothian.

Watch: What are the rules on household visits in Scotland?

There are 83 people in hospital confirmed to have the virus, up by 10 in 24 hours.

Of these patients, 10 were said to be in intensive care – no change on Tuesday.

The number of cases at the start of the pandemic could have been significantly higher, but many may have not been caught because the level of testing was much lower.

A member of the public wearing a face mask walks passed art work on a wall in Glasgow. (Photo by Andrew Milligan/PA Images via Getty Images)
Of the new cases, 224 are in Greater Glasgow and Clyde. (Getty)

Sturgeon warned students returning to university they had an increased risk of transmitting the virus and they should follow rules, including self-isolation, if required to.

She said the government would strengthen its guidance if necessary.

Sturgeon said: "But – and this is in no way shape or form the fault of students, and I want to be very clear about that – but we do know that student life, the characteristics of student life present risks of transmitting the virus."

The first minister said authorities needed to do everything they could to mitigate against those risks while allowing, as far as possible, students to have the experience of college and university.

Watch: Nicola Sturgeon believes England’s restrictions ‘will not be sufficient’

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