The UK’s official coronavirus death toll has increased to 41,698 after just 36 more fatalities were reported in 24 hours the lowest daily rise during the lockdown.
However, the low figure should be treated with some caution as many deaths on Saturdays and Sundays are not counted until Tuesday at the earliest due to a weekend reporting lag.
The previous lockdown low of 55 was announced last Monday.
The daily increase of 36 is the lowest on a Sunday since 35 deaths were reported on March 22, two days before the lockdown began.
On recent Sundays, the toll climbed by 77 on June 7, 115 on May 31, 441 on May 24, 170 on May 17 and 269 on May 10.
The highest rise on a Sunday came on April 12, when 686 deaths were announced at the peak of the outbreak.
The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said 41,698 people had died in hospitals, care homes and the wider community after testing positive for coronavirus in the UK as of 5pm on Saturday, up by 36 from 41,662 the day before.
The Government figures do not include all deaths involving Covid-19 across the UK, which is thought to have passed 52,000.
The DHSC also said in the 24-hour period up to 9am on Sunday, 144,865 tests were carried out or dispatched, with 1,514 positive results.
Overall, a total of 6,772,602 tests have been carried out and 295,889 cases have been confirmed positive. The figure for the number of people tested has been “temporarily paused to ensure consistent reporting” across all methods of testing.
Earlier, the UK’s hospital death toll climbed by 31, the lowest single-day increase during the lockdown.
NHS England announced 27 more hospital deaths, taking the country’s total to 27,954. The latest victims were aged between 50 and 101 years old. Two patients (aged between 77 and 96) had no known underlying health conditions.
Public Health Wales said a further three people had died after testing positive for Covid-19, taking the total number of deaths to 1,444, while the total number of cases increased by 39 to 14,742.
In Scotland, a total of 2,448 patients have died after testing positive for coronavirus, up by one from 2,447 on Saturday.
New statistics show that 15,755 people have tested positive for the virus north of the border, up by 25 from 15,730 the previous day.