Ten recorded Covid-19 cases in Rutland today has prompted a further drop in the county's 7-day infection rate- pushing it back below the national average.

The 10 positive tests compares with 12 last Monday, 17 the Monday before, 28 over the weekend and ten on Friday.

The current Rutland 7-day case rate is now 281.6 cases per 100,000 of population, compared with 291.5 yesterday, 301.4 on Friday, 303.9 on Thursday, and a recent peak of 313.1 last Wednesday.

Last Monday also saw a small rise from a Sunday low of 242.9 cases per 100,000 to 248, compared with a peak of 388.2 the Sunday before that and 350.6 the following day.

England's smallest county also continues to record no fatalities, after last weekend saw its first death since April.

Whilst the Rutland 7-day rate has fluctuated a little, the England average has steadily risen in recent weeks until last Friday's peak of 540 almost a fortnight ago, which has since fallen to 282.1 on Friday, though it crept up a little to 283.9 yesterday and 286.9 today.

However, there has been a large increase in testing recently, with around a million tests a day and 7 million over a past week, though in recent days it has fallen to around 700,000 a day and 5.3M over a week.

Rutland has now recorded 2377 cases recorded since the start of the pandemic- about one case for every 18 residents. This compares with the England average of about one-in-11.

The number of deaths is now 66, about one for every 600 residents, which compares with the national average of one-in-500 residents.

Prior to the latest fatality about ten days ago, the last recorded such death in England's smallest county was on Wednesday April 28. Before that it was Thursday March 25.

Meanwhile, by contrast, in Lincolnshire, South Kesteven has recorded 43 cases of Covid 19, after 138 over the weekend.

The number has further increased the district's 7-day infection rate to its highest in 2 weeks.

Today's 43 cases compares with 85 on Friday, 48 on Thursday, 64 on Wednesday and 41 on Tuesday.

It also compares with last Monday's 58 positive tests and 35 the Monday before.

The 7-day rate for South Kesteven is now 277.2 cases per 100,000, compared with 259.7 yesterday, 248.6 on Friday, 215.5 last Monday and 301.9 the Monday before.

This compares with the England average of 286.9, which has increased slightly from 283.9 yesterday and a low of 282.1 on Friday.

Overall, there have been 9884 cases in South Kesteven since the start of the pandemic- equivalent to about one for about 15 residents in the district, which compares to the England average of one-in-11.

The number of fatalities stands at 272, after increasing one on Tuesday, which followed on from a further fatality last weekend.

Prior to those cases, the only other recent cases of people dying with Covid in South Kesteven were on May 5 and March 25.

This means the district has recorded 4 deaths in just over 4 months.

Overall, today, there have been 518 cases of coronavirus confirmed in Greater Lincolnshire, as national reports suggest vaccine hesitancy is falling.

The government's COVID-19 dashboard on Monday reported 331 new cases in Lincolnshire, 83 in North East Lincolnshire and 104 in North Lincolnshire. The total 518 figure is -1.33% lower than last Monday's 525 cases.

Government figures also showed no further updates to its death data, however NHS figures on Monday confirmed two further deaths, with one at United Lincolnshire Hospitals Trust and one at Northern Lincolnshire and Goole Hospitals Trust.

Nationally, cases increased by 25,161 to 6,094,243 while deaths rose by 37 to a total of 130,357 on Monday.

In national news, the Office for National Statistics has said adults from all English regions have become increasingly likely to accept the coronavirus vaccine.

In London, where hesitancy is highest, the number of adults saying they wouldn't take the jab fell from 11% to 7%.

The survey asked a total of 15,433 people aged 16 and above about their thoughts.

In 16-17-year-olds, who were allowed to get the jab from last week, the figure had gone from 14% to 11%, while 18-21-year-olds went from 9% to 5% and 22-25-year-olds saw a drop from 10% to 9%.

However, Lincoln's infection rate – which is mainly highest around younger people – has continued to increase, today hitting 669.7, and keeping it top nationally.

As of last Thursday's local vaccine data, 88% of people had received their first jab and 74% their second.

However, one-in-four people under the age of 30 had still not had their first dose.

Nationally, more than 47 million people (around 90% of UK adults) have had their first dose, while 39.4 million people (75%) have had their second.