UK Covid deaths rise by 12 after first zero day since pandemic began and daily cases top 4,000

THE UK has recorded 12 deaths from Covid after the first day zero deaths were recorded since the pandemic began.

The Government also said there had been a further 4,330 confirmed cases in the UK.

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The number of cases is the highest for two months, since April 1.

Separate figures published by the Office for National Statistics show there have now been 153,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.

Yesterday’s figure of zero deaths however, may be due to a delay in the recording caused by the three-day bank holiday weekend.

While there has been an upward trend in the number of cases in recent days the ongoing vaccine rollout has brought hope to the UK despite rising cases of the Indian variant of Covid.

The news comes after it was revealed 75 per cent of Brits have now had a first dose of a jab.

A total of 39,585,665 first doses have now been delivered since the vaccination roll-out began almost six months ago - a rise of 108,507 on the previous day.

This is the equivalent of 75.2 per cent of all people aged 18 and over.

Figures up to June 1 shows that of the 65,658,949 jabs given in the UK so far.

Some 26,073,284 were second doses, an increase of 338,565, on the day before.

In a speech today, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said vaccine confidence in the UK has been "sky high".

It comes amid continuing debate over whether the final stages of unlocking restrictions in England can go ahead later this month due to concerns over the spread of the Indian variant.

He said: "The Covid vaccine after all is a very special thing but taking it has become the absolutely normal thing to do, and that's been critical to this positivity."

Commenting on the vaccine milestone, Mr Hancock said: "I am incredibly pleased that over three quarters of UK adults have had their first dose. This is an incredible step forward in the largest and most successful vaccination programme in our history.

“Although we’ve come so far in less than six months since the world’s first authorised jab was given in the UK, our vital work is not done. We must redouble our efforts on the second dose to ensure as many people as possible have maximum protection.

“We’ve brought forward appointments from 12 to 8 weeks for a second dose, and all over 30s are now eligible for the jab. I encourage everyone to come forward when the offer comes and play a part in getting us back to normality.”

Boris Johnson still sees nothing in the data to suggest the plan to end all legal lockdown restrictions in England on June 21 will need to be delayed, Downing Street has suggested.

Asked about the Prime Minister's plans amid warnings over the spread of the Indian variant, a No 10 spokesman said: "The Prime Minister has said on a number of occasions that we haven't seen anything in the data but we will continue to look at the data, we will continue to look at the latest scientific evidence as we move through June towards June 21."