A TOTAL of 15 people tested positive for coronavirus in Dorset in the latest 24-hour period recorded by health officials.

Public Health England figures show that 723 people had been confirmed as testing positive for Covid-19 by 9am today (Tuesday) in Dorset, up by six from 717 the same time on Monday.

1,036 people had been confirmed as testing positive  in Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole, (BCP) up by nine from 1,027.

The rate of infection in Dorset now stands at 191 cases per 100,000 people and 262 in the BCP area, far lower than the England average of 574.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 3,103 over the period, to 374,228.

​Dorset's cases were among the 15,947 recorded across the South West, a figure which rose by 81 over the period.

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.

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