UK coronavirus death toll rises to 30,615
Fatality number rises by 539 while government continues to fail to meet 100,000 tests a day target
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Your support makes all the difference.The UK's coronavirus death toll has risen by 30,615, the foreign secretary Dominic Raab has confirmed.
Speaking at the government’s daily briefing from Downing Street, Mr Raab said the number of fatalities had increased by 539 across a 24 hour period.
The toll incorporates deaths in all settings - including those who have passed away in hospitals as well as those who have died in care homes and in the community.
He added that the R rate - or the rate of reproduction for the virus - remained below one, settling between 0.5 and 0.9.
UK national statistician Sir Ian Diamond, asked about the R rate, said there will be "some variation" around the country - but noted on the whole the number was incrementally rising. He added: "The consensus is it's below one everywhere, lowest probably in London but certainly some variation across the different regions."
However Mr Raab made clear the virus "is not beaten yet" while confirming Boris Johnson will use an address on Sunday to set out the "roadmap" to easing the lockdown.
Mr Raab said: "This weekend the Prime Minister will set out the next steps which we can responsibly take over the following weeks, guided by the scientific advice and mindful - as we said right from the word go - of taking the right decisions at the right time.
"Now we can start setting out how we will live and work whilst maintaining the necessary social distancing rules, we can also be clear about those measures which are still necessary to prevent a second peak."
Meanwhile the number of tests conducted across the period stood at 86,583 - the latest in a continued decline since the government announced it had reached its goal to carry out 100,000 a day by the end of last week.
Dr Jenny Harries, the deputy chief medical officer, explained the reduced figures by saying there had been "a bit of a technical hitch in the lab across the weekend".
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