Responding to the latest figures from NHS Test and Trace, the director of policy and strategy of NHS Providers, Miriam Deakin, said:

"This is the first time in six weeks that we have seen a decrease in the number of confirmed positive cases of COVID-19, with 15% fewer cases reported than the previous week.

"It is essential that positive cases are transferred to the Test and Trace system as quickly as possible, and while it is encouraging that the backlog of cases from previous weeks is now being caught up, the system must improve the amount of time it takes to begin the process in the first instance.

"The amount of time taken for test results to be returned also showed some improvements this week, but still remains very low with only 26% of all Pillar 2 tests returned within 24 hours. That is not good enough.

"While there are positives to take away from this data, there is absolutely no room for complacency."