BUT IN THE SAME ONS TABLE, NORTH WARWICKSHIRE IS SEVENTH OUT OF NINE LOCAL AUTHORITIES THAT ADJOIN ONE ANOTHER

ATHERSTONE ranks alongside its big city neighbours Birmingham for the worst Covid mortality rate in nine local authorities which border one another.

The eight people who have lost their lives to the virus puts the town at a current rate of 75 deaths per 100,000, according to the Office for National Statistics.

Below are the likes of Coventry, Nuneaton, Tamworth and Solihull – only Birmingham on 78 deaths per 100,000 is above, with London heading the UK list on 87.5 per 100,000.

The figures are relevant for coronavirus deaths between March 1 and April 17.

North Warwickshire, which finds itself surrounded by no fewer than eight other adjoining Midland authorities, has recorded 24 deaths in that timescale – with an ONS mortality rate of 35 per 100,000.

The borough is seventh out of nine in terms of deaths per 100,000 in the neighbouring local council areas.

The full table of authorities, which have a boundary touching North Warwickshire, reads:

Atherstone 75 per 100,000;

Tamworth 52 per 100,000;

Lichfield 45 per 100,000;

North Warwickshire 35 per 100,000;

Hinckley and Bosworth 18 per 100,000.

The figures comes with the UK seeing two more milestones passed today as the recorded Covid numbers played "catch up" from over the weekend.

Another 649 deaths were reported for the last 24-hour period, pushing the toll to more than 30,000.

The new figure of 30,076 comes as 6,111 new cases lifted the overall number testing positive to 201,101.

The 100,000-a-day testing promise was not reached for the second successive day – 69,463 being administered.

Boris Johnson today pledged to expand testing capacity to 200,000 a day by the end of this month as the number of UK tests undertaken hit 1,448,010.

The Midlands has 21,443 recorded cases with Warwickshire adding 14 to its previous day's figures – 1,255 people have now tested positive. Neighbours Staffordshire has recorded 1,865, Leicestershire 995 and the city of Coventry 720.

Britain's death toll of 30,076 puts it ahead of the rest of Europe in terms of recorded numbers. With numbers for care facilities, hospices and at home deaths lagging behind the true figure is reportedly more than 32,000.

It passed Italy – which now has 29,684 deaths from 214,457 recorded cases – yesterday.

The US has reported 72,767 deaths in 1.24m cases.

Deaths from coronavirus worldwide stand at 261,097.

A third of those infected have now recovered – 1,273,606 out of 3,774,174 cases.

It is likely to be months before full global comparisons can be made on what constitutes a 'case' or the definition of Covid-related death.