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CORONAVIRUS fatalities in the UK have risen to 33,614 after 428 more deaths were recorded the last 24 hours.

A total of 233,151 people have now tested positive for Covid-19 across Britain - up 3,446 cases from yesterday.

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 Commuters have been asked to wear mask while on public transport
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Commuters have been asked to wear mask while on public transportCredit: Reuters

Today's death toll refers to those who have died in all settings - including care homes, hospices and the wider community.

The latest rise in deaths confirmed by the Department of Health is smaller than it was yesterday, when 494 more deaths were logged.

It's the lowest number of deaths recorded on Thursday in the UK for the last seven weeks.

Today's figure is also half the number of deaths recorded each day during the peak of the outbreak.

In England, the total number of Covid-19 deaths rose to 24,159 today - up 207 from yesterday.

Patients were aged between 33 and 100 years old, including a healthy 35 year old.

In Scotland, a total of 2,007 patients have died after testing positive for coronavirus - up by 34 from yesterday.

In Wales, 10 more deaths were recorded overnight, bringing the overall tally there to 1,164.

There have been five more deaths in Northern Ireland, bringing their death toll to 454.


It comes as:


New analysis published this week, however, suggests the overall death toll from the virus is far higher - and has already passed 40,000.

The alternative toll, tallied up by the Office for National Statistics, refers to all deaths where Covid-19 was mentioned on death certificates this year until the beginning of May, including suspected cases.

It comes as pensioners are 34 times more likely to die of the coronavirus than their younger counterparts, new figures have shown.

The Office for National Statistics claims most victims of the Covid-19 crisis have been in the over-65s category, accounting for 30,978 fatalities.

Around 12 per cent of Covid-19 deaths have occurred in those who are under the age of 65, accounting for 4,066 deaths.

When it comes to people in the under-65 category, those who are still of a working age, the figures revealed that there have been 8.4 deaths per 100,000 people.

This is in contrast to the over-65 group where there have been 286 deaths per 100,000.

Meanwhile the first coronavirus antibody test that could help ease lockdown in the UK has been given the go-ahead by Public Health England.

No10 is now keen to get its hands on "as many of these as possible" after the potentially game-changing kit was developed by Swiss healthcare company Roche.

The test supports the detection of antibodies in patients who have been exposed to coronavirus and will therefore be immune from catching the bug again.

It will be instrumental in the UK lifting strict lockdown measures and allow people to return to work - as the government is grappling with how the UK economy is on course for a huge recession.

Yesterday it was revealed national economic growth slumped by a massive 5.8 per cent in just March alone.

Overall, the UK economy contracted by 2 per cent in the first three months of 2020.

Boris Johnson has been warned that raising taxes could harm the coronavirus "bounce back" and could make a recession even worse.

It comes after a leaked Treasury document discussed how to raise extra cash to balance the books - with options for income tax hikes, a public sector pay freeze, or the end of the triple lock on pensions.

Tax changes are still on the table, and Rishi Sunak refused to rule it out yesterday.

The Treasury has predicted that the pandemic will cost the exchequer £300 billion this year.

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Ministers buying up 'as many antibody tests as possible' to roll out to NHS and public
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