Chesterfield Royal Hospital is almost Covid-free

Shortly after 11am on Tuesday, hospital staff were looking after one patient with a positive diagnosis of coronavirus.

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A spokesperson for the Royal said the individual was being treated by critical care teams.

The number of deaths linked to Covid-19 at the trust remains at 441.

At one point in January, the hospital was treating nearly 200 patients with the virus.

Latest figures show 67 per cent of all adults in Derbyshire – 562,835 people – have now received at least one dose of a Covid-19 vaccination.

Lockdown restrictions were eased last week, meaning pubs, bars and restaurants are now allowed to serve customers in outdoor areas.

It is hoped they will be able to resume trade indoors on May 17 under the Government’s road map out of lockdown.

Pauline Latham, Tory MP for Mid-Derbyshire, has this week urged the Government to end restrictions on hospitality businesses now so they can have have indoor service.

She said: “We've been told regularly that we are following the data, not the dates, but sadly, it seems to be the other way around.

“In Derbyshire, there are huge swathes of villages and towns that have no Covid whatsoever – and that's repeated over all sorts of areas of the country.”

She added: “We do need to start getting businesses back to normal.

“We need to get hospitality businesses fully functioning and using their indoor spaces."

For more information about the coronavirus restrictions still in place, visit www.gov.uk/guidance/covid-19-coronavirus-restrictions-what-you-can-and-cannot-do.

Members of the public are also reminded they can order free rapid Covid-19 tests to use at home via /www.gov.uk/order-coronavirus-rapid-lateral-flow-tests.

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A message from Phil Bramley, Derbyshire Times editor

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