ALMOST 55,000 people have tested positive for coronavirus in Berkshire in total, according to the latest figures.

Public Health England has recorded 85 lab-confirmed cases in the past 24 hours in areas including Reading, Bracknell, Wokingham, West Berkshire, Slough, and Windsor and Maidenhead.

These figures, correct as of 4pm on Thursday, March 11, bring the county's lab-confirmed positive Covid-19 tests total to 50,344.

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The local breakdown for the past 24 hours as follows:

  • Reading - 7 cases, 10,576 total
  • Bracknell - 11 cases, 6,881 total
  • Wokingham - 11 cases, 7,942 total
  • West Berkshire - 7 cases, 6,159 total
  • Slough - 31 cases, 14,796 total
  • Windsor and Maidenhead - 18 cases, 8,114 total

The latest seven-day rate per 100,000 people locally are as follows:

  • Reading - 370.9 (Compared to 370.9 on Feb 4)
  • Bracknell - 238.3 (Compared to 238.3 on Feb 4)
  • Wokingham - 191.7 (Compared to 191.7 on Feb 4)
  • West Berkshire - 179.9 (Compared to 179.9 on Feb 4)
  • Slough - 482.8 (Compared to 482.8 on Feb 4)
  • Windsor and Maidenhead - 186.2 (Compared to 186.2 on Feb 4)

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There have now been 4,241,677 cases of Covid-19 across the UK as of Thursday, March 11, at 4pm - a daily increase of 6,753 cases.

In today's national coronavirus news:

The UK medicines regulator is urging people to continue having the Oxford/AstraZeneca Covid-19 vaccine, after a growing number of countries suspended its rollout over fears about blood clots.

Denmark, Norway and Iceland said they were temporarily halting all AstraZeneca vaccinations to investigate reports of blood clots among people who have had the jab.

Italy also followed Austria, Estonia, Latvia, Luxembourg and Lithuania in banning jabs with one particular batch of one million AstraZeneca vaccines, which was sent to 17 countries.

The UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said there was no evidence to suggest the vaccine caused blood clot problems, and said people should still get their Covid-19 vaccine when asked to do so.

The European Medicines Agency (EMA) also backed the jab's safety and said there had been just 22 reports of blood clots among more than three million people given the vaccine across Europe.

Earlier this week, the EMA reported that one person in Austria was diagnosed with blood clots and died 10 days after vaccination, but stressed there was "currently no indication that vaccination has caused these conditions".

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Another person was admitted to hospital with pulmonary embolism (blockage in arteries in the lungs) after being vaccinated.

Dr Phil Bryan, MHRA vaccines safety lead in the UK, said: "Blood clots can occur naturally and are not uncommon.

"More than 11 million doses of the Covid-19 AstraZeneca vaccine have now been administered across the UK.

"Reports of blood clots received so far are not greater than the number that would have occurred naturally in the vaccinated population."