WINCHESTER has again seen no new cases of coronavirus in the last 24 hours.

The increase in coronavirus cases in Hampshire has been accelerating in recent weeks but the figure for the Winchester City Council district remains at 540, with an infection rate of 432.5 people in every 100,000.

Meanwhile 17 new cases of have been reported in Hampshire in the last 24 hours.

There has been one new death from Covid-19 in the last 24 hours in Hampshire, with a patient death reported in Portsmouth. No further details are available.

In the Hampshire County Council area as of 4pm today the number of new infections has increased by 17 to 5,796 lab-confirmed cases of the virus, up from 5,779 on Tuesday.

Nationally 37 deaths have again reported in the UK, bringing the total number of confirmed reported deaths to 41,862, according to the ONS website updated this afternoon.

The rate of infection in Hampshire stands at 419.2 cases per 100,000 people, far lower than the England average, shown this afternoon as 627.0.

Today there have now been 409,729 cases of the virus across the UK. This is an increase of 6,178 in the last 24 hours.

The number of deaths in Hampshire hospitals remains at 611. The figure for fatal cases at the Hampshire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust, which includes the Royal Hampshire County Hospital in Winchester, is 162. For the other local county trusts, Portsmouth Hospital NHS Trust, 232; Solent NHS Trust, 2; Southern Health NHS Foundation Trust, 17; University Southampton NHS Foundation Trust, 199.

The R number in the south-east is between 1.1 and 1.4 meaning that on average every 10 people infected will infect between 11 and 14 other people.

The growth rate in the south east is between +3% and +7% which means the number of new infections is growing by 3% to 7% every day.

Some 14 patients were admitted to hospital with coronavirus on Monday in the south-east region that includes Hampshire. There are 89 with the condition in hospital today, with seven on ventilators, up two, according to the ONS.

Total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic of people who had had a positive test result for Covid-19 and died within 28 days of the first positive test, the figures are Hampshire 725, Portsmouth 78 and Southampton 123.

Other coronavirus news:

A FURTHER 11 schools across Hampshire now confirmed coronavirus cases, including the Westgate secondary in Winchester and Preston Candover Primary.

Pupils, teachers and staff are being affected across the county with infant, junior and senior schools sending home bubbles of pupils.

Today Hampshire County Council has confirmed that 11 schools have recorded Covid cases since Friday, September 18.

Read more here

WINCHESTER Guildhall is set to be used as a temporary courtroom.

The Lord Chancellor announced eight new 'Nightingale' courts across the UK to help tackle the impact of Covid-19 on the justice system, with one in Winchester.

Read more here

PUBS in England must close at 10pm from tomorrow – a situation which is "completely foreign" to landlords.

Bars, restaurants and other hospitality venues will also have to follow this rule, and will be restricted by law to table service only.

This was announced by Boris Johnson and is expected to be in place for around six months.

Clive Mansell, landlord of the Fulflood Arms in Winchester, said that staff do not want to "be like policemen or teachers".

Read more here

CIVIC chiefs fear the pandemic could have a “catastrophic effect” on residents as figures revealed that the crisis could cost Hampshire County Council more than £200m.

It is expected to foot a £210m coronavirus bill by 2023. The figure includes the total of predicted costs, losses and pressures.

According to the authority, £102m is currently unfunded and a further £80m will need to be saved by April 2023.

Read more here