THE number of new cases of coronavirus in Essex has risen by more than 200 again in the past 24 hours.

Today's update from Public Health England shows 268 positive tests were carried out between 4pm Saturday and 4pm Sunday.

The majority of cases were in the Essex County Council region which saw the overall number of cases rise by 200 to 9,533.

Another 22 cases have been recorded in Southend, which saw its total rise to 1,151.

There were 46 more positive tests confirmed in Thurrock meanwhile, which has seen 1,062 cases since the pandemic began.

Today's total means there have been nearly 500 more cases announced in Essex by Public Health England over the weekend.

A further 16,982 cases of Covid-19 have been recorded across the UK in the past 24 hours, taking the overall total to 722,409.

Another coronavirus related death was confirmed in the east of England by the NHS on Sunday, but none were in Essex.