NHS Highland extends run without fresh positive tests for Covid-19 to three days; news comes as Scotland as a whole recorded just three further confirmed cases in past 24 hours

ONLY three positive tests for Covid-19 were recorded across the whole of Scotland in the past 24 hours – and no further deaths from the virus have occurred for six days.

News of the figures was released in the Scottish Government's daily update at 2pm.

They also revealed that NHS Highland has now gone 72 hours since it last reported a positive test for the coronavirus. Its overall number of cases since the start of the outbreak remained unchanged on 377.

And most other health boards in the north of the country also continued their runs without fresh cases. Orkney, Shetland, Eileanan Siar and NHS Tayside all added no new cases of Covid-19 to their running tallies in the past 24 hours.

NHS Grampian did record one fresh positive test, however, taking its overall number of confirmed cases since the start of the pandemic to 1432. Despite that, the number of people receiving treatment in its various hospital sites last night fell three to 29.

That fall was also seen on a national level, with the number of hospital cases of the virus last night standing at 329 ­– down nine on the previous day. The number of Covid-19 patients in intensive care also fell from three to two.

However, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has urged the public not to be complacent, as the country's hospitality and tourism sector prepares to reopen on Wednesday.

Nationally there have been 18.365 positive tests for the coronavirus since the start of the pandemic, and 2490 of those people have died from the illness.

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