New government data shows only tiny percentage of people in Milton Keynes have officially had Covid-19

Previously the figures released daily by the government have not included many of the positive tests carried out at the city's coronavirus testing centre or in the community.

They only gave date on Pillar 1 one tests, which are swabs analysed in NHS and hospitals Public Health England labs for those with a clinical need, plus swabs taken from health and care workers.

Pillar 2 covers swab testing, including home kit results, for the much wider population

Following widespread criticism, officials have now released both sets of data.

For Milton Keynes, this means the Pillar 1 and 2 combined figure of cases since the start of the pandemic equate to 311.98 cases per 100,000 of the population. With the city's population at around 250,000, this means there have been more than 750 cases.

This compares to the government's Pillar 1 figure of 518 for MK.

But, even with the increase, the figures mean only an extremely percentage of the population of MK have 'officially' had coronavirus.

The data does not, however, take into account all the people who had symptoms before widespread testing became available and were unable to get their status confirmed.

It also does not take into account the percentage of people who were asymptomatic - who had Covid-19 and didn't even realise.

Today's new data compares the number of confirmed MK cases over two weeks this month.

It shows there were 10.8 cases per 100,000 of the population in the seven days between June 15 to June 21. The following week, June 22 to June 28, cases more than halved to 4.1 per 100,000 of the population.

This proves the infection rate in MK is going down and the city is certainly nowhere near facing second lockdown measures.

In fact, out of 145 local authority areas ranked for the highest number of cases, Milton Keynes sits at 77 - bang in the middle.

However, MK's local public health director Muriel Scott has warned people in MK not to get complacent.

She said: “This is a vitally important time to remain vigilant about the spread of Covid-19. As lockdown lifts we’ve all got to do our part, which means remaining distant, regular hand washing, staying at home and seeking a test if you have symptoms of the virus, and following all the latest government guidance."