Richmond Upon Thames' Covid cases have finally seen the first drop in numbers since May, after weeks of significant rises.

In the borough 734 people tested positive last week, dropping by 28.9% from 1031 cases the week before (July 12-18).

The news comes as several of this morning's front pages are dominated by the story that we are seeing the first sustained drop in Covid cases while not in lockdown since the start of the pandemic.

Until this point Richmond's numbers have been rapidly rising throughout July. Between July 12-18 there were 1031 new cases compared to 524 between July 5-11.

However, experts say that the impact of 'freedom day' last week is unlikely to show in the data yet, and we may see another rise following the removal of rules like social distancing.

Across the UK, the number of new infections by date reported has fallen for five days in a row for the first time since February.

It is also the first time since the start of the pandemic that a sustained drop in cases has not coincided with a national lockdown.

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