An area of County Durham has seen Covid cases rocket by 1,400% as Boris Johnson prepares to delay the easing of lockdown.
Durham City has become a Covid hotspot in County Durham as cases jumped by 1,400% in the seven days leading up to June 8.
Public Health England data show the area recorded 30 cases in the seven day period and has a rolling infection rate of 207.3 per 100,000 population.
Read more: Massive 68% of ChronicleLive readers say lifting lockdown should be delayed
Aykley Heads, Neville’s Cross and Langley Moor also saw a 650% increase in cases, with 15 new cases recorded.
Bishop Auckland South saw cases jump by 550% following 13 positive cases, while Evenwood, Cockfield and Staindrop saw a 533.3% rise in cases.
The area recorded 19 cases, giving it a rolling rate of 149.3.
Overall, County Durham has rolling infection rate of 47.4 after total of 251 cases - up 253.5%
It comes as Boris Johnson will make an announcement later on Monday when he will reveal if the Government will end lockdown restrictions on June 21.
The Prime Minister will speak at a press conference at 6pm on Monday June 14, reports Sky News political correspondent Rob Powell.
Chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty and chief scientific advisor Sir Patrick Vallance will speak at the conference, the BBC says.
Mr Johnson will confirm that the lockdown will be extended by four weeks, reports BBC, with England to remain in Step 3 of its four-step roadmap out of lockdown until at least Monday July 19.
The Government initially aimed to remove coronavirus restrictions and enter Step 4 on Monday June 21 but the rise of the Delta variant has convinced ministers to push 'Freedom Day' back.
It is set to be bad news for the hospitality and entertainment sectors, with nightclubs forced to remain closed for another four weeks and capacity limits kept in place for theatres and cinemas.
Pubs, restaurants and bars will continue to operate with caps on the number of people and households at each table.
