SCOTLAND has recorded 4323 coronavirus cases in the past 24 hours - the highest number ever seen in a single day throughout the pandemic. 

Speaking at her Scottish Government Covid briefing this afternoon, Nicola Sturgeon said there have also been 10 deaths among people who have tested positive for the virus in the past 28 days.

The First Minister said this takes the death toll under the daily measure – of people who first tested positive for the virus within the previous 28 days – to 8080.

She told a Scottish Government coronavirus briefing the daily test positivity rate is 14.5%, up from 12.4% the previous day.

A total of 364 people were in hospital yesterday with recently confirmed Covid-19, up by eight on the previous day, with 43 patients in intensive care, up two.

So far, 4,850,552 people have received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccination and 3,587,145 have had their second.

"New cases in Scotland have more than doubled over the past week," she told viewers. 

"That is one of the sharpest rises we have experienced at any point during the pandemic."

READ MORE: Covid Scotland: Nicola Sturgeon warns she can't rule out imposing restrictions

The FM went on: "Now, we always knew that cases were likely to rise as restrictions eased - you heard us say that from these platforms in recet weeks. So, to some extent, what we are seeing now is not entirely unexpected."

However, she added that even with the success of the vaccination scheme the country can't be "totally relaxed" about increasing cases.

"If this surge continues, and if it accelerates, and if we start to see evidence of a substantial increase in serious illness as a result, we cannot completely rule out having to reimpose some restrictions," she said.