THE number of people in Scotland with Covid-19 decreased last week after seven weeks of increases, according to latest statistics.
Around one in 19 people in private households north of the Border were estimated to have the virus in the week to July 20, data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed.
This was down from one in 15 the previous week, which was the seventh week in a row that numbers had increased.
The ONS estimates that 272,000 people, or 5.17% of the population in Scotland, had Covid-19 in the week to July 20.
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In England around one in 20 people were estimated to have the virus, while in Wales it was one in 19 and one in 16 in Northern Ireland.
Sarah Crofts, ONS head of analytical outputs for the Covid-19 Infection Survey, said: “Our most recent data suggest that we may now be over the peak of the latest wave of infections across the UK, although rates still remain among the highest seen during the course of the pandemic.
“We have seen welcome decreases among most parts of the UK and in all age groups. With summer holidays starting and more people travelling, we will continue to closely monitor the data.”
Meanwhile, the latest National Records of Scotland figures show that there were 92 deaths involving Covid-19 in the week to July 24, which was eight more than the previous week.
As of July 24 there have been 15,274 deaths registered in Scotland where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.
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