With Boris Johnson due to reveal today how the coronavirus lockdown restrictions will be eased, we look over the situation in Dorset and how things currently stand.

How many Covid patients are there in hospital in Dorset?

In an update published on Friday, local health authority Public Health Dorset said there were 194 Covid patients in hospital beds across Dorset. This is down from 269 the previous week.

Thankfully the number of hospital patients is steadily decreasing. Around January 22, there were around 350-380 Covid patients across the two conurbation sites which were described as "absolutely full" and "on a knife edge".

How many hospital patients have died with Covid?

NHS England figures released on Sunday showed 813 people have died with Covid in Dorset hospitals.

University Hospitals Dorset, which covers both Poole and the Royal Bournemouth Hospital, has recorded 642 deaths.

The numbers at Dorset County Hospital and within the Dorset Healthcare Universities Trust are 101 and 70 respectively.

However, this does not include deaths in care home settings. The number of Covid-related deaths in Dorset is over 1,000.

How many cases have there been in the past day?

Latest Public Health England data on the government website shows 61 new cases in the BCP area, bringing the total number of cases since the start of the pandemic to 24,395.

In Dorset, there have been 44 new infections which brings the cumulative total to 11,054.

What about in the past week?

In the last week, 594 people have tested positive for the coronavirus across BCP, giving a rate of 150.3 per 100,000 people.

There have been 307 new cases in wider Dorset during the same period, with a rate of 81.1.

The average rate for the south west is 81.2 and 128.5 in England.

How many Covid vaccinations have been given in Dorset?

NHS England data released on February 18, said 240,890 Covid vaccinations had been given across Dorset in total. 88,077 people under 70 have had their first dose with 143,779 over 70s having theirs. Meanwhile, 1,824 under 70s have received their second dose with 7,210 over 70s having theirs.

What has Public Health Dorset said about the situation in Dorset?

A Public Health Dorset spokesperson said on Friday: “Our local case rates continue to fall. The case rate for Dorset Council (92.2 per 100,000) is now slightly lower than the South West region average (93.7).

"The case rate for BCP Council (159.1) is still above the England average (137.8), although the margin is smaller than in previous weeks. Case rates must continue to fall steadily to allow restrictions to be eased safely.

"The number of COVID-19 patients in hospital beds is much lower than at the peak in January, but is still higher than anything we experienced during 2020. The situation has improved but health and care services remain under pressure, so it's really important that we all continue to play our part in stopping COVID-19 from spreading."