FEWER than 150 people tested positive for coronavirus in Dorset according to the latest figures.

Public Health England figures show that 135 coronavirus cases had been confirmed by 9am on Wednesday, February 17 in Dorset.

The latest statistics show 43 people tested positive for Covid-19 in the Dorset Council area. Since the beginning of the pandemic, there have been 10,843 cases in this area.

The rolling rate of infection in Dorset Council area now stands at 96.7 per 100,000 people.

In the Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Council area, 92 cases were confirmed. This has increased the total number of cases in this area to 24,127. The rolling rate of infection in BCP Council area now stands at 163.9 per 100,000 people.

The latest figures are an increase on the 114 new cases reported in Dorset on Tuesday, February 16.

34,970 people have tested positive for coronavirus across Dorset during the course of the pandemic.

Dorset's cases were among the 205,477 recorded across the South West, a figure which rose by 539 over the period.