Professor Chris Whitty, CMO for England, said:
As of 9am this morning 32 further patients in England have tested positive for COVID-19.
Twenty-nine patients were diagnosed who had recently travelled from recognised countries or from recognised clusters which were under investigation.
Three additional patients contracted the virus in the UK and it is not yet clear whether they contracted it directly or indirectly from an individual who had recently returned from abroad. This is being investigated and contact tracing has begun.
The total number of confirmed cases in England is now 80. Following previously reported confirmed cases in Northern Ireland, Wales and Scotland, the total number of UK cases is 85.
As of today, due to the number of new cases, we will no longer be publishing information on the location of each new case.
Instead, this information will be published in a consolidated format once a week. This will be published on Friday. Regions will continue to be told as and when they have confirmed cases.
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