Coronavirus: UK records lowest deaths figure since 24 March
Some 34,636 people who have tested positive for the virus in the UK have died.
Monday 18 May 2020 04:58, UK
Another 170 people with coronavirus have died in the UK as of 9am on Sunday - the lowest daily figure since 24 March.
The number - a 53-day low - was confirmed in the government's daily coronavirus briefing, which was delayed for half an hour because of a technical issue with the Zoom conferencing software.
The numbers are typically lower on Sundays, but the figure is almost 100 fewer than the 268 reported a week ago.
At the peak on 2 April, there were 961 deaths in a 24-hour period.
Business Secretary Alok Sharma said there were 3,142 new cases of COVID-19 as of 9am on Sunday, although the numbers did not include testing data from Northern Ireland.
Across the country more than 243,300 people have tested positive for the virus.
The 170 deaths - not all of which took place in the 24 hours prior - bring the UK total to 34,636. This is the highest in Europe.
Due to a technical hitch the conference ultimately went ahead without using Zoom.
A message on the Zoom Twitter account said: "Our team is investigating the root cause of issues joining Zoom Meetings. These issues appear to be limited to a subset of users."
Once he did take to the podium, Mr Sharma revealed plans were in place to roll out a COVID-19 vaccine to 30 million people by September if trials are successful.