The UK has recorded 45,140 new cases of COVID-19 and 57 virus-related deaths in the latest 24-hour period, government figures show.

It marks the fifth consecutive day the number of people testing positive for coronavirus across the country has exceeded 40,000.

On Saturday, official data showed 148 deaths and 43,423 infections had been recorded and this time last week 38 fatalities were reported along with 34,574 positive cases.

A total of 49,398,211 people have now received their first vaccine dose after 23,706 got their jab yesterday.

Some 32,983 had their second jab, bringing the total number of fully vaccinated people in the UK to 45,358,472 – 78.9% of over 12s.

The latest figures come after as former prime minister Gordon Brown told Sky News a failure to send unused COVID vaccines from Europe and the US to developing countries would be an act of “criminal” neglect.

He warned there has been a “lack of coordination” from western nations in helping other countries vaccinate their population.

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COVID-19: UK records 148 more coronavirus-related deaths and 43,423 positive cases, latest daily figures show

Mr Brown said a report due to be released on Monday suggests there are approximately 240 million vaccines sitting in Europe and America that are unlikely to be used for months.

He said: “Many of them may go to waste – and that would be criminal – which could immediately be airlifted out to those countries where the level of vaccination is so low that not even the nurses and doctors are protected and certainly not the elderly and vulnerable.

“Boris Johnson promised at the G7 that he was going to vaccinate the whole world.

“He made this bold announcement that, by next year, everybody would be vaccinated who was an adult in the developing world as well as the developed world.

“But since then, so little has happened that we now face the possibility of every target being missed”.

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