FIFE recorded the highest number of coronavirus-related deaths in Scotland last week.

Between January 3 and 9, a total of 10 people passed away across the Kingdom with coronavirus mentioned on the death certificate as a 'suspected' or 'probable' cause.

The most recent figure takes the total number in Fife to 668 since the start of the pandemic.

The statistics from the National Records of Scotland (NRS) revealed that there were 72 deaths in Scotland during the seven-day period, with Fife's total the highest in the country ahead of City of Edinburgh (8 deaths) and Glasgow City (7 deaths). In total, 25 (out of 32) council areas had at least one death last week.

Of the 32 men and 40 women who died across Scotland, 12 were aged under 65, 12 were aged 65-74 and there were 48 deaths in people aged 75 or over.

There were 49 deaths in hospitals, 18 in care homes and five were at home or in a non-institutional setting.

Pete Whitehouse, Director of Statistical Services, said: “The latest figures show that last week there were 72 deaths where COVID-19 was mentioned on the death certificate. This is 27 more deaths than the previous week.

“The number of deaths from all causes registered in Scotland in this week was 1,208, 13 per cent lower than the five year average.

"Statistics based on death registrations can be volatile at this time of year due to a combination of registration office opening hours, how public holidays fall, and decisions people take regarding registering a death during this period.

"Care needs to be taken when interpreting data for the first and last few weeks of the year. The real trend will become clearer in the coming weeks.”