THERE have been no Covid-19 deaths in Argyll and Bute for the third week in a row, according to new government figures.
Weekly statistics published by the National Records of Scotland (NRS) showed the total death certificates mentioning coronavirus remained stable at 64.
Across Scotland, 49 fatalities from the pandemic were registered between June 15 and 21, the lowest weekly total since mid-March, taking the total number of deaths with a suspected or confirmed link to coronavirus to 4,119.
READ MORE: Simple search tool shows Covid-19 death toll in Helensburgh and Lomond for first time
Nationally, 41 per cent of the deaths occurred in care homes, though the numbers fell for the eighth week.
The NRS said the number of “excess deaths” between March 16 and June 21 stood at 4,917.
Half of all Scotland's local authority areas had no registered deaths linked to coronavirus in the week to June 21 – including neighbouring West Dunbartonshire, where no further deaths were recorded for the first time since March.
READ MORE: Covid-19 in Argyll and Bute: what the latest NRS figures tell us
Nicola Sturgeon said that, despite the positive trends in the virus in recent weeks, it is still expected to "pose a real and significant threat for some time to come".
She added: "We must keep working to drive it down further, towards the point of elimination – because that then gives us the best chance of keeping it under control through testing, surveillance, contact tracing and the application of targeted suppression measures when necessary.
"The prize if we succeed is getting greater normality back in our lives, maybe more quickly than we would have envisaged a few weeks ago, and without reversals back into blanket lockdown."
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