More than 6,000 new cases of Covid-19 have been reported in Scotland alongside another rise in the number of people in hospital with the virus.
Figures released on Tuesday show 6,029 new coronavirus cases in Scotland, with a test positivity rate of 14.9%.
The new figures include 715 positive results in Tayside and Fife, up from just under 300 on Monday.
Fife has had the greatest increase in cases, with 353 new infections confirmed by public health officials.
Dundee has recorded 183 new positive results, while 96 new infections have been reported in Angus.
The number of people in hospital after testing positive for the virus continues to grow, with the latest figures showing 585 hospital cases across the country.
That is an increase of 34 on Monday’s figure.
Meanwhile 54 people are in intensive care units, up by two.
A further seven deaths have also been confirmed among people who had recently tested positive for coronavirus, taking the death toll since March 2020 to 8,118.
As the number of new cases in the last week doubled, Nicola Sturgeon said the figures were concerning as NHS chiefs warned of increasing pressure on the health service.
“It’s the overall level of cases that make me concerned right now,” the first minister said on Monday after she tested negative for the virus herself.
The latest figures show 4,106,408 people have received the first dose of a Covid-19 vaccination and 3,680,761 have had their second.
Ms Sturgeon says the vaccine is breaking the link between cases of the virus and serious illness.
But she added: “We are seeing a smaller proportion of people who get Covid ending up in hospital, but when there’s a big number of people with Covid, even a smaller percentage going to hospital will still put pressure on the health service and there is significant pressure on the health service right now.”