There is "a high chance" of a fourth wave of Covid-19 cases in Cheshire East if residents do not follow government guidance, according to the council leader.

Labour leader Sam Corcoran has made the claim via his daily Twitter update this morning (March 16).

However, he also said that he believes the pandemic picture locally will improve this year if vaccines continue to work as effectively as they do now.

Cllr Corcoran said: "With the locally-run vaccination programme going so well, it is natural for people to start thinking about the recovery from the pandemic.

"I still think there is a high chance of a fourth wave if people don't follow the basic rules of hands-face-space. That's washing hands regularly with soap and water, wearing a face covering, and staying 2m apart.

"Unless there is a variant which evades the vaccines, then I believe things will improve by this summer."

Yesterday, Cllr Corcoran used his update to say that infection numbers are 'still falling', adding 'any impact of children going back to school will begin to show in next week's figures'.

Currently, CEC's rolling seven-day infection rate is 51.8 cases per 100,000 residents — lower than the England-wide figure of 58.7.

Last week, Cheshire vaccine chiefs said they remained 'confident' of jabbing the top nine priority groups by a mid-April deadline.

It was also revealed in NHS England data that 46 per cent of Cheshire and Merseyside adults have now had their first dose of the vaccine.