NORTH Yorkshire is now in a more serious position with coronavirus cases than last week.

That's the stark warning from Richard Flinton, chief executive of North Yorkshire County Council (NYCC), as infections of Covid-19 continue to rise across the county.

"We are, by no means, in the perilous position of some of our close neighbours, but, unfortunately, without an urgent, sustained and collective effort from everyone – we are heading that way," he said.

"The England seven-day average rate of infection per 100,000 people is 93.2. North Yorkshire’s is now 91.1. However, in areas such as Craven and particularly around the Skipton and south Craven border, the situation is above that at 136.5.

"We suspect that the continued and worrying rise in cases in this area will result in the district going onto the government’s watch list as an area of concern.

"Scarborough and Selby, which were the first parts of the county to go onto the watch list, are no longer seeing the highest level of spread. It is reasonable to assume that this is due to effective support and interventions by our public health team and wider local resilience forum partners, as well as a really positive and sustained response from residents and businesses there.

"I thank you for doing the right thing for your friends, family, neighbours and businesses and urge you to keep up that good work. To everyone right across North Yorkshire, I am asking you to redouble your effort. The next few days will be critical; we stand at a tipping point and only by playing our part as individuals in a concerted effort will we be able to step back from this precipice."