The island logged another Covid-19 death last night, which pushed the pandemic death toll to 127.

But the number of active cases has dropped for the first time in several weeks.

There were 123 new cases recorded since Monday’s update and 157 recoveries, bringing the number of active cases down to 277 from 312 active cases on Monday.

There are 11 people being treated in hospital – one of them in intensive care.

The 123 positives were among 3,674 tests that came back to health officials since the last update, a positivity rate of 3.3 per cent.

Five of the new cases were classified as coming in from overseas.

The 118 other new cases were logged as on-island transmissions or under investigation.

Case numbers for the illness had risen steadily over the past few weeks.

There were nine people in hospital on Monday, although none were in intensive care.

The latest figures came in the wake of the announcement yesterday that fourth doses of the vaccine had been approved by the Government.

The fourth dose booster shot was recommended for the vulnerable, including people aged over 65, rest home residents and anyone with a suppressed immune system.

Anyone who had a third dose more than five months ago is qualified for the extra shot.

The health department did not reveal how many of the positive samples came from people who had been vaccinated.

But figures showed the vaccination rate continued to flatline, with 72.9 per cent of the population having had two shots – an increase of just 1.2 per cent since the beginning of February.

Kim Wilson, the health minister, expressed concern at the latest results, despite the drop in the number of active infections.

She said: “There are far too many positive cases in our community and we have increased hospitalisations.

“It also saddens me that there are coronavirus related deaths every week.”

Ms Wilson added: “Living safely with Covid requires us to look out for our safety and to care about the safety of others, especially our vulnerable persons.”