Kent has been given a pat on the back by health bosses for keeping coronavirus rates low compared to the rest of the country.

Speaking just hours after the government introduced a new three-tier system for handling the deadly disease, Andrew Scott-Clark, Kent's director of public health at County Hall, Maidstone, said today: “It’s business as usual.

"Kent has been rated as the medium tier which is what we expected. We know rates are relatively low across Kent and Medway but we are seeing a slow growth of cases.

“As we came out of the first wave the whole of the south east including Kent and Medway got down to very low rates unlike those up north so we have started from a lower base.

"I think it was because the people of Kent took more notice of the regulations. They have all done a really good job of managing this and we are asking people to continue to do what they have been doing.

“It means people need to maintain their social distances, maintain the rule of six and wear masks where appropriate in public, wash hands frequently and to be very careful."

But he warned: “We do see higher rates of Covid in Tunbridge Wells and Sevenoaks. This is from people returning from abroad, particularly from Croatia and the Greek Islands. But that was before those two areas were put on the quarantine list.

"We are seeing cases mainly in the younger cohort of people aged 18 to 34..."

"But those rates aren’t anywhere near the national average. But we are keeping a very close eye on the situation."

He said he expected any local lockdowns would be at district level instead of county-wide but continued: "We don’t have a guidance on that yet but we expect it to be district-wide as it would make no sense to put enhanced public health measures into a place like Dartford if we see cases rising at the other end of the county."

He added: "We are seeing cases mainly in the younger cohort of people aged 18 to 34 and that is relatively good news but they may affect older people who are at risk of much more serious illness and hospitalisation."

He said hospital admissions were relatively low across Kent and Medway but added: "We may need additional hospital care which is why we all need to abide by the rules to protect our economy, keep Kent open and protect our NHS to manage Covid and other respiratory viruses."

He welcomed news that the government is to give local authorities more cash and said the money was being used to support the track and trace system and ensure "enforcement measures" are in place.

He said: "Our environmental officers are supporting food standards officers at district level. The hospitality sector doesn’t always understand how to manage the new regulations. We are making sure that sector is compliant with Covid regulations."

Asked if Kent might follow the lead of its Essex neighbours and ask to be put in a higher tier he said: "If we thought we were in a situation we didn’t understand or could control it would be a conversation with the government. But I don't see that happening at the moment."

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