| Good afternoon,
This is a breaking coronavirus bulletin from The Scotsman. If you value our coverage of Scotland please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription. Try us out for £3 per month for the first two months, today. 14 areas in Scotland with the highest coronavirus rates New Government data provides a breakdown of coronavirus rates according to area over a seven day period. The figures examine the number of positive covid-19 cases per 100,000 people, according to neighbourhood. Scotland’s surgery backlog soars to 71,000 in four months Scotland’s surgery backlog nearly tripled over the first four months of the coronavirus pandemic, sparking fresh calls for ‘low risk’ zones in hospitals where operations can take place to avoid another “crisis” - especially for cancer treatment. New Public Health Scotland (PHS) figures, obtained under freedom of information laws, have revealed 27,016 (33.8 percent of those on waiting list) of patients were waiting beyond the Scottish Government's 12-week treatment time guarantee for elective procedures at the end of February - but this soared to 71,134 patients (82.7 percent) at the end of June. To read the full exclusive from Jamie McKenzie click here. More Covid-19 news >> Follow our live blog for the latest developments as they happen Stay safe, Sam Shedden | 
