The surge in Covid infections in Newmarket could be attributed to "any number of reasons", public health bosses have said.

Public Health England data has revealed there were 75 cases in the town and surrounding area in the week up to August 7.

The neighbourhood for North Newmarket, Studlands and Exning had the highest infection rate in Suffolk at 457.3 cases per 100,000 people.

There were seven patients with the virus at West Suffolk Hospital in Bury St Edmunds on August 10.

Newmarket and Red Lodge county councillor Andy Drummond said he was feeling "optimistic" about the rise in case numbers and suggested they could be linked to recent events in the town, such as the Newmarket Nights concerts.

East Anglian Daily Times: Andy Drummond, Newmarket and Red Lodge county councillorAndy Drummond, Newmarket and Red Lodge county councillor (Image: Amy Drummond)

He said: "Newmarket has a lot of pubs in the high street and is a place to go out. It's quite a destination. I am aware that will be some of the cases.

"I just think as we come out of lockdown, it's obvious that the rate will go up. As we get more freedoms, they will go up even more."

"Newmarket Nights could have possibly been a part of it. We had Tom Jones here, which had record crowds of 20,000.

"I would say compared to the lockdown that there's a lot of revelry going on, but there's not as much as there could be.

"It's an obvious trend that as the more people mix, the more cases we will have. The vaccines have been a success and the hospitals are not filling up. I feel very optimistic."

East Anglian Daily Times: Welsh singer Tom Jones performed at Newmarket Nights last monthWelsh singer Tom Jones performed at Newmarket Nights last month (Image: Mark Ellis/ The Jockey Club Live)

Martin Seymour, interim deputy director of public health for Suffolk, added: "There could be any number of reasons why Newmarket has seen a rise in case numbers in the last seven days, but the most important thing is that we act to reduce those rates.

"You can still catch Covid even if you have had both vaccinations, you can have it and still not show any symptoms and you can still pass it on to others.

"The Covid virus is still very much out there and, despite the recent easing of restrictions by the government, we must continue to exercise caution."