Government urged to share ‘vital’ BAME Covid-19 data

A COUNCILLOR has urged Health Secretary Matt Hancock to release ‘vital’ data showing how many BAME residents have died from Covid-19 in Rochdale and in other boroughs around the country.

Councillor Faisal Rana, who recently gave evidence to the inquiry into why coronavirus has disproportionately affected people from ethnic minority backgrounds, says local information was crucial for councils to best know how to protect vulnerable residents.

Coun Rana said: “We need this vital information if we are to adequately protect our residents and to tackle the problem in Rochdale.”

He is yet to receive a response to his letter from Mr Hancock or a representative for the Department of Health and Social Care.

In his letter, the Spotland and Falinge ward councillor described the coronavirus pandemic ‘as the worst crisis to hit the UK since the Second World War.’

He wrote: “While the numbers of BAME deaths resulting from Covid-19 have been released nationally, they have not been issued for local areas. Why not? This is a serious omission.

“It is essential that all the agencies working together in each local authority/health area receive the most up-todate and accurate information to effectively fight and control the disease.

“In Rochdale, we have a large ethnic minority population. We need to know just how badly our BAME population has been hit by Covid-19 in order to direct our resources in the most effective way.”

In his evidence to the inquiry launched by Labour leader Sir Kier Starmer and Baroness Doreen Lawrence, Coun Rana claimed existing health risks, overrepresentation of people from ethnic minorities in high-risk sectors like healthcare and retail, and a lack of risk communication had created a ‘deadly cocktail’.

He added in his letter: “The impact of Covid-19 on BAME communities is best understood locally, rather than relying on national figures. To help us understand the scale of the impact on our BAME population, and to be able to respond effectively, the government needs to share this vital information with all the local agencies.”