Worldwide virus cases pass 20million

LONDON and the South-East both bucked the national trend with an increase in coronavirus deaths, the latest weekly figures revealed today.

Data from the Office for National Statistics showed there were 193 deaths involving Covid-19 in England and Wales in the week ending on July 31. This is 24 fewer than the 217 in the preceding week and the second lowest figure recorded for 19 weeks, since the start of the pandemic in March.

It is also the seventh consecutive week that deaths from all causes have fallen below the five-year average for this time of year.

It came as the total number of coronavirus cases worldwide surpassed 20 million, according to research by Johns Hopkins university in the US.

But today’s ONS statistics showed the number of deaths of people with Covid-19 increased week-on-week from 16 to 22 in London.

However the total number of deaths of all causes in the capital (773) was below the five-year average for this week (838) — the fourth successive week that the capital has been below the seasonal average.

There was also a weekly increase in coronavirus deaths across the wider South-East outside London, up from 40 to 45. This helped to take the South-East’s total overall death toll for the week (1,447 deaths) above the five-year weekly average (1,339) for the first time in four weeks.

Just over 56,800 deaths involving Covid-19 have now been registered in the UK.

The ONS said that 51,779 deaths involving Covid-19 had occurred in England and Wales up to July 31, and had been registered by August 8.

Figures published last week by the National Records for Scotland showed that 4,208 deaths involving Covid-19 had been registered in Scotland up to August 2, while 855 deaths had occurred in Northern Ireland up to July 31 (and had been registered up to August 5), according to the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency.

Together, these figures mean that so far 56,842 deaths have been registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate, including suspected cases.

Today’s ONS figures show deaths from all causes and in all locations in England and Wales (8,946) were up 55 on the previous week but were 90 fewer than the average for the time of year.

Fewer people than normal died in hospital, thought to be because people were steering clear of the NHS amid fears of contracting the virus, while there were 676 more deaths than normal at home.

Coronavirus deaths fell for the 15th successive week, down from a peak of 8,758 between April 10 and 17.