China admits its Covid toll does not add up

CHINA has tacitly admitted that its Covid death toll is higher than reported and said more accurate data will emerge over time.

In a rare press conference at the Chinese embassy in London, Bi Haibo, a spokesman, faced repeated questions over the government’s claim that 22 people have died from Covid in China since December amid the surge in cases. Estimates suggest that up to 9,000 people could be dying every day from Covid in the country, while a recent spate of deaths among celebrities and public figures has raised further concerns over the government’s transparency in sharing data.

Mr Haibo did not deny China’s death toll is higher than reported and said officials were facing challenges in collecting data after the decision to scrap mass nationwide testing. “During the peak of the outbreak of the disease, it is very difficult to have the accurate statistics,” he told journalists, arguing that this was “normal” for all countries battling significant outbreaks.

Mr Haibo said Chinese officials were closely monitoring the development of the outbreak. “I think that you will have the numbers later on,” he added.