The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
‘Green shoots’ in fight against pandemic
● Public urged to keep up its good work
The UK-wide lockdown to stop the spread of coronavirus is starting to show “green shoots” of working, despite a dramatic surge in deaths yesterday. NHS clinical director Stephen Powis said the social distancing measures implemented over the last week were starting to “flatten the curve” of infection – but warned the nation that “we must not slack off ” and get complacent.
The comments came as it was announced another 393 people in the UK had died after contracting the virus over the last 24 hours, bringing the total number of deaths to 1,789.
The jump is by far the biggest day-on-day rise since the outbreak began.
Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove, appearing at the daily Downing Street press briefing, said the sharp rise in deaths was “deeply shocking”, but offered cautious optimism.
He said: “There are some signs, as a result of people observing social distancing, that we may be able to flatten the spread of infection.
“But it’s absolutely not the time for people to imagine that there can be any relaxation, or slackening.
“This is a hopeful sign, but we must be wary of overinterpreting any individual days and data.
“People’s sacrifices are worth it. They are making a difference, but we must not let up.”
Dr Powis, appearing alongside Mr Gove, added: “I’m pleased to that the great British public are paying attention and we see in many ways that social contact is reducing it.
“People are paying attention and understand the message we are giving.
“We have had a rise in the number of UK deaths but recently there is a little bit of a plateau in cases.
“Now I think it’s really important not to read too much into this, because it’s early days, we’re not out of the woods. We must not be complacent and we must not take our foot off the pedal.”
Mr Gove later revealed the UK was making thousands of new ventilators – which would be delivered to the NHS in England by next week.
He also revealed rapid clinical trials are taking place using anti-malarial drugs to try to see whether it will have an effect on those who are ill with Covid-19.
The comments came as independent statistics revealed the true death toll is higher than hospital statistics suggest.
Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) for England and Wales shows there were 24% more deaths relating to Covid-19 up to and including March 20, compared to hospital-only data for the same period.
A total of 210 deaths in England and Wales for the time period had Covid-19 mentioned on the death certificate, compared with 170 coronavirus-related deaths reported by NHS England and Public Health Wales.
“We must not be complacent and must not take our foot off the pedal”
Asked if there could be a similar underestimate of the death rate in Scotland, which currently stands at 60, First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said the Scottish Government statistics were “accurate and robust”.
The chief medical officer for Scotland, Catherine Calderwood, confirmed that “if there is an underestimate this is not significant, because we do not have significant transmission in the community where people are becoming very unwell and not going to hospital”.
Meanwhile, struggling businesses will from today be able to apply to the Treasury for grants of up to £25,000.
Mike Cherry, chairman of the Federation of Small Businesses, said: “This intervention could be the difference between surviving this crisis or folding.”