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More people are in hospital with coronavirus in the north-west of England than in London, as regional differences in the spread and peak of the pandemic become increasingly apparent.
Latest figures show 2,033 people in London hospitals compared to 2,191 in the north-west, where the peak for hospitalization appears to have been on 13 April, compared to 8 April in the capital.
The north-west, including Manchester and Liverpool, has had a far less steep tail-off of the virus ’curve compared to London, which bore the brunt in the early weeks of the pandemic.
It comes amid concerns over deep inequalities in the toll of the virus, with the Office for National Statistics revealing on Friday that those living in the poorest parts of England and Wales were dying at twice the rate of those in the richest areas.
Suggestions that the easing of lockdown could happen on a local basis were bolstered by Michael Gove, the Cabinet Office minister, on Sunday as I have told the daily press briefing that the government might phase in measures and then pause or reintroduce restrictions to help local areas cope with the disease.
Liverpool’s mayor, Joe Anderson, described the north-west hospitalization figures as a tragedy but said they were to be expected owing to years of austerity and funding cuts to local NHS services.
Anderson, whose wife works as a care assistant, said: “This is not a coincidence. I have been saying for the past 10 years that the high levels of poverty and deprivation in my city coupled with cuts to our NHS services will and has led to higher mortality rates.