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There were 17,751 deaths in England and Wales in the week ending January 8, 7,682 more than the previous week, new figures show.
Of the recorded deaths, 6,057 mentioned “new coronavirus”, accounting for 34.1% of all deaths in England and Wales, according to figures from the Office for National Statistics.
This almost doubled from the previous week when 3,144 deaths from the virus occurred and represents an increase of 92.7%.
The figures are affected by the holidays of San Esteban and New Year, whose registration was delayed.
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The number of deaths involving COVID-19 it increased in all English regions, compared to the seven days before 1 January.
In Wales, the number of coronavirus deaths rose from 310 in the previous week to 454.
Separately, one in eight (or 5.4 million people) aged 16 and over in England would have tested positive for COVID-19 antibodies in December, the ONS Infection Survey found.
This is the highest proportion of the population since the Infection Survey began estimating the prevalence of antibodies in May.
There is considerable variation between the regions where the Yorkshire and Humber have the highest antibody positivity and the Southwest the lowest
Analysis: the latest figures come with a caveat
By Adele Robinson, Sky Correspondent
The highest weekly number of COVID-19 related deaths has been recorded in England and Wales since April.
In the week ending January 8, 6,057 deaths were recorded that mentioned COVID on the death certificate.
This is a 2,913 increase from the prior week and the highest since the week ending April 24.
The Office for National Statistics cautions that the figures should be “interpreted with caution” because registrations are affected by public holidays.
As always, death statistics do not provide an up-to-date picture of the current state of the pandemic.
Infections are beginning to decline, but this will not be reflected in the number of deaths recorded over several weeks.
They also do not reflect the new lockdown measures that took effect in early January.
