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Coronavirus outbreaks are increasing most rapidly in former Tier 1 areas and in the north of England, official data has revealed.
Of the ten councils that recorded the largest increases in Covid infections in the past fortnight, eight were in the north of England, including three in Cumbria and three in Liverpool.
The remaining two were the Isle of Wight and Cornwall, which enjoyed the loosest restrictions until they were placed on harder supports before Christmas.
Throughout December, the biggest spikes in cases overall were distributed in Hampshire and Sussex, as well as the Isle of Wight and Cornwall, according to figures from the Department of Health.
In England, the number of people suffering from Covid almost tripled in the last month of 2020, from 167 cases per 100,000 residents to 476.9. Thurrock, in Essex, was the country’s Covid hotspot for the week ending December 29.
The resurgence of the virus in the north may be an early warning sign that the region faces another fight against the virus and suggests that the looser levels weren’t enough to keep the virus out through winter, when it is most likely to people stay indoors, where Covid-19 finds it easier to spread.
Boris Johnson is set to reveal another nationwide shutdown tonight in a desperate attempt to keep mutant Covid at bay while vaccines are released. Amid growing clamor for action from Labor and Conservative MPs, the prime minister is set to make a televised statement on “next steps” in the crisis at 8pm, and Parliament will be repealed on Wednesday.
MailOnline understands that England faces general restrictions starting at midnight, similar to those imposed during the first shutdown last spring, with the fear that they will have to last for months until the most vulnerable take blows.
The news came just before the latest grim daily count was released, with 58,784 new cases, a 42 percent increase last Monday. It means the UK has passed the grim 50,000 milestone every day for a week, suggesting that the Christmas break of restrictions helped fuel the outbreak.
The Tier system was meant to keep Covid in check, but officials have blamed the emergence of a new variant of coronavirus, which studies say is 56% more infectious, for the explosion of cases.
It comes as the UK began rolling out the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine today after it was approved by regulators last week, adding another anti-virus tool to Britain’s arsenal. But experts have warned that the impact of mass inoculations is not likely to be apparent until April at the earliest, provided that vaccine administration is increased to two million doses per day.
THE RESURGENCE OF COVID-19: The maps above show cases of Covid-19 in England and Wales on September 1 (left) as the country was heading into the fall and December 29 (right) during winter. Green and yellow indicate up to 100 cases per 100,000, but dark purple indicates rates above 800 per 100,000
During December, cases have increased from the beginning of the month (left – December 1) to the end (right – December 22). It comes after Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced that a new variant of the virus had been identified.
Three-quarters of England is already subject to Tier 4, where only essential shops like supermarkets are allowed to open and people must stay home
Data from the Department of Health shows that Covid cases skyrocketed in England throughout December, even though the revamped Tier 10 system is up and running.
On December 8, the weekly rate of coronavirus infection per 100,000 people stood at 167, roughly eight times the government limit to impose travel quarantine (20) in other countries.
Within a week it had risen 58 percent to 264 per 100,000, as official figures from Dec. 15 show.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced a new, more infectious strain, known as B.1.1.7. – had been identified the day before and had already been detected by 60 local authorities.
On December 19, the Prime Minister unleashed misery for millions by announcing that the five-day Christmas break in restrictions had been canceled in the south and severely restricted in the rest of the country. It also plunged the capital and surrounding areas into a new Level 4 restriction, with gyms and nonessential stores forced to close.
The ministers insisted that previous levels had been enough to stop the old strain of coronavirus, but the new variant had made their measures less effective.
But the infection rate had risen another 50 percent in England on December 22, reaching 400.4 per 100,000 people.
In the most recent week, data is available, as of December 29, the infection rate has increased by 19 percent. This is still an increase, but it is notably lower than in previous weeks, suggesting that Level 4 restrictions may be slowing the rise of the virus. But experts say it is impossible to tell the true magnitude of the crisis during the Christmas holidays due to reporting problems.
England’s Covid-19 hotspot for the week ending Dec. 29 was Thurrock in Essex, where cases reached 1,316 per 100,000.
Barking and Dagenham, in London, had the second highest rate at 1,298 per 100,000, and Epping Forest, also in Essex, had the third highest rate at 1,294 per 100,000.
The lowest infection rate was recorded in Torbay, Cornwall, at 81.5 per 100,000, although it has doubled since early December.
It was followed by Torridge, in Devon, at 98 per 100,000, and North East Lincolnshire, which has spent months under the toughest restrictions in the country, at 116 per 100,000.
Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt today joined demands for an immediate national shutdown with schools and borders closed and a ban on all domestic mixing, warning that ministers ‘cannot afford to wait’ another day.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock warned Britons that stricter restrictions would come today
Nicola Sturgeon announced a drastic crackdown in the Scottish Parliament this afternoon, with a legally enforced stay-at-home order starting at midnight and schools north of the border to remain closed until February.
Michael Gove is scheduled to hold a conference call with the Prime Ministers of the four nations to coordinate strategies. But in a sign of divisions, Wales has said he will go ahead with reopening schools for the next fortnight unless there is new evidence on the variant strain.
Earlier, former health secretary Jeremy Hunt joined Labor and Conservative MPs’ demands for an immediate national squeeze with schools and borders closed and a ban on all domestic mixing.
Hunt warned that the mutant Covid has put the NHS under “out of scale” pressure compared to normal winters and that the government “cannot afford to wait” another day.
Johnson confirmed this morning that ‘tougher’ measures would come despite optimism sparked by the administration of the first doses of the Oxford / AstraZeneca vaccine, although at the time he seemed to hint that he would prefer to continue the Tier system in England.
Parents faced chaos as many elementary schools defied previous government orders to return after the Christmas break.
SAGE cautioned that it is likely impossible to control the new coronavirus variant while they remain open, although experts say a full shutdown may still not be enough to bring the ‘R’ reproduction rate below one.
But the idea of tightening the restrictions has sparked the fury of other Conservative MPs, who insist that the country’s experience with the pandemic shows that the lockdowns are not working and are paralyzing the economy.
