Almost 40,000 people have died with coronavirus in England and Wales
Almost 40,000 people in England and Wales have died with coronavirus, according to new figures released today.
The Office for National Statistics (ONS) has said the number of people to have died with coronavirus, up to 8 May, was 39,071.
Overall deaths in England and Wales in the week up to 8 May were down for the third week in a row, at 12,657, but they were still more than 3,000 above the five-year average for that week.
In England, the number of deaths related to Covid-19 in care homes that were registered by 8 May was 9,495. While in Wales the number of deaths was 480.
Ministers are facing growing pressure over whether they have done enough to protect those in care homes. A leaked study by Public Health England (PHE) found temporary workers had spread coronavirus across care homes, according to the Guardian.
Chiefs of care homes will later appear before MPs to update them on how homes and their staff are coping with Covid-19, after it was revealed a quarter of homes had suffered from an outbreak.
Care homes are also facing extra financial pressures because of the coronavirus outbreak, including increased staffing costs and PPE. Communities secretary Robert Jenrick has asked councils to increase funding for homes by up to 10 per cent,
Yesterday, a further 160 people in the UK died from coronavirus yesterday. It was one of the lowest one-day totals since the coronavirus lockdown began on 23 March, but numbers on the weekend tend to be lower than on weekdays.
The new figures came as health secretary Matt Hancock announced that everyone over the age of five with Covid-like symptoms was eligible for a test.
Speaking to MPs, Hancock said: “Anyone [over the age of five] with a new continuous cough or a high temperature or the loss or change of sense of taste or smell can book a test by visiting nhs.uk/coronavirus.
“We will continue to prioritise access to tests for NHS and social care patients, residents and staff.”
He also announced that 21,000 people had been recruited as “contact tracers” to administer the government’s “test and trace” programme.