Coronavirus infections rose sharply across all parts of England over the New Year period, with London the worst-affected area in the country, government data has shown.
The latest Public Health England (PHE) figures, which cover the week from 28 December to 3 January, put the capital’s Covid-19 case rate at 904.8 per 100,000 people.
Although this is higher than other regions, the largest increase in infection rate per 100,000 people occurred in the West Midlands, where it jumped alarmingly from 292.6 the previous week to 530.2.
While every age group registered a spike in case numbers, those aged between 20 and 29 saw the highest proportion of positive test results of any demographic.
Hospital admissions also saw a significant rise, climbing from 21.51 per 100,000 people the week before to 27.6, with London having the highest rate of new Covid patients.
As a result of the climb in infections, England entered its third national lockdown on Wednesday. Though new legislation, approved by MPs earlier this week, will be in force until 31 March, it remains unclear when the government will be able to ease the restrictions.
Much depends on how quickly the vaccination programme can be rolled out and the speed at which infection rates and deaths fall.
Speaking of the new coronavirus data, Dr Yvonne Doyle, PHE’s medical director, said: “The data bring into focus the huge pressure the health service is under. Sadly, we are seeing more deaths each day and these numbers will continue to rise before we see the impact of the nationwide lockdown.”
Dr Doyle added that people should stay at home and follow the government’s guidelines to reduce the burden placed on the NHS.
Some parts of the country now have a shortage of intensive care beds for coronavirus patients, including Greater Manchester, whose council leader stressed the area’s critical lack of beds.
Speaking on Wednesday, Sir Richard Leese said: "The optimistic end of the scale is that if our hospital system does not fall over in the next couple of weeks then it will have done well.”
“I cannot understate the amount of pressure that the system is now under,” he added.
On Wednesday, the government announced that a further 1,041 Covid-19 deaths had occurred, more fatalities in a single day than Australia has experienced throughout the pandemic.
The death toll then rose by 1,162 on Thursday, the second-highest total ever.
