People working alongside one another and commuting into Britain’s distribution heartland could be the reason it has the UK’s highest coronavirus rate, one expert has warned.
North West Leicestershire has the highest Covid-19 rates according to the latest Public Health England figures.
The district – which sits off the M1, A42, M42 and A50 between Leicester, Nottingham, Derby and Tamworth – tops the list of 315 council areas in England.
It has an infection rate of 197.9 per 100,000 people, ahead of Corby, Leicester and Peterborough.
The central England district includes a number of huge warehousing hubs around Coalville – where warehousing and distribution have replaced traditional coalmining – Ashby, East Midlands Airport, Bardon Hill, Shepshed and Castle Donington.
A new 238-acre employment park is currently going up at Junction 11 of the M42 at Appleby Magna, in the south of the district, which will include a 2.94 million sq ft global parts logistics centre for Jaguar Land Rover and a 450,000 sq ft logistics hub for freight forwarder DSV.
The North West Leicestershire infection rate marks a slight fall compared to the previous week, but the decrease is slower than has been seen in other high infection areas.
Leicestershire public health director Mike Sandys explained the probable reasons for the high rate in North West Leicestershire.
He said: “The East Midlands has the role of being the crossroads of the country.
“If you think about the amount of distribution and warehousing we have up at Junction 24 (of the M1), down at Magna Park and across in north Warwickshire – all of which draw their workforce from across Leicester, Leicestershire, Derbyshire, Nottinghamshire and to the West Midlands – there is something concentrated.
“Lockdown in the South East has worked really well but I suspect that is because there are lots of jobs that can be done at home.
“We have got a concentration in workplaces that have seen a rapid growth in employment which brings people together from all over – coming on coaches and buses as a mobile workforce coming to big factories.
“That is why there is enduring transmission.”
