London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Monday, Jun 30, 2025

80% of cases in Trafford are among white community and ‘middle class complacency’ is being blamed

The coronavirus outbreak in Greater Manchester should be a warning to the ‘complacent white middle class’ that Covid-19 is not just spreading in ethnic minority households, one of the region’s health chiefs has said.
Eleanor Roaf, the director of public health in Trafford, said 80% of its infections in the last week were in the white community. A major incident was declared in Greater Manchester on Sunday after a rise in new cases across ‘multiple localities’.

Much of the coverage has focused on Oldham, where officials said two-thirds of infections were in the town’s Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities.

Roaf said this was not the case in Trafford, one of the wealthiest and whitest of Greater Manchester’s 10 boroughs.

She told the Guardian: ‘We are continuing to see more cases than we would like and what’s worrying is our positivity rate is going up. That is the number of people per hundred that test positive.

What you want to try to do is keep that to about 1%. We are at 3% at the moment. ‘The Trafford narrative is that it is a very white outbreak in Trafford. In other places the narrative is quite different.

One of the anxieties is that we don’t end up with a complacent white middle class thinking it’s not affecting them because they think it’s about overcrowding in ethnic minority families.’ Eighty-one people tested positive in Trafford in the last week of July – the third biggest number in Greater Manchester, after Manchester (178) and Oldham (130). Ninety-two per cent of cases had ethnicity recorded and of those 80% were white.

Ms Roaf said many of the cases in Trafford were among 17 to 22 year olds but now more people in their 30s, 40s and 50s are testing positive.

She suspects young people going out to pubs and bars are getting infected and then passing it on to their parents. She said blaming the spread on deprived, over crowded areas was damaging because ‘anyone can get it’ – highlighting a rise in cases in Altringham and Hale, where footballers and actors live.

Nine of the Greater Manchester’s 10 local authorities are in the top 20 areas with the highest coronavirus infection rates in England, according to NHS data for the week to Friday 31 July.

On Sunday, a major incident was declared, giving authorities the power to close public parks, pubs and specific places of work if there is deemed to be a ‘serious and imminent threat to public health’ from Covid-19.

Health chiefs had already banned all 2.8 million residents in the region from meeting anyone from different households indoors.

The surprise local lockdown, which also applies to areas of West Yorkshire and Lancashire, was criticised for being announced with just three hours notice on Thursday, the night before the Muslim festival Eid al-Adha began.

A Conservative MP came under fire last week for blaming immigrants, Muslims and ethnic minorities on the north-west’s spike in coronavirus cases.

Craig Whittaker, MP for West Yorkshire’s Calder Valley, said the ‘vast majority’ of people breaking social distancing rules were from the BAME community and that minorities were not taking the pandemic seriously.

Critics were quick to point out photos of crowds of people, many of whom are white, failing to follow social distancing guidelines at pubs and on beaches. Others claimed areas with the highest rates of infection had predominately white populations.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Robots Compete in Football Tournament in China Amid Injuries
Trump Administration Considers Withdrawal of Funding for Hospitals Providing Gender Treatment to Minors
Texas Enacts Law Allowing Gold and Silver Transactions
China Unveils Miniature Insect-Like Surveillance Drone
OpenAI Secures Multimillion-Dollar AI Contracts with Pentagon, India, and Grab
Marc Marquez Claims Victory at Dutch Grand Prix Amidst Family Misfortune
Germany Votes to Suspend Family Reunification for Asylum Seekers
Elon Musk Critiques Senate Budget Proposal Over Job Losses and Strategic Risks
Los Angeles Riots ended with Federal Investigations into Funding
Budapest Pride Parade Draws 200,000 Participants Amid Government Ban
Southern Europe Experiences Extreme Heat
Xiaomi's YU7 SUV Launch Garners Record Pre-Orders Amid Market Challenges
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sanchez's Lavish Wedding in Venice
Russia Launches Largest Air Assault on Ukraine Since Invasion
Education Secretary Announces Overhaul of Complaints System Amid Rising Parental Grievances
Massive Anti-Government Protests Erupt in Belgrade
Trump Ends Trade Talks with Canada Over Digital Services Tax
UK Government Softens Welfare Reform Plans Amid Labour Party Rebellion
Labour Faces Rebellion Over Disability Benefit Reforms Ahead of Key Vote
Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez Host Lavish Wedding in Venice Amid Protests
Trump Asserts Readiness for Further Strikes on Iran Amid Nuclear Tensions
North Korea to Open New Beach Resort to Boost Tourism Economy
UK Labour Party Faces Internal Tensions Over Welfare Reforms
Andrew Cuomo Hints at Potential November Comeback Amid Democratic Primary Results
Curtis Sliwa Champions His Vision for New York City Amid Rising Crime Concerns
Federal Reserve Proposes Changes to Capital Rule Affecting Major Banks
EU TO HUNGARY: LET THEM PRIDE OR PREP FOR SHADE. ORBÁN TO EU: STAY IN YOUR LANE AND FIX YOUR OWN MESS.
Trump Escalates Criticism of Media Over Iran Strike Coverage
Trump Announces Upcoming US-Iran Meeting Amid Controversial Airstrikes
Trump Moves to Reshape Middle East Following Israel-Iran Conflict
Big Four Accounting Firms Fined in Exam Cheating Scandal
NATO Members Agree to 5% Defense Spending Target by 2035
Australia's Star Casino Secures $195 Million Rescue Package Amid Challenges
UK to Enhance Nuclear Capabilities with Acquisition of F-35A Fighter Jets
Russian Shadow Payments via Cryptocurrency Reach $9 Billion
Explosions Rock Doha as Iranian Missiles Target Qatar
“You Have 12 Hours to Flee”: Israeli Threat Campaign Targets Surviving Iranian Officials
Macron and Merz: Europe must arm itself in an unstable world
Germany and Italy Under Pressure to Repatriate $245bn of Gold from US Vaults
Airlines Evaluate Flight Cancellations Amid Escalating US-Iran Tensions
Starmer Invites Innovators to Join Government Talent Scheme
UK Economy’s Strong Opening Quarter Shows Signs of Cooling
Harrods Seeks Court Order to Secure Al Fayed Estate for Victims
BA and Singapore Airlines Cancel Dubai Flights Amid Middle East Tensions
Trump Faces Backlash from MAGA Base Over Iran Strikes
Meta Bets $14 B on Alexandr Wang to Drive AI Ambitions
WATCH: Israeli forces show the aftermath of a massive airstrike at Iran's Isfahan nuclear site
FedEx Founder Fred Smith, ‘Heart and Soul’ of the Company, Dies at 80
Chinese Factories Shift Away from U.S. Amid Trump‑Era Tariffs
Pimco Seizes Opportunity in Japan’s Dislocated Bond Market
×