London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Tuesday, Jul 15, 2025

Covid: Deaths in England and Wales fall 92% since January peak

Covid: Deaths in England and Wales fall 92% since January peak

Weekly deaths involving coronavirus in England and Wales have dropped 92% since the peak of the second wave in January, according to official figures.

Meanwhile, the total number of deaths registered in the UK over one week is 5% below the five-year average.

It comes amid continued efforts to reassure the public over the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine's possible link to rare blood clots.

Earlier, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the jab remained safe.

He urged those who had received one dose to take up their second and said the UK was on track to vaccinate all adults by 31 July.

Figures from the Office of National Statistics showed there were 712 deaths involving Covid in the week ending 19 March, down from 8,945 in late January.

The largest falls were seen among the oldest age groups, with deaths falling 92.9% among those aged 80 and over and 93.4% for the 75 to 79 age group, compared to 83.7% for those aged 60 to 64.

Separate figures showed the number of deaths registered in the UK in the week ending 26 March was 11,439, which was 5% below the five-year average. Last week, deaths were 8% below the 5-year average.

Some 799 of these deaths involved coronavirus.

Adults aged over 80 were the second priority group for vaccination, followed by over-75s and over 70s. The government says everyone in these groups was offered a jab by mid-February.

Figures on Thursday showed the UK's vaccination programme had recovered after a lull over Easter, with an extra 408,396 second doses administered and 99,530 first doses. The number of people fully vaccinated is now over six million, while 31.8 million have received just one dose.

Another 3,030 confirmed cases were reported, along with 53 further deaths within 28 days of a positive test.


Seeking to reassure people who have received a first dose of the Oxford-AstraZeneca jab, Mr Hancock said there was "no evidence" of the rare blood clots after the second dose of the vaccine.

The UK changed policy on Wednesday to offer under-30s an alternative to the AstraZeneca vaccine, after weighing the benefits of vaccination compared to a potential very rare risk of blood clots.

There had been 79 incidents of the clots and 19 deaths among the 20 million Oxford-AstraZeneca doses administered, the UK's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) said. That equates to a one-in-a-million risk of a fatal side effect.

It said there was no proof the vaccine had caused the clots but the link was getting firmer. Both the MHRA and the European Medicines Agency (EMA) said the benefits of the jab outweigh the risks, however.

Mr Hancock said people should have confidence in the safety system for vaccines because it was "able to spot this extremely rare event".

The risk was about the same as taking a long-haul flight, he said.

And he said there was "more than enough" doses of vaccines from Pfizer and Moderna due to arrive to offer an alternative to the 8.5 million UK adults under 30 yet to be vaccinated.


The UK has ordered 40 million doses of the Pfizer vaccine and 17 million of the Moderna jab and also has agreements with several other companies for jabs that are still waiting for approval, including 100 million doses from Valneva and 30 million from Janssen.

A government scientific adviser said communication of the benefits and side-effects was "critical" to avoiding a loss of confidence in the vaccines.

Prof Stephen Reicher told BBC Radio 4's World at One that having a Covid jab is "actually one of the safer things you do in the day".

"Something like 30 or 40 people drown in the bath every year, something like 1,000 people die falling down the stairs, something like 200 die from choking on their breakfast, and that's many, many more deaths than we get from these vaccines," he said.


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Dimon Warns on Fed Independence as Trump Administration Eyes Powell’s Succession
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Jeff Bezos Considers Purchasing Condé Nast as a Wedding Gift
Ghislaine Maxwell Says She’s Ready to Testify Before Congress on Epstein’s Criminal Empire
Bal des Pompiers: A Celebration of Community and Firefighter Culture in France
FBI Chief Kash Patel Denies Resignation Speculations Amid Epstein List Controversy
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Google Secures Windsurf AI Coding Team in $2.4 Billion Licence Deal
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
South African Police Minister Suspended Amid Organised Crime Allegations
Nvidia CEO Claims Chinese Military Reluctance to Use US AI Technology
Hong Kong Advances Digital Asset Strategy to Address Economic Challenges
Australia Rules Out Pre‑commitment of Troops, Reinforces Defence Posture Amid US‑China Tensions
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
U.S. Resumes Deportations to Third Countries After Supreme Court Ruling
Excavation Begins at Site of Mass Grave for Children at Former Irish Institution
Iranian President Reportedly Injured During Israeli Strike on Secret Facility
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Defends Attorney General Pam Bondi Amid Epstein Memo Backlash
Renault Shares Drop as CEO Luca de Meo Announces Departure Amid Reports of Move to Kering
Senior Aides for King Charles and Prince Harry Hold Secret Peace Summit
Anti‑Semitism ‘Normalised’ in Middle‑Class Britain, Says Commission Co‑Chair
King Charles Meets David Beckham at Chelsea Flower Show
If the Department is Really About Justice: Ghislaine Maxwell Should Be Freed Now
NYC Candidate Zohran Mamdani’s ‘Antifada’ Remarks Spark National Debate on Political Language and Economic Policy
President Trump Visits Flood-Ravaged Texas, Praises Community Strength and First Responders
From Mystery to Meltdown, Crisis Within the Trump Administration: Epstein Files Ignite A Deepening Rift at the Highest Levels of Government Reveals Chaos, Leaks, and Growing MAGA Backlash
Trump Slams Putin Over War Death Toll, Teases Major Russia Announcement
Reparations argument crushed
Rainmaker CEO Says Cloud Seeding Paused Before Deadly Texas Floods
A 92-year-old woman, who felt she doesn't belong in a nursing home, escaped the death-camp by climbing a gate nearly 8 ft tall
French Journalist Acquitted in Controversial Case Involving Brigitte Macron
Elon Musk’s xAI Targets $200 Billion Valuation in New Fundraising Round
Kraft Heinz Considers Splitting Off Grocery Division Amid Strategic Review
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
EU Proposes New Tax on Large Companies to Boost Budget
Trump Imposes 35% Tariffs on Canadian Imports Amid Trade Tensions
Junior Doctors in the UK Prepare for Five-Day Strike Over Pay Disputes
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Kurdistan Workers Party Takes Symbolic Step Towards Peace in Northern Iraq
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Biden’s Doctor Pleads the Fifth to Avoid Self-Incrimination on President’s Medical Fitness
Grok Chatbot Faces International Backlash for Antisemitic Content
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
NVIDIA Achieves Historic Milestone as First Company Valued at $4 Trillion
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Linda Yaccarino Steps Down as CEO of X After Two Years
×