The number of deaths involving coronavirus registered each week in England and Wales has risen for the third week in a row, but levels remain well below those reached in the early part of the pandemic. A total of 423 deaths registered in the seven days to July 8 mentioned Covid-19 on the death certificate, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
This is up 27% on the previous week and is the highest number since the seven days to May 20. The figures suggest deaths are once again on an upwards trend, following several weeks where the numbers had shown a steady fall.
Covid-19 infections have been increasing across the country since the start of June, driven by the subvariants Omicron BA.4 and BA.5. This is now likely to be having an impact on the number of death registrations.
It is the third wave of Omicron infections so far this year. During the two previous waves, weekly deaths in England and Wales peaked between 1,000 and 1,500. This is well below the peak seen during the wave of infections in January 2021 caused by the Alpha variant, when the weekly total reached nearly 8,500.
The low number of deaths during this year’s waves reflects the success of Covid-19 vaccines in weakening the link between infection and serious illness.
