Coronavirus cases rose in just one area of England last week ahead of lockdown easing
9 April 2021, 09:34
There has been a big fall in Covid-19 infection rates across England as lockdown rules ease next week.
As pubs and restaurants across the country prepare to open on Monday, new data shows Covid-19 cases have plummeted in England.
According to data from Public Health England, last week Darlington was the only authority which saw cases go up.
As reported by The Sun, the infection rate here still remains low at 68 per 100,000 people.
Meanwhile, the rest of the country has seen a sharp dip in the number of cases.
Among the largest decreases, Hammersmith and Fulham have come down from 45 cases to 15 in every 100,000.
Stockton recorded a rate of 81.1 per 100,000 people, but it has fallen from the previous week when it stood at 96.8 and in Hartlepool the rate is 67.3 down from 94.0.
These figures are based on coronavirus tests carried out in laboratories and in the wider community.
This comes after new research suggests Covid cases in England fell by about 60% from February to March.
The latest study by REACT suggests infection rates are now nearly the same as the end of the first lockdown in May 2020.
London and the South East have seen the sharpest drops in infection rates from February to March.
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Professor Paul Elliott, director of the REACT programme from Imperial's School of Public Health, said: "We have seen a gratifying fall in infections since our last survey in February, with infections dropping by around 60% overall.
"This is hugely encouraging and shows we're headed in the right direction.
"However, in our most recent data there has been a flattening off in the infection rate with an R number now around one.
"This shows that we need to continue to approach the situation with caution and keep sticking to the rules."
Meanwhile, the UK government aims to offer a first vaccine dose to about 32 million people in nine priority groups by 15 April.
More than 31.8 million people have already had their first jab and more than six million have had a second.
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