Covid cases are falling in all age groups except over 80s - the regions where rates have dropped

Covid-19 case rates have dropped in most regions across England, as well as in all age groups except the over 80s. The latest Public Health England (PHE) data suggests that the current lockdown restrictions are having an effect, with several areas recording a week-on-week fall. Where are rates falling? While London continues to have the highest rate of any region in England, its rate of new cases has started coming down. In the seven days to 10 January, its rates stood at 894.9 per 100,000 people, which is a significant decrease from 1,043.9 in the previous week. Other areas have seen a similar pattern, with the East Midlands, eastern England, north east England, south east England and Yorkshire and the Humber all recording a week-on-week fall. However, rates have increased in north west England, south west England and the West Midlands. High death rates Despite a fall in rates in some parts of the UK, PHE data shows that there were more people being admitted to hospitals and intensive care units. This is due to the time lag between a fall in cases and the impact on the death toll. In response to the volume of deaths, a new temporary mortuary that can hold up to 1,300 bodies has been built in London and the government’s leading scientist, Sir Patrick Vallance, has warned that high death figures will “carry on for some weeks”. Professor Neil Ferguson, whose early modelling of Covid-19 made him a key player in the UK’s first lockdown, said: “We’re going to be well over 1,000 deaths a day, even measured by the date people die rather than the date deaths are reported, before numbers start coming down.” However, he noted that the current wave of the epidemic may now be coming under control in some regions. His comments come as Health Secretary Matt Hancock confirmed that three million Covid-19 vaccine doses have been administered across the UK, with the rollout to be accelerated to boost numbers. Some large high street pharmacies, including Boots and Superdrug, have now begun the process of administering jabs in an effort to help the government hit its target of vaccinating around 15 million of those most at-risk by mid-February. NHS England figures indicate that around half of people aged 80 and over in north east England and Yorkshire have received their first dose, compared to just three-in-10 in eastern England and London.