UK records 2,297 new Covid cases and 10 new daily deaths – but Wales and Northern Ireland’s data is not included due to Easter delays
- The Government announced a further 2,297 Covid infections by Sunday morning
- It brings the total number of confirmed cases in the country to 4,359,388
- Numbers for cases and deaths over Easter will be affected by incomplete data
The Government said a further 10 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid-19 as of Sunday, bringing the UK total to 126,836.
Separate figures published by the UK’s statistics agencies show there have been 150,000 deaths registered in the UK where Covid-19 was mentioned on the death certificate.
The Government also said that, as of 9am on Sunday, there had been a further 2,297 lab-confirmed cases in the UK.
It brings the total to 4,359,388.
However, numbers for cases and deaths over Easter will be affected by incomplete data plus a longer than usual lag in reporting.
Northern Ireland and Wales’ didn’t report any deaths or cases because of the delays.
As the numbers of deaths and infections continue to drop, Boris Johnson scrapped plans to force drinkers and families out for a meal to show a coronavirus vaccine passport to get into pubs and restaurants in the face of huge political opposition.
The Prime Minister is expected to announce a wave of pilot events in April and May where proof of a jab will be required for entry, to avoid the need for social distancing.
They include 21,000 fans at the FA Cup Final at Wembley, spectators at the World Snooker Championship in Sheffield and a mass participation run in Hatfield, Herts.
But it emerged today that a series of nightlife events in Liverpool, including a club that can hold 3,000 people, will not be used to test the passport scheme.
A spokesman for Liverpool City Council said on Sunday: ‘The line which was briefed out yesterday by the Government about Liverpool’s events being included in the vaccine passports trials is incorrect – none of our events in Liverpool will involve them.’
The Liverpool pilots – a comedy gig, an outdoor cinema, a club night and a business event – will ‘gather evidence associated with different settings and approaches to managing and mitigating transmission risk’.
And sports minister Nigel Huddleston confirmed this afternoon: ‘It is not just about certification actually, in fact the earlier programmes, the earlier pilots almost certainly won’t involve any element of certification but it will involve testing, making sure people are tested before and after the event.
‘What we will be looking at is the mitigation measures, so the ventilation, one-way systems, hygiene measures, all of those kind of things to help inform long term decision making.’
Meanwhile Tory civil liberties campaigner and former minister David Davis today blasted the idea of passports.
He said he agreed with Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer that they were ‘un-British’, telling LBC radio: ‘We wouldn’t do this for flu, flu can kill up to 25,000 people a year.
‘Vaccines will reduce this illness to killing a lot less than that every year, then we will have to accommodate it, but not by giving up our basic freedoms.’
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