A leaked report from Public Health England claims that Covid could be endemic in areas of deprivation and that the national lockdown did little to cut infection in parts of the north

The Observer reports that in parts of the country that combine severe deprivation, poor housing and large BAME communities, Covid is now firmly established.

“The analysis, prepared for local government leaders and health experts, relates specifically to the north-west, where several local lockdowns have recently been put in place following spikes in numbers.“

“The overall analysis suggests Bolton, Manchester, Oldham and Rochdale never really left the epidemic phase – and that nine of the 10 boroughs [of Greater Manchester] are currently experiencing an epidemic phase.”

The report adds that “If we accept the premise that in some areas the infection is now endemic – how does this change our strategy? If these areas were not able to attain near zero-Covid status during full lockdown, how realistic is it that we can expect current restriction escalations to work?”

 

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