Matt Hancock urges Londoners to ‘stick to the rules’ as Covid cases rise

Cases are understood to be rising more sharply in the under 18s and also in the over 60s

Matt Hancock issued an urgent appeal to Londoners today to “stick by the rules” after shock figures showed Covid-19 cases rising in 21 boroughs increasing the risk of Tier 3 for the city before Christmas.

The Health Secretary also stressed that more people in the capital will end up in hospital and die because of the disease’s spread.

He spoke out after alarming data showed confirmed cases jumping by 46.7 in Haringey in the week to December 2, with many boroughs in east London also being particularly badly hit.

Worryingly, much of the rise happened before lockdown ended last Wednesday.

The coronavirus surge is all the more striking as just over a week earlier cases were falling in 30 out of 32 boroughs.

Asked on LBC Radio whether London was close to going into Tier 3, Mr Hancock stressed: “My message to everybody in London is ‘let’s stick by the rules’ and not push the boundaries of the rules, but rather try to limit the spread of this infection because the case numbers are going up in parts of London, in parts of Essex, in parts of Kent, and we know what happens when case numbers go up, sadly more people end up in hospital and more people end up dying.

“So, we’ve got to stick at it and we have got to keep this virus supressed whilst we get the roll-out (of the vaccine) going.

“So, my message to everybody in London is ‘please respect the restrictions, respect what needs to be done, keep yourself and your family and your community and your city safe’.”

Earlier, London minister Paul Scully told The Standard: “The tiers review will be in a few days time so it’s too early to tell what is happening,” he told The Standard.

“Clearly we want to at the very least to stay in Tier 2.

“The only way we are going to do that is if we all look after each other by adhering to ‘Hands, Face, Space.’

“That way we can save lives and protect our economy.”

Cases are understood to be rising more sharply in the under 18s, with a number of school outbreaks, and also in the over 60s, than other age groups.

The increase in the older age group is worrying as these people are more likely to suffer severe disease, to be hospitalised and to die from the infection.

The cases figures now include the quick lateral flow tests, though, this is not said to be having a major impact on the numbers despite them being trialed in many boroughs across the capital, with the increases being put down to community transmission.

Haringey saw 465 cases in the seven days to December 2, up 148 on the previous week (46.7 per cent), with a rate of 173.1 new cases per 100,000 population.

In Bromley there were 568 cases, up 163 (40.2 per cent) with a rate of 170.9, in Kingston 365 cases, up 91 (33.2 per cent) with a rate of 205.6, Hackney and City of London 481 cases, up 119 (32.9 per cent) with a rate of 165.4, Merton 381 cases, up 87 (29.6 per cent) with a rate of 184.5, Harrow 443 cases, up 93 (26.6 per cent) with a rate of 176.4, Bexley 620 cases, up 123 (24.7 per cent) with a rate of 249.7, Wandsworth 393 cases, up 75 (23.6 per cent)  with a rate of 119.2, Sutton 319 cases, up 59 (22.7 per cent) with a rate of 154.6, Waltham Forest 698 cases, up 110 (18.7 per cent) with a rate of 252, Barking and Dagenham 636 cases, up 94 (17.3 per cent) with a rate of 298.7, Lewisham 346 cases, up 46 (15.3 per cent) with a rate of 113.1.

Islington saw 289 cases, up 36 (14.2 per cent) with a rate of 119.2, Havering 829 cases, up 87 (11.7 per cent) with a rate of 319.4, Newham 857 cases, up 89 (11.6 per cent) with a rate of 242.7, Enfield 645 cases, up 61 (10.4 per cent) with a rate of 193.2, Barnet 648 cases, up 57 (9.6 per cent) with a rate of 163.7, Croydon 562 cases, up 33 (6.2 per cent) with a rate of 145.3, Lambeth 375 cases, up ten (2.7 per cent) with a rate of 115, Southwark 340 cases, up five (1.5 per cent) with a rate of 106.6 and Tower Hamlets 672 cases, up three (0.4 per cent) with a rate of 206.9.

In Hammersmith & Fulham there were 182 cases, down 42 (18.8 per cent) with a rate of 98.3, Brent 473 cases, down 101 (17.6 per cent) with a rate of 143.4, Ealing 547 cases, down 108 (16.5 per cent) with a rate of 160, Kensington and Chelsea 161 cases, down 19 (10.6 per cent) with a rate of 103.1, Hounslow 418 cases, down 48 (10.3 per cent) with a rate of 153.9, Richmond 157 cases, down 16 (9.2 per cent) with a rate of 79.3, Westminster 241 cases, down 11 (4.4 per cent) with a rate of 92.2, Camden 237 cases, down five (2.1 per cent) with a rate of 87.8, Greenwich 446 cases, down six (1.3 per cent) with a rate of 154.9, Hillingdon 507 cases, down six (1.2 per cent) with a rate of 165.2, and Redbridge 899 cases, down four (0.4 per cent) with a rate of 294.5.

Ministers will start to examine the Covid figures in intense detail in around a week, with changes to the tiering allocations set to take place on December 16.

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Professor Kevin Fenton, London director for Public Health England, raised concerns last Friday over the apparent change in the course of the disease, when the squeeze in cases in many parts of the capital was starting to falter, according to official figures.

The seven-day rate for London hit 200 per 100,000 on November 15 before falling to 154.2 on the 27th, but was back at 169.6 on December 2.

In the week to November 24, cases were falling in 30 out of 32 London borough areas.

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