422 further coronavirus cases in Hounslow

The number of coronavirus cases in Hounslow increased by 422 over the weekend which followed the end of free testing in England, official figures show.

The withdrawal of free tests for most people in the country on April 1 means the figures are not an accurate reflection of the number of people with Covid.

A total of 92,299 cases had been confirmed in Hounslow when the UK coronavirus daily dashboard was updated on April 4 (Monday), up from 91,877 on Friday.

The cumulative rate of infection in Hounslow, which covers the whole pandemic, stands at 33,963 cases per 100,000 people, far higher than the England average of 31,806.

In England, Scotland and Northern Ireland, if one person tests positive for the virus more than 90 days after the first infection, two infection episodes will be recorded, according to the UK Health Security Agency.

Across the UK, the number of recorded cases increased by 142,807 over the last 24 hours, to 21,359,681.

England’s change in testing requirements means the reported number of coronavirus cases in the UK is also likely to be an underestimate.

The number of coronavirus deaths were revised down over the weekend in Hounslow.

The dashboard shows 667 people had died in the area by April 4 (Monday) – down from 668 on Friday.

It means there have been no deaths in the past week, which is a decrease on three the previous week.

They were among 19,188 deaths recorded across London.

The figures include anyone who died within 28 days of a positive test result for Covid-19, and whose usual residence was in Hounslow.

Daily death counts are revised each day, with each case backdated to the actual date of death, so some areas might see their figures revised down.

Figures reported on a Monday are likely to be lower as a result of a lag in reporting deaths over the weekend.

The figures also show that nearly half of people in Hounslow have received a booster dose of a Covid-19 vaccine.

The latest figures show 136,881 people had received a booster or third dose by April 3 (Sunday) – 46% of those aged 12 and over, based on the number of people on the National Immunisation Management Service database.

A total of 199,013 people (66%) had received two jabs by that date.

Across England, 67% of people aged 12 and above had received a booster.

Unlike at local level, the national rate was calculated using mid-2020 population estimates from the Office for National Statistics.