London's Covid-19 outbreak sees 12 boroughs top key infection threshold of 100 cases per 100,000 people

 

Twelve London boroughs have seen Covid-19 infection rates tip the worrying threshold of 100 cases per 100,000 people, amid fears the capital is hurtling towards Tier 2 restrictions. 

Richmond upon Thames (140.4), Hackney and City of London (133.1) and Ealing (132.5) had the highest daily new cases per 100,000 people in the week to October 8, according to Government statistics. None of the 32 boroughs had tipped the threshold before now, according to separate Public Health England data.

Croydon (69.8), Bromley (67.1) and Sutton (64), all in the south, sit at the other end of the scale with the fewest new cases per day — but all of them have still seen a significant hike in infections over the past month. 

 The average coronavirus infection rate across London's boroughs is 94.15 cases per 100,000 people, according to the most recent Department of Health data — the equivalent of nearly one person in every 1,000 in the last week. 

It comes after Mayor Sadiq Khan said it is 'inevitable' the capital will pass a 'trigger point' to join swathes of the North West in the higher Tier 2 coronavirus restrictions in the 'next few days'. It would see the city's nine million residents banned from seeing their friends and family indoors, including in pubs and restaurants. 

Mr Khan and other London bosses are in support of a national two-week 'circuit break' lockdown across the whole of England to stem rising infections to avoid 'sleepwalking into a bleak winter'. But Tory London mayoral candidate Shaun Bailey slammed Mr Khan as 'incredibly irresponsible' and accused him of 'governing by press release' for supporting drastic action without clear scientific backing. 

Reports say 100 cases per 100,000 people is considered one of the thresholds for an area being moved into Tier 2. But ministers are bound to take into consideration an array of different sets of statistics, including ones that show the speed of growth, hospitalisations and deaths. 

Data shows hospitalisations for Covid-19 in London have barely risen over the past month, despite cases having increased. Almost 5,000 infected patients were being treated by NHS doctors during the darkest days of the first wave in April — but the figure currently stands at around 300.

SOURCE