UK Records 63k Excess COVID-19 Deaths Since Lockdown Introduced

By Staff, Agencies

Excess deaths in the UK have surpassed 63,500 since the end of March.

According to figures published by the Office for National Statistics this morning, there were 57,961 excess deaths in England and Wales between March 21 and May 29 2020.

The National Records of Scotland found there were 4,729 excess deaths in Scotland between March 23 and May 31, while the Northern Ireland Statistics & Research Agency put the figure for Northern Ireland at 906 excess deaths between March 21 and May 29.

Together, this means that the total number of excess deaths in the UK since lockdown was introduced has reached 63,596.

Epidemiologists say excess mortality – deaths from all causes that exceed the five-year average for the time of year – is the best way of gauging the number to have died from a disease outbreak because it is internationally comparable.

Our data team are going through the numbers now – we'll bring you more analysis on this within the next hour.