COVID-19 deaths are leading to deaths, infections and hospitals in Britain. This week the daily death rate record was reached twice in consecutive days, with 1,610 deaths Tuesday and, in a sharp rise, 1,820 Wednesday. A further 1,290 deaths were announced Thursday, with an eight-year-old child among the latest victims.
21,024 people have died in the first three weeks of 2021, with the UK recording the highest death rate on the planet. This week 283,388 new infections were registered, bringing the majority this year to more than 1 million (1,054,866).
Hospitals reached 39,068 by Monday this week, almost double the height of last year’s first wave. The number of ventilated patients was 3,947.
Data from the National Health Service of England released on Thursday revealed that one in 10 major hospital trusts did not have adult emergency care beds last week.
Governments’ daily counts of diseases do not accurately estimate the number of people infected. The Imperial College REACT-1 infection study is more accurate. In its most recent interim findings based on a 142,900 trial between January 6-15, Imperial estimates that 1.58 per cent of the population had the virus in early January – up from 0.91 sa percent in December. This equates to one in 63 or around 900,000 people infected nationally.
The highest rate of infections was recorded in London, with 2.8 per cent of the population infected, up from 1.21 per cent in early December. Other estimates suggest that the virus could infect up to 5 percent of nearly 10 million of the capital’s population. This week, the London Ambulance Service was tracking 8,500 calls a day – before the pandemic it was handling 5,000 to 6,000 a day. Yesterday, the Defender “NHS staff are preparing to transport patients using two London buses converted to mobile ambulances, in another sign of Covid’s snarling at major health services. home. ”
Diseases are still on the rise despite the lockout imposed by the Conservative government on 5 January. The lockout is significantly more restrictive than the first in March, despite a more contagious new strain of the virus and worse hospitalization rates. The REACT-1 study found that COVID-19 cases rose 50 percent between early December and January 15th.
The study concludes, “In the first 10 days of the third COVID-19 lockout in England in January 2021, the incidence of SARS-CoV-2 was very high with no evidence of a decline. Until the frequency in the community is greatly reduced, health services will remain under severe pressure and the cumulative number of lives lost through this pandemic will continue to increase rapidly. ”
In the first wave of the pandemic the government’s violent herd protection policy killed nearly 20,000 of the most vulnerable people living in care homes. COVID-19 deaths in care homes are on the rise again, doubling in a fortnight in England. The Office for National Statistics recorded 1,260 COVID-19 care home deaths in the two weeks to January 15 – almost double the 661 deaths from two weeks ago. The virus is taking care of life in care homes at an alarming rate, making up 40 per cent of care home deaths in England – up from just over a quarter at the end of December. To date only about 50 per cent of the UK’s 400,000 residents have been vaccinated against the virus.
The extent of the disease is so high that just hours after talk of schools being gradually reopened in March, with schools set to receive just two weeks’ initial warning, forcing the government to turn back. Thursday Financial Times a senior close to Prime Minister Boris Johnson called, “Boris wants this to be the final lock, even if it needs to go further. Awareness must be final about these measures so it seems to side with the scientists. He is careful. ”
Johnson is aware that a growing number of deaths could ignite a social explosion. Later on Thursday, a Downing Street spokesman said it could not be ruled out that locking could last until the end of the summer: “Our position remains that we want to relax restrictions As soon as it is safe to do so, but to do that we need to reduce the spread of the virus and reduce the pressure on the NHS. ”
Johnson must accept a strong public sentiment against exclusion, with many calling for it to be more restrictive. An opinion poll for the Spectator a newspaper saw 61 per cent support for nursery closures and 51 per cent support for the closure of coffee shops and cafes. 75 per cent of those surveyed said government ministers had dealt too slowly with the pandemic.
This was all completely expected. On 17 December, the Socialist Equality Party (UK) issued a statement, “Stop the UK’s winter of death! For urgent action to save a life! ”
The article warned, “The pandemic of coronavirus in the UK is allowed to get out of control. Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s Conservative government is pursuing an assassination policy that is an immediate threat to tens of thousands of lives. ”
Although the government had to reverse its plans to allow the public to travel and mine unhindered for five days over Christmas, it encouraged a 24-hour shopping spree to “save Christmas”, ie, to save the profits of the corporations. .
At that point, 66,000 people had died according to official government measures, with a more accurate count based on COVID-19 deaths recorded on the death certificate closer to 80,000. In the little over four weeks since the SEP report was published, tens of thousands more have died. 94,580 deaths were recorded according to government measurements, and the actual figure recorded by UK statistical bodies – includes those where COVID was mentioned on the death certificate, along with data that more about deaths that have occurred in the last few days – showing that deaths from the virus have surpassed 111,000.
The SEP’s statement said Dr Claudia Paoloni, president of the Association of Hospital and Specialist Consultants, who warned that Christmas plans would see “patients die uselessly and thousands of emergencies go untreated.” Specialist Professor Gabriel Scally also warned, “There is no need to have a merry Christmas and then bury friends and relatives in January and February.”
The SEP explained that the fight against the pandemic is not just a medical issue. It is, above all, a matter of social and political conflict.
The criminal bow and its cabal of people with a herd defense interest on Downing Street are charged with large-scale social murder. But this broad government could only give the lives of more than 111,000 people on the altar of profit and on behalf of the oligarchy that rules Britain with Labor Party bias and their union partners. crafts.
Under the banner of “national unity”, Labor leader Sir Keir Starmer followed the mantra of ancestor Jeremy Corbyn in offering his “helpful challenge” in times of crisis. The trade unions’ response to the pandemic was to enter into talks with the government during the spring lockdown to help what the Trade Union Congress called a “true return to work”. With the turmoil of the union, schools, colleges and universities reopened from September to become the main vectors of the virus. This was linked to how the union suspended any action by workers against the COVID-19 threat.
The SEP warned in its December statement, “The coming weeks and months are crucial. The action taken by employees can now save tens of thousands of lives. We want staff and young people to join our party and build the international social leadership that the working class needs. ”
This call must be taken swiftly by the working class, beginning with the creation of an interconnected network of workplace and neighborhood committees, independent of the trade unions, to combat the struggle. This is a political event and with staff and young people deciding to join the SEP.