The Office for National Statistics Website (ONS) is a mine of information for just about any subject where data can be gathered.
A recent editorial by journalist Ross Clarke in The Spectator took a dip into the ONS Covid-19 data to look at how the number of Coronavirus (Covid-19) deaths compared to ‘Summer Flu’ (aka Influenza and Pneumonia).
See latest Isle of Wight Covid-19 Stats
Covid-19 deaths well below that for Summer Flu
The data makes for interesting reading. It shows that from around mid-June the number of Covid-19 deaths in England has been below that for Summer Flu.
In the week ending 31st July, the number of deaths where Influenza and Pneumonia were recorded on the death certificate totalled 928. For the same week, there were 193 deaths where Covid-19 was recorded on the death certificate.
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As always, data comes with caveats and in this case it’s that there may be some crossover with both Covid-19 and Influenza and Pneumonia being mentioned on the death certificate. As Ross points out in his article, even if you removed the 193 Covid-19 deaths, you’re still left with over 700 deaths due to Summer Flu for that week.
What is also of note is that the statistics show the number of Summer Flu deaths is below the five year average – perhaps helped in part by social distancing measures and many people’s reluctance to venture out to into busy public places.
Use of data challenged by Full Fact
However, the fact checking service, Full Fact, state that this is a misunderstanding of figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).
They say these figures show the number of deaths where influenza, pneumonia or Covid-19 are mentioned on the death certificate, not those where they were listed as the underlying cause of death.
You can read their full explanation on the Full Fact Website.
As the country’s second largest city, Birmingham, reports a sharp rise in the number of confirmed cases of Covid-19 – more than 50 per cent of cases in the last week were people aged 18 to 34 – whether we like it or not, this is a subject that will be us for some time to come.
Article edit
7.50am 24th Aug 2020 – additional information from Full Fact added, excerpt amended and “but it’s not the full picture” added to headline
Thanks to Mike Lambert for the heads-up
Sources: The Spectator and Office for National Statistics
Image: Elena Mozhvilo under CC BY 2.0
