Coronavirus: Wales is now the hardest-hit part of the UK

The coronavirus infection rate in Wales is now significantly higher than anywhere else in the UK – just one month after the end of the fire-break lockdown.

New Covid-19 data shows starkly how the nation’s infection rate has outstripped the rest of the UK while England and Northern Ireland have been in lockdown and Scotland brought in tough lockdown-style restrictions in its Tier 4.

A month on from the end of Wales’ fire-break lockdown on November 9 and the nation’s level of infections is now higher than it was when the restrictions were introduced on October 23 while other parts of the UK have seen their rates fall.

Figures from the UK government show that the seven-day infection rate in Wales has now hit 235.9 cases for every 100k people. This compares to 153.5 in England, 132 in Northern Ireland and 104.9 in Scotland.

Four Welsh councils are also in the 10 hardest-hit local authorities in the UK – with only areas of Kent and Lincolnshire being worse hit.

Another figure that reflects how worrying the data is for Wales is that a county like Pembrokeshire, made up of towns and sparsely-populated rural areas, has a very similar infection rate to the UK’s most densely populated city: 151 cases for every 100k people in the last week in Pembrokeshire and 157.8 for the whole of greater London.

Despite this, Wales has more gentle coronavirus restrictions than any any of the other three UK nations impose on their hardest hit areas. Scotland, Northern Ireland and England all ban all pubs and restaurants from opening in their highest tiers and Scotland has closed all but non-essential retail in its Tier 4 areas while Northern Ireland has closed non-essential retail until next Friday.

We’ve looked at the coronavirus infection rates for Wales’ council areas to compare them to local authority areas in England, Scotland and Northern Ireland.

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The figures show that Blaenau Gwent has the fourth highest infection rate of any UK local authority with 502.4 cases for every 100,000 people in the last seven days up to December 1. The three areas higher are in Kent and Lincolnshire in England.

Neath Port Talbot is the sixth hardest-hit local authority in the UK with 464 cases for every 100k people while Torfaen with an infection rate of 402 would be seventh and Merthyr Tydfil with 394 eighth.

Kent has five areas in the 10 authorities with the highest Covid rates in the UK, Wales has four and Lincolnshire one.

Swale, Kent: 577.7
Medway, Kent: 559.7
Boston, Lincolnshire: 528.7
Blaenau Gwent, 502.4
Thanet, Kent: 471.4
Neath Port Talbot 464.4
Torfaen 402.3
Merthyr Tydfil 394.5
Gravesham, Kent: 389.9
Maidstone, Kent: 382.9

Swansea, which has an infection rate of 366 cases over the same period, and Rhondda Cynon Taf with 365 cases, are just outside the top 10 at 12th and 13th.

The local authorities in Scotland or Northern Ireland have far lower infection rates – despite facing much tougher coronavirus restrictions.

In total, there are 13 Welsh councils with worse infection rates than the worst-hit Scottish local authority. You can see all of Wales’ council rates here.

In Scotland, the worst-hit area in the seven days to December 1 was Clackmannanshire with 205 cases for every 100,000 people and Renfriwshire 177. East Renfriwshire had a rate of 158.7, South Lanarkshire 157.2, North Lanarkshire 154.7 and Glasgow City 147.

All of those are in Scotland’s Tier 4 which has shut all but essential retail, closed holiday accommodation and all pubs and restaurants.

In Northern Ireland, the worst hit area in the seven-days to December 3 was Mid and East Antrim with 235.2 cases for every 100,000 people. The only other areas with rates over 200 were Derry City and Strabane with 209.1 cases for every 100k people and Mid Ulster with 201.3 cases for every 100k people.

All of Northern Ireland is in a lockdown similar to Scotland’s Tier 4 restrictions.

These are the latest Covid-19 figures for every local authority in England. The figure in brackets is the total number of cases and the subsequent two figures refer to the previous week.