UK suffers highest excess death rate in the world during coronavirus crisis, figures suggest - The Sun

THE UK has suffered the highest rate of excess deaths during the coronavirus pandemic among countries with comparable data, new figures suggest.

The overall number of excess deaths in the UK is also higher than any country in Europe and second only to the US in global terms, according to data collected by the Financial Times.

The periods which were used for comparison are from when death rates in individual countries climbed above five-year averages and include all of the European countries hit hard by coronavirus.

Speaking of countries' overall death tolls - not excess deaths - Sir David Spiegelhalter, a statistician and a professor at the University of Cambridge, said: "This is not Eurovision — it’s pretty pointless to try to rank them.".

The measure of excess deaths could provide a better reflection on how countries have handled the pandemic so far, with Professor Chris Whitty describing it as a "key metric" in monitoring the handling of infectious diseases.

The level of excess deaths in hard-hit European countries, including Italy and Spain, are beginning to return close to normal levels.

It means death rates in those countries are unlikely to overtake the UK unless they suffer a second wave of infections.

The stages at which countries imposed their lockdowns have also had an effect on mortality rates.

Countries such as Germany and Norway, which imposed lockdown restrictions early on in the pandemic, have suffered much lower levels of excess deaths to the UK.

If we can believe the data from other countries, then the UK has done badly in terms of excess deaths.

David Spiegelhalter said: “If we can believe the data from other countries, then the UK has done badly in terms of excess deaths.