Ross Clark Ross Clark

What we still don’t know about Covid in Leicester

Photo by Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Just why has Leicester been locked down, its economy placed back in the deep freeze and many more of its citizens condemned to lose their jobs? Since the announcement, the country has gone back into panic mode. Leicester, according to much reporting, is in the midst of a second spike – and is surely just the first of many towns and cities that will have to be placed back in lockdown. Listeners to the Today programme on Wednesday morning, in particular, will have been left in no two minds: we are in the foothills of a resurgence which could overwhelm the whole country.

Finally, on Wednesday evening, Public Health England published the full data for Leicester – along with a preliminary report from its rapid investigation team. And what does it conclude? It isn’t even sure there is a second spike. The increase in the number of cases could, it suspects, simply be a result of increased testing.

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