Coronavirus: Another 17 deaths recorded in Northern Ireland

There have been a further 17 deaths from Covid-19 in Northern Ireland, according to the North's Public Health Agency.

The news comes as the British government confirmed a further £50 million (about €57 million) of funding to support the Northern Ireland Executive as it tackles the coronavirus pandemic.

The funding is part of a package of measures announced by the UK’s local government secretary Robert Jenrick on Saturday afternoon.

Responding to the move, Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Brandon Lewis said: “From the outset of this coronavirus crisis, the UK government has committed to doing whatever it takes to support the devolved administrations in their fight to defeat this virus. The additional £50 million for the Northern Ireland Executive announced today will help bolster vital public services as they respond to the challenges of coronavirus.

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“Today’s funding, in addition to the support offered to people and businesses across Northern Ireland through UK-wide initiatives, reinforces our commitment to ensuring that everyone in Northern Ireland is able to access the resources and support they need at this incredibly challenging time.”

Discrepancy in figures

The latest fatalities bring the Public Health Agency’s figure for the total death toll in Northern Ireland from the coronavirus pandemic to 193.

However, separate weekly statistics provided by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (Nisra) on Friday indicated there had been 39 deaths outside hospitals – in care homes and home addresses – that are suspected of being related to Covid-19, which would bring the overall death toll to 232.

The discrepancy, as explained by Nisra, is mainly down to the fact that suspected coronavirus deaths in care homes and hospices were not included in the Public Health Agency (PHA) figures up to April 10th.

Of the 118 deaths recorded by the PHA up to April 10th, the vast majority occurred in hospitals.

The Nisra statistics prompted trade unions in Northern Ireland to call for more resources to be urgently deployed to community settings such as care homes and for domiciliary carers.

On Friday, the PHA also reported 137 new confirmed cases of coronavirus, leaving the total number of cases in Northern Ireland at 2,338. So far 15,025 people have been tested for the virus in Northern Ireland.