More than 200 Covid-19 related deaths in North at height of Christmas holiday

There were 1,895 Covid-19 related deaths in Northern Ireland in 2020, according to the latest figures from the Northern Ireland Research and Statistics Agency (Nisra).

The Nisra figures published on Friday showed that there were more than 200 coronavirus deaths at the height of the Christmas holiday period in Northern Ireland. There were 115 deaths involving Covid-19 in the week up to Christmas Day with a further 91 deaths occurring in the week up to New Year’s Day.

This brought the total number of coronavirus related deaths in Northern Ireland to 1,895.

Of this total, 1,150 (60.7per cent) deaths took place in hospital, 607 (32 per cent) in care homes, 10 (0.5 per cent) in hospices and 128 (6.8 per cent) at residential addresses or other locations.

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The 617 deaths which occurred in care homes and hospices involved 146 separate establishments.

The comparative number of deaths reported daily by the Department of Health to January 1st was 1,349.

That difference is explained by the fact that health department figures mainly relate to deaths in hospital and patients who had previously tested positive for the virus.

Nisra’s figures go wider in that they relate to death certificates in the wider community where Covid-19 was recorded as a factor in the death. The Nisra figures relate to people who may or may not have previously tested positive for the virus.

Nisra also reported that over the last 40 weeks (since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic), 1,987 “excess deaths” (deaths above the average for the corresponding period in previous years) were registered in Northern Ireland, with the number of “excess deaths” in 2020 totalling 1,728.

People aged 75 and over accounted for two-thirds (65.5 per cent) of all deaths and 77.7 per cent of Covid 19 related deaths registered in 2020 in Northern Ireland.

The North’s health department in its daily afternoon bulletin recorded 20 more deaths taking its total to 1,434.

It also reported 1,500 new positive cases bringing the total to 84,146.

Hospital bed occupancy is at 99 per cent. There are 641 patients receiving Covid treatment in hospitals with 45 in intensive care and 36 on ventilators.

Meanwhile, the Northern Executive held what sources said was a “heated and tense” meeting on Friday to try to resolve a dispute over whether transfer tests for pupils moving from primary to second-level grammar schools should be held this year.

The annual tests are operated by two companies, the Association for Quality Education (AQE), which apply to state or mainly Protestant schools, and the Post Primary Transfer Consortium (PPTC), which apply to mainly Catholic schools. The exams determine what pupils should be allowed enrol in grammar schools which participate in these academic selection exams.

Due to Covid the PPTC cancelled its tests this week while AQE said it would hold a single transfer test on February 27th, public health conditions permitting.

The AQE decision was criticised by Sinn Féin, the SDLP and Alliance which said that tests should be cancelled because of coronavirus.

The DUP however argued that Sinn Féin, the SDLP and Alliance, who oppose the transfer tests, were using coronavirus as a pretext to bring an end to academic selection.

Sources said the ideological differences over academic selection lead to an argumentative meeting of the Executive.

An attempt by Sinn Féin to have an Executive vote on the matter was ruled out of order for procedural reasons by First Minister Arlene Foster.

There are 34 schools that normally use the AQE test. However, by Friday evening five of the AQE-linked schools had decided not to run a transfer test this year – Campbell, Victoria and Belfast Royal Academy schools in Belfast, and Royal School in Dungannon and Strabane Academy, both in Co Tyrone.

The matter finally was put back with DUP education minister Peter Weir telling ministers that he would present a paper on academic selection at a future Executive meeting.