Leeds Covid hospital numbers double in recent weeks, says council health chief

It follows the introduction this week of the government’s three-tier Covid local lockdown system, which saw Leeds placed in the second-highest range of measures, known as “tier two”.

So far, only Liverpool has been put in the top tier of measures, which see pubs and gyms close in an attempt to stop the spread of the virus.

The chief executive of Leeds City Council claimed there was a chance that the city could go into tier three of lockdown in future.

Leeds City Council’s director of public health Victoria Eaton said the infection rate was continuing to rise in Leeds, currently sitting at 422 per 100,000.

She said: “Compared to the rest of West Yorkshire, it is higher – Bradford is at just over 300 and the rest of West Yorkshire is between 200-230, so we are working closely with West Yorkshire colleagues on the position regionally, but we have the highest rate in West Yorkshire.

“We have our highest rates still in our young adults, so for the 16-29-year-old age group we have the highest numbers of cases and the highest rates.

“Even though this is challenging for our student population and young adults across the city, we are seeing high cases and a relatively high rate right across the city. There is not any part of the city that is not challenged by this virus.

“The other thing we are keeping a close eye on is how the virus is spreading through different age groups, particularly older adults. We are seeing more gradual rises among all age groups now, including the over 65s, which we are concerned about.

“We are also keeping a close eye on our hospital numbers. We are looking at those rising at the moment – we have seen some doubling of numbers over the last weeks of people in hospital with a positive test.

“That is an area of concern and in terms of the age range of those people in hospital, we are also seeing a significant number of older people, both over 65s and over 85s.”

The current tier two restrictions for Leeds are effectively a simplified form of the restrictions which were already in place – with different households not allowed to mix indoors, but allowed to meet outside providing they conform to the rule of six.

Leeds City Council chief executive Tom Riordan said: “This is a really pivotal moment for us again and there is a prospect that we could go into Tier 3.

“What we’ve got to do is make sure we are doing everything that we can, collectively and individually, to make sure that we are getting on top of the virus, and we also expect, from what the Government has said, that we will have very much an equal conversation with them about what needs to happen and when.

“I think the simplification is a welcome step and the three tiers will make it easier for people to understand it’s against the law to mix indoors but it’s okay within the rule of six to mix outdoors.

“This is a chance for us to reset a little bit – we all want to meet everybody at Christmas.

“The numbers are at a significant level in every ward, it’s not about one part of the city causing a problem for the rest – it’s all of us.”

It is understood businesses in areas under tier three would be given financial support to mitigate against forced closures.

Leeds City Council leader Judith Blake would not be drawn on the question of whether Leeds is likely to enter tier three of lockdown restrictions any time soon, but hinted that is something the government had been pushing for.

She said: “At the moment, we are still in discussions with government and we need to understand what they are offering us in terms of support – all the areas have been told that we are going into tier two, but we are on a watchlist.

“I think the preference from number 10 is that more areas have to go into tier three but we need to know what impact that would have on the economy and public health.”