Pressure is growing on the government to scrap the easing of coronavirus restrictions over Christmas with health professionals warning the move could overwhelm the NHS and contribute to the loss of “many lives”.

This of course would come on top of the many lives already lost in the UK to Covid-19, a staggering toll that currently stands at 64,908, according to official figures. In the week up to Tuesday, 2,874 people were reported to have died within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test.

No part of the country has been spared, with London taking the brunt of deaths, nearly four-and-a-half times more than the second worst hit area, Lancashire. 

The figures below are deaths within 28 days of a positive test.

The place where Covid has killed the most people in the UK

1. London total deaths – 7,491 deaths / (83.6) per 100,000 people
2. Lancashire 1,691 (138.6)
3. Kent 1,642 (103.8)
4. Essex 1,514 (101.7)
5. Birmingham 1,457 (127.6)
6. Staffordshire 1,260 (143.3)
7. Hertfordshire 1,041 (87.5)
8. Surrey 987 (82.5)
9. Derbyshire 959 (119.5)
10. Hampshire 936 (67.7)
11. Nottinghamshire 870 (105)
12. Leeds 859 (108.3)
13. County Durham 816 (153.9)
14. Lincolnshire 803 (105.5)
15. Northamptonshire 779 (103.4)
16. Liverpool 746 (149.8)
17. Bradford 726 (134.5)
18. Sheffield 713 (121.9)
19. Glasgow City 699 (110.4)
20. Wigan 690 (209.9)
21. Manchester 655 (118.5)
22. Leicestershire 649 (91.9)
23. Suffolk 616 (80.9)
24. Cumbria 600 (120)
25. Warwickshire 591 (102.3)

The areas of London where Covid has killed the most people 

1. Croydon total deaths – 422 deaths / (109.1) per 100,000 people
2. Brent 415 (125.8)
3. Havering 389 (149.9)
4. Barnet 372 (94)
5. Redbridge 344 (112.7)
6. Harrow 319 (127)
7. Ealing 308 (90.1)
8. Newham 281 (79.6)
9. Enfield 272 (81.5)
10. Bromley 270 (81.2)
11. Hillingdon 260 (84.7)
12. Lambeth 256 (78.5)
13. Bexley 243 (97.9)
14. Lewisham 238 (77.8)
15. Waltham Forest 236 (85.2)
16. Hounslow 228 (84)
17. Greenwich 209 (72.6)
18. Wandsworth 205 (62.2)
19. Merton 201 (97.3)
20. Hackney and City of London 201 (69.1)
21. Barking and Dagenham 196 (92.1)
22. Haringey 188 (70)
23. Sutton 180 (87.2)
24. Southwark 175 (54.9)
25. Tower Hamlets 164 (50.5)
26. Westminster 151 (57.8)
27. Richmond upon Thames 135 (68.2)
28. Hammersmith and Fulham 131 (70.8)
29. Kingston upon Thames 151 (85.1)
30. Camden 126 (46.7)
31. Islington 121 (49.9)
32. Kensington and Chelsea 104 (66.6)

On Tuesday, the British Medical Journal and Health Service Journal published a rare joint editorial calling for the “rash” decision to relax social distancing measures over the festive period to be scrapped.

The places in the UK where Covid has killed the fewest people

1. Comhairle nan Eilean Siar total deaths –1 death / (3.7) per 100,000 people
2. Orkney Islands 2 (9)
3. Shetland Islands 6 (26.2)
4. Moray 14 (14.6)
5. Rutland 23 (57.6)
6. Highland 33 (14)
7. Clackmannanshire 37 (71.8)
8. Fermanagh and Omagh 39 (33.2)
9. Argyll and Bute 49 (57.1)
10. Scottish Borders 49 (42.4)

Reducing the planned easing may further anger Tory backbenchers who oppose restrictions, but a poll suggested the majority of Britons believe the relaxation should be scrapped.

The YouGov survey of 3,856 adults on Tuesday indicated that 57% believe the plans should be dropped and that current rules should remain in place during the festive period.

Some 31% said the easing should go ahead as planned, while 12% said they were unsure.