Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the difference between the Public Health England and the World Health Organisation's classification of deaths from covid-19, if he will publish figures for deaths from covid-19 in the UK according to the WHO definition that Covid-19 should be recorded on the medical certificate of cause of death for all decedents where the disease caused, or is assumed to have caused, or contributed to death.

Public Health England (PHE) uses two definitions of a death in a person with COVID-19 in England. Firstly, the total number of deaths of people who received a positive test result for COVID-19 and died within 28 days of the first positive test reported on or up to the date of death or reporting date. People who died more than 28 days after their first positive test are not included, whether or not COVID-19 was the cause of death. Secondly, the total number of deaths of people who received a positive test result for COVID-19 and either died within 60 days of the first positive test or where COVID-19 was mentioned on their death certificate.

Data for both definitions of a COVID-19 death are available in PHE’s National COVID-19 surveillance reports which are available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/national-covid-19-surveillance-reports