ALMOST 4,000 people in UK care homes have died of coronavirus, it has been revealed - taking the total number of deaths from the disease in Britain to more than 26,000.
Speaking at the UK Government's daily press briefing this afternoon, foreign secretary Dominic Raab confirmed 3,811 deaths had been recorded in care home settings - as these had not been included in official death figures previously, this takes the number of deaths across the UK to more than 26,000.
Yvonne Doyle, medical expert at Public Health England, said the new figures show "how dangerous the virus is", but added that it is needed in order to form a "better picture to help the UK control the trajectory of this virus".
Asked whether the number of deaths in care homes could have been avoided if testing had been better, Mr Raab said: "We take the actions on the best evidence we have at the time. The key thing for us is to manage the transmission now into care homes.
"On top of testing and personal protective equipment (PPE) that is the single most important aspect for protecting care homes."
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Ms Doyle added: "One of the very sad things we've found is when older people get this virus, they demise quickly.
"We've now received huge insights. Whether testing would have made a huge difference or not is impossible to say."
Mr Raab also revealed that the government is waiting on evidence from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) as to whether the lockdown guidelines are working, before they move on to a second phase.
"As we look to the future it is key we continue to boost capacity and we need to see sustained and consistent falls in deaths," he said.
"We must also see further reductions in the rate of infection to manageable levels, and we must be confident the NHS will be able to cope with demands.
"Critically, we need to be confident any adjustments will not risk a second peak. That would be harmful to public health and would lead to further economic pain on the country."
Mr Raab added that the lockdown will not be eased until ministers know a "second peak" can be avoided.
He says this is a "real risk", which could result in "many more deaths" and further "economic pain" with a second lockdown.
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