"Quarter of new Covid cases in Coventry are from abroad"

It includes India, where a new variant has devastated the country



A quarter of recent coronavirus cases in Coventry have come from international travellers, sparking concern in the city.

Director of Public Health Liz Gaulton said new overseas variants and international travel was “causing the most concern” at the moment.

India is the latest country which has been added to a government red list banning travel to the UK over fears of a new Covid variant.

The country is battling a devastating Covid surge with 350,000 new infections on Monday and 2,800 deaths alone, leaving hospitals overwhelmed.

One in four new Covid cases in Coventry since April 13 have come from international travellers, with India among the countries people have returned from.

Ms Gaulton discussed the problem at a health and wellbeing board this week and issued a reminder for people to follow the rules around international travel, stressing non-essential travel is not permitted.

She told Coventry Live after the meeting: “In the past 14 days (since April 13) there were 156 new positive cases in Coventry, of which 38 are international travellers from amber countries (24.4 per cent).

“Due to the small numbers, we are unable to provide a breakdown by country – but the returnees reflect the city’s diverse communities and include residents returning from Poland, India, Pakistan, Austria and Nigeria."

Due to the small numbers, we are unable to provide a breakdown by country...

I call bullsh*t!