You asked
Please could I have details of how many people living in the UK died because of influenza in the year 2020/21 And also how many people died in the same year 2020/21 with covid 19 being the main cause of death up to the date of this email.
We said
Thank you for your request.
We are responsible for the provision of mortality statistics for England and Wales. National Records Scotland (NRS) and the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) are responsible for statistics pertaining to Scotland and Northern Ireland. They can be contacted at foi@nrscotland.gov.uk and info@nisra.gov.uk respectively.
However, please see the following information we have for England and Wales related to your request.
Figure 2 of the following bulletin, Deaths registered weekly in England and Wales, provides data showing the number of deaths from Week 1 of 2020 to the 22 January 2021 from influenza and pneumonia, and COVID-19.
We present our figures in two categories: "due to" an illness and "involving" and illness.
"Due to" influenza and pneumonia/COVID-19 refers only to deaths where influenza, pneumonia or COVID-19 was recorded as the underlying cause of death.
"Involving" influenza and pneumonia/COVID-19 refers to deaths that had influenza, pneumonia or COVID-19 mentioned anywhere on the death certificate, whether as an underlying cause or not.
Please see the 'download data' option at the bottom of Figure 2 for these statistics.
Please also see the following totals, which have been summed from this publication. These figures are totals from Week 1 of 2020 to 22 January 2021:
- Deaths involving Influenza and Pneumonia (underlying or secondary cause): 127,575
- Deaths due to Influenza and Pneumonia (underlying cause): 21,614
- Deaths involving COVID-19 (underlying or secondary cause): 102,554
- Deaths due to COVID-19 (underlying cause): 92,913
Influenza and pneumonia figures are presented together in this bulletin. Analysis showing the number of influenza deaths separately from pneumonia deaths in 2020 will be available once data are finalised in the summer of 2021. There will be available in our Deaths Registered Series and on our NOMIS webservice.
If you would like to discuss these statistics further, please contact Health.Data@ons.gov.uk.