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Downing Street has denied that the G7 summit is causing a rapid rise in Covid-19 cases in Cornwall, an increase that raises serious concerns over additional tourist pressures on the region in the summer weeks .
Recent seven-day case rates have risen rapidly for Cornwall and the Isles of Scilly, from 4.9 per 100,000 people on June 3 to 130.6 per 100,000 people on June 16.
The epidemics among students, as well as the impact of people traveling to and from Cornwall during mid-term, are believed to have contributed significantly to the increase.
There have been major outbreaks in Carbis Bay, where the G7 summit was held, as well as nearby St Ives, and Newquay West, where many delegates have stayed.
Rates are currently high in Ponsanooth, Mabe Burnthouse and Constantine, where the outbreak has been linked to an outbreak at the Penryn campus shared by the universities of Exeter and Falmouth.
Andrew George, the former Lib Dem MP for St Ives who is now an adviser in Cornwall, said the government must release its risk assessment for the summit, a request which he says has been denied.
The correlation between the G7 and the Covid-19 workload tsunami in St Ives / Carbis Bay and Falmouth is undeniable, he told the Press Association.
This should prompt public bodies to at least keep an open mind about the link between the two. Those responsible for that decision and the management and assessment of Covid-19 cases after the G7 summit should be held accountable for their decisions and actions.
On Monday, a spokesperson for Boris Johnson denied a link between the event and the increase in cases.
We are confident that there have been no cases of transmission to local residents. All the participants were tested, everyone involved in the work of the G7 was also tested during their work on the summit, he said. We have always said, after moving to the third stage, that we will see cases increase across the country. This is what was happening.
Concerns have been expressed that people indirectly linked to the G7 summit could be associated with the rise, with police, reception venues and a protest camp in St Ives all reporting cases of the virus.
Rowland Kao, professor of epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh who contributes to Sage’s Spi-M modeling subgroup, said Cornwall is not an outlier for vaccination or the levels of the Delta variant, suggesting that other factors are behind the rate hike.
These, he said, can include low infection rates in previous waves, meaning those who are not yet vaccinated are also unlikely to have natural protection as well as regimens. seasonal work and increased mixing between working locals.
Of course, any risk would have been exacerbated by the large number of people arriving in Cornwall both for the G7 summit and for recreation, increasing both overcrowding and contact, he said.
Dr Michael Head, a senior global health researcher at the University of Southampton, also said a mix of factors was likely at play.
Although the arrival of the G7 participants may have had an impact on the numbers we are currently seeing [in Cornwall], the cases mainly concern 15-24 year olds. Those populations will be mostly unvaccinated, and there may well have been quite a bit of travel to tourist sites in the last week of the semester, he said.
The rise in Cornish cases is likely to raise questions about the prospects for other UK holiday hotspots, with the public now urged to avoid international travel.
Officials believe that a vaccination campaign, particularly targeting young adults, before school holidays is now possible with the four-week delay before the lockdown restrictions are finally eased.
The overall expectation is that the mixing in schools and related contacts with parents and those working in the sector will decrease, conversely, this also means that summer vacation spots like Cornwall can expect to more, Kao said.
The net effect is expected to be relatively positive, but vacation spots are more likely to [experience] higher infection levels and therefore be at greater risk for additional hospitalizations. And in that case, yes, the vaccinations in those areas will definitely help.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock confirmed on Monday that people in England who received both doses may soon no longer need to self-isolate if told by the NHS Covid-19 app that they are come into close contact with someone infected with the virus.
Hancock said a system was being tested to allow people to avoid isolating those who were fully inoculated but who had been identified as close contact with someone who had tested positive for Covid as long as they were doing a lateral flow test every day.
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