Sheffield City Region Mayor Dan Jarvis says there is a 'clear link' between deprivation and Covid-19 infection rates

Sheffield City Region Mayor Dan Jarvis said there was a clear connection between inequality and the disease.

He told Sky News’s Sophy Ridge earlier today (Sunday): “Of course I’m concerned. There are striking similarities when you look at those places that are on the top 10 list of affected areas.

“I think there is a clear link with deprivation."

Figures released last week revealed that of the top 10 areas for infection rates nationally, four were in Yorkshire.

Bradford, Barnsley, Rotherham and Kirklees were among the districts outlined as having the highest number of Covid-19 cases per 100,000 people, with Bradford second behind Leicester for infection rates.

However, Leicester, which has had tighter lockdown restrictions imposed at a local level, still has more than double Bradford's infection rate of 69.4 per 100,000.

Mr Jarvis added: “I think what Government has to do is ensure that all of the support and, critically, the resource is available to those areas to make sure that they have got everything that they need to ensure that the figures go in the right direction.”

Mr Jarvis said the coronavirus outbreak had highlighted economic inequality.

He said: “The coronavirus has brought to the fore many of the structural inequalities that we’ve been dealing with for generations, not least in terms of long-standing health inequalities and what I want us to do is use this moment as one of Covid being a catalyst for change.

“We’ve got to act in the short-term to keep a laser-like focus on the figures but also in the medium and longer-term invest in the longer-term health and wellbeing of our population.”

Mr Jarvis called on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to use his economic statement on Wednesday to deal with inequality issues.

He said: “I think this is an incredibly important moment for the country and what I want to see is the Chancellor demonstrate his commitment to investing in our economy, to tackling the longer term structural inequalities that we’ve faced for far too long. I think it’s a really important role for devolution to play here.

“This needs to be a moment of renewal so we’ve brought forward a renewal action plan which would secure 50,000 jobs, support 25,000 businesses and create 3,000 apprenticeships but we need the Chancellor to support that, to invest in it, as part of a New Deal for the north… a big opportunity for the Chancellor, he is a Yorkshire MP, on Wednesday and I hope that he takes it.”