THE number of people who have died from the coronavirus in Gwent declined by 80 per cent in the week to May 22, compared with the same period three weeks earlier, figures from the Office for National Statistics reveal.

In the week May 15-22 (registered to May 30), nine people from Gwent died with coronavirus mentioned on their death certificate.

But in the week April 24-May 1, 46 people died.

The difference represents an 80 per cent decline in the number of people who have died with Covid-19 in the region.

In the week May 15-22, four people from Monmouthshire died with the coronavirus – all four died in a care home setting.

Three people from Newport died, with one in a care home setting and one in hospital.

READ MORE: No new cases of the coronavirus in Newport, Torfaen, Blaenau Gwent or Monmouthshire

Two people from Caerphilly died in a hospital setting and one person died in Torfaen while at home; there were no deaths reported in Blaenau Gwent.

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Unlike the daily Public Health Wales (PHW) data – which only includes lab-confirmed coronavirus deaths – the ONS statistics include any mention of Covid-19 on a person’s death certificate.

Since the outbreak began, 463 people have died with the coronavirus in Gwent – 196 more than has been reported by PHW.

A spokesperson for PHW said: “The Office for National Statistics reports on both confirmed and suspected COVID-19 deaths in England and Wales using data available on completion of the death registration process.”

The Aneurin Bevan University Health Board has had more deaths from covid-19 than any other health board area, though this may be due to the fact that Gwent saw higher cases of Covid-19 in the earlier stages of the pandemic.