The ONS data show that Covid fell to fourth place in the leading causes of death in England, from third last November. The death rate was only slightly higher than the five-year average (2015 to 2019) for flu and pneumonia.

In Wales, the Covid death rate was significantly below the five-year average for flu and pneumonia, at 59.3 cases per 100,000 compared to 73.2 per 100,000. Of the 49,428 deaths registered in December, 5.4 per cent were due to Covid compared to 6.6 per cent in November.

Deaths from the omicron surge are unlikely to show in the December data, so numbers will be added in the coming weeks.

The provisional figures show that Covid was the leading cause of death in England last year, with 113.8 deaths per 100,000 people. The second leading cause was dementia and Alzheimer’s disease, with 102.6 deaths per 100,000 people. In Wales, ischaemic heart disease was the leading cause of death, slightly higher than Covid.

The latest infection data from the ONS show that, in the week ending Jan 15, the percentage of people testing positive for coronavirus has decreased across all regions except for the North East and South West, where trends are uncertain.

Mark Drakeford, the Welsh First Minister, told a Welsh government briefing that the country had passed the peak of omicron infections, saying: “After many difficult and worrying weeks, I’m very pleased to say the situation has improved significantly.”