England's Covid dilemma: how to ease lockdown without deepening social divisions

Inequalities in vaccine take-up rates highlight need for government to build trust in deprived communities

• Covid vaccine strategy will unravel' unless inequalities addressed
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Stark variations in Covid vaccine uptake between richer and poorer areas of England, together with stubbornly high" coronavirus rates in some deprived communities, pose serious questions about the measures needed for restrictions to be safely eased.

Experts fear Covid could become a disease of the poor, with wealthy communities protected through vaccination and having lower exposure to the virus, while more deprived communities are left at greater risk as a result of lower jab uptake, greater prevalence of underlying health conditions and greater exposure to the virus through factors such overcrowded housing and public-facing jobs.