WHO: We are seeing an increase in Covid deaths

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Last week, Denmark declared an end to the pandemic with Prime Minister Mette Frederiksen announcing coronavirus is no longer a “critical threat to society”. A UK medical expert has condemned the PM’s statement saying it could cause people to falsely drop their guard.

On February 1, all restrictions were lifted across the country, including the wearing of face masks.

Night clubs reopened, social distancing measures came to an end and restrictions on the number of people allowed at indoor gatherings were all scrapped.

A sense of relief has been felt across the country, with residents taking to social media to exclaim with joy about their long-overdue freedom.

In response to the news, Nordic journalist Peter Imanuelsen tweeted: “Freedom is returning”, and claimed the “Nordic countries are leading the way for freedom again”.

But coronavirus is far from gone in Denmark with the current infection rate one of the highest in Europe.

The number of positive cases over the last seven day period – as of statistics from January 31 – show that Denmark had the second highest number of new cases in Europe just behind the Faroe Islands, according to Statista.

The Scandinavian country had a total of 5,412.7 new cases per 100,000 population, while the UK had just 917 over the same time period.

With the case rate at one of the highest the country has ever seen, experts have questioned the potentially premature nature of the PM’s announcement.

Dr Bharat Pankhania, a medical and health expert, said Denmark’s Prime Minister was “not correct” to say Covid is no longer a critical threat to society.

When asked when the UK could expect to get a similar declaration, Dr Pankhania told Express.co.uk: “We may never make a similar announcement”.

“Those announcements are just symbolic and ceremonial. By just saying it, it doesn’t mean it has happened. It is an unhelpful statement.

“It’s not over. People may start to say ‘well Denmark said it is over, therefore, it’s over’. No, of course, it’s not over. This is unnecessary and diversionary”.

As well as the statement being incorrect, the medical expert said it could lead people to be less cautious and willing to follow existing coronavirus guidance in their own countries.

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By saying a statement like that, he said: “You’re giving false hope. You’re raising false expectations. You’re causing people to perhaps falsely drop their guard which can lead to consequences.

“My message is that it is important to remain cautious and don’t drop your guard just yet.”

Despite Denmark’s rising cases, the death toll in the country – 531.19 per million population – is far lower than the UK’s at 2,260.69, according to Statista data from January 31.

Dr Bharat Pankhania said one reason for this is because of a lack of funding in the NHS.

The UK government “spends considerably less on our health care service compared to Finland, Denmark and Norway” – the countries with the lowest Covid death toll rates in Europe.

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