Spain's March-May COVID-19 death toll nearly 70pc above official count

MADRID: Spain's coronavirus death toll between March and May was almost 70% higher than the official count at the time, data from the National Statistics Institute (INE) showed on Thursday, prompting the opposition to complain of a government cover-up.

Spain was among the worst-hit European countries during the first wave of infections, with Health Ministry data showing fatalities approaching 900 per day by the end of March - the first month when the pandemic claimed lives in Spain.

The latest INE statistics showed 32,652 people died of a confirmed case of coronavirus over the period, while another 13,032 were suspected to have died of the virus after showing compatible symptoms but were never diagnosed.

COVID-19 indirectly contributed to the deaths of a further 4,218 people over the period, the INE also said.

That compares with an official Health Ministry death toll at the end of May of just 27,127. It now stands at 47,344.

Several other sources, including excess mortality statistics, which compare overall deaths across the country with historical averages, have suggested the official data underestimated the true coronavirus death toll.

Asked about the INE data, a health ministry spokeswoman said the discrepancy was due to differing data-collection systems.

While the INE data, based on death certificates, is more comprehensive, results are not obtained until six to nine months after a death, she said. Health ministry data is less exhaustive but available more rapidly, the spokeswoman added.

Pablo Casado, leader of the conservative opposition People's Party, accused the left-wing coalition government of hiding the real figures.

"Spain does not deserve a government that lies and hides Covid deaths," he tweeted.

Since Spain entered a second state of emergency in October, transmission has dropped sharply. The infection rate fell on Thursday below 190 cases per 100,000 people, measured over the past 14 days, for the first time since August.

The Health Ministry reported 7,955 new cases, bringing the total to 1.72 million.

Despite the falling infection rate, England removed Spain's Canary Islands from its safe travel list, meaning returning travellers will have to quarantine from Saturday, the same rule applied to the rest of Spain.