Apparently, mortality was up 33% in England and Wales during January.
"Experts say flu could be the driving force, although the precise causes will not be known for some time. Prof John Newton, chief knowledge officer at Public Health England (PHE), which monitors death rates, said there had been a substantial increase in the numbers since Christmas. Although it was less apparent from the raw data, PHE's own analysis has found that - even taking the season into account - deaths among elderly people have now been significantly elevated for six weeks. The death rate has risen by 3,700 people a week since early December. Of that more than 3,000 are accounted for by over-75s. The usual key causes of excess winter deaths are cold weather, influenza and gastrointestinal infection."Here's a BBC article,
Death rate up by a third in January:
http://www.bbc.com/news/health-31124320
