A LOOK at statistics around the world show that Basingstoke and Deane has registered almost as many coronavirus-related deaths as the whole of Australia.

Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show that 101 people have died in the borough as of May 22.

That compares with 102 in Australia – a country of some 25 million people.

Basingstoke and Deane, by comparison, is home to around 180,000 people.

That means almost the same number of deaths despite the borough’s population being less than one per cent that of Australia.

The borough has also registered more deaths than a host of European nations with populations that run into the millions, including Estonia, Lithuania, Albania, Slovakia and Azerbaijan.

Reports on Twitter this weekend suggested that Basingstoke’s death toll had already surpassed that of Australia.

And while the ONS numbers do not quite back this up, new data is set to be covering up to May 29 is set to be released on Tuesday.

Basingstoke and Deane currently registers around six new deaths per week, based on a four-point moving average, meaning the borough could soon surpass the number of deaths in Australia.

Although, the number of weekly deaths recorded has dropped in recent weeks, with just two registered for the seven days between May 15 and May 22.

Australia’s low death toll has been attributed to a number of factors.

In April, the Daily Mail reported that Australia ‘lead the world in testing for coronavirus’ with the highest rate of testing per capita, equating to more than one per cent of the population being tested.

Limits on social gatherings were imposed early on, initially forbidding meetings of more than 500 people, then 10 and eventually just two, while borders were closed to non-nationals as early as March, with only a handful of exceptions to the rule.

Anyone, including nationals, arriving in the country from overseas was also required to self-isolate for two weeks. The UK will be requiring all arrivals to do the same as of tomorrow (Monday, June 8).

Other factors such as population density would likely have had an on the spread of the virus, with Australia’s population spread over a far larger area than in the UK.

Speaking to the Independent in April, Australian epidemiologist Professor John Mathews said: “People tend to live in larger houses, spaced further apart than the stacked apartments you commonly find in Europe.”