Covid is no longer the leading cause of death in England and Wales, the first time since October, figures from the Office for National Statistics show.
Data from March show that Covid-19 was the third biggest cause of death accounting for 9.2% of all registered deaths in England and 6.3% of all deaths in Wales.
Before this Covid-19 had been the leading cause of death for four consecutive months.
In both countries more people died from dementia and Alzheimer’s disease and ischaemic heart disease than Covid-19 last month, the latest figures show.
The death rate for Covid-19 in March was 89.3 per 100,000 people in England and 65.2 per 100,000 in Wales – the lowest rate since November and October respectively.
On Thursday, the Government reported a further 18 people had died within 28 days of a positive Covid-19 test, down 26% in the past week and bringing the total number to 127,345.
The ONS data showed variation in English regions with the East Midlands having the highest mortality rate in March at 118.9 deaths per 100,000 people and the South West having the lowest at 45.7 deaths per 100,000.
Figures published earlier this month from the REACT study, which tests 140,000 volunteers in England, found that Covid-19 infections had fallen by 60% since February.
More than 11 million adults in the UK have now had both vaccine doses with around two in three adults in England now having had at least one Covid-19 vaccination.
Data up to 11 April show that 94% of adults report they have now either had a vaccine, were waiting to be vaccinated or would have one if offered, the ONS said.
