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New statistics released by the U.K. government show a sharp increase in excess deaths throughout the country in 2022 — a trend that has continued so far this year.

The data, released last week by the U.K. Office for National Statistics and Office for Health Improvement and Disparities, show that between May and December 2022, 32,441 more deaths than usual were recorded that exclude COVID-19 as a cause of death.

Official U.K. statistics also showed that in the week ending April 21, 2023, the number of deaths exceeded the five-year average by 22.1% (2,540 excess deaths), while in the week ending April 28, the excess figure was 12.9% (1,569 excess deaths). Only 3.8% of deaths during this period mentioned COVID-19 in the death certificates.

John Campbell, Ph.D., a retired accident and emergency nurse, nurse teacher and author of two nursing textbooks, analyzed the data in a YouTube video recorded last week.

According to Campbell’s analysis, there was an increase in excess deaths across all age groups and a significant rise in cardiovascular-related deaths, deaths from respiratory-related conditions were lower than expected.

‘Just imagine this was a terrorist attack … it would be a state of war’

According to Campbell, the official data show “increased deaths are occurring in all age groups in 2022 and into 2023,” and that this trend is being observed “in many, many countries.”

“These are not COVID deaths,” Campbell noted. “These are caused by other factors, raising serious questions as to why so many died.”

Calling the 4,190 excess deaths recorded in the last two weeks of April “a huge amount,” Campbell likened the figure to the death toll from a terrorist attack. He also compared the attention a terrorist act would have receive to the lack of attention the excess deaths appear to be receiving. He said:

“Just imagine this was a terrorist attack [where] 4,190 people were killed. It would be a state of war.

“But because people are dying in different settings … the government just don’t seem to be commenting on it at all, with the notable exception of some MPs [members of Parliament]. But very little on this, tragically.”

Sharp rise in cardiovascular deaths

Higher-than-average excess deaths were recorded even in the 0-24 and 25-49 age groups, Campbell said.

“I’m afraid it’s quite clear that the excess deaths are affecting all age groups,” Campbell said. “So, the explanations that we need to derive as to why this catastrophe is occurring needs to take this into account.”

Campbell said the data show a sharp uptick in deaths due to cardiovascular issues and strokes.

“The question is not so much the cardiovascular disease, it’s what is causing the increase in the cardiovascular disease,” he said. “That is the critical question that just doesn’t seem to be getting asked, why is cardiovascular disease increased?”

According to Campbell, the increase is specifically observed in the category of ischemic heart disease — in other words, “a myocardial infarction, a heart attack.”

Significant increases also were observed in the number of deaths due to heart failure, Campbell said, adding that “It does not tell us why more people are dying of heart failure. This is what needs to be interrogated urgently.”

Deaths due to cerebrovascular disease — strokes — also “unequivocally” increased, Campbell noted.

Conversely, the number of deaths due to respiratory disease was “way less … than we would expect,” he said. “You would have thought it’s an aftereffect of the pandemic, which was primarily affecting the lungs … In actual fact, we’re seeing less, indicating there’s other factors at play here.”

Official data also showed that excess deaths in private homes were 23% above average, while the respective figures for hospitals, care homes and “other” settings, were 10.7%, 8.4% and 14.3%, respectively.

‘Very little in the mainstream media’

Campbell said that “sadly,” there’s “very little in the mainstream media about this” data on excess deaths. “The BBC, for example, seems to be saying essentially nothing about this. This is a cause for concern in itself,” he said.

Campbell cited one exception — The Mirror, a British tabloid that last week reported, “Brits are dying in their tens of thousands — and we don’t really have any idea why.”

According to The Mirror, “Tens of thousands more Brits died than usual from May to December 2022, excluding COVID as a cause of death, raising serious questions as to why so many died.”

Experts quoted by The Mirror did not draw a connection between the higher-than-average excess death figures and COVID-19 vaccination.

In remarks shared with The Mirror, David Coleman, M.A., Ph.D., emeritus professor of demography at the University of Oxford and research associate in Oxford’s Department of Social Policy and Intervention, said that after the deaths of many elderly, which he attributed to COVID-19, “there should be a period afterwards where deaths are lower than usual but that hasn’t happened.”

He attributed this to two reasons: increased obesity in the population and — seemingly contradicting his previous statement — an aging population. He did not explain why deaths related to obesity would be resulting in higher-than-average excess deaths at this point in time.

For Campbell though, the increase in excess deaths “is an underreported global phenomenon, what we could call a pandemic … certainly affecting many Western countries, the United States, Canada, New Zealand, Australia, Europe, places like that.”

Watch here: