COVID-19 pandemic in London

The first case relating to the COVID-19 pandemic in London, England, was confirmed on 12 February 2020 in a woman who had recently arrived from China.

[5] The city's poorest boroughs – Newham, Brent and Hackney – were the hardest hit areas in terms of deaths per 100,000 population.

The first confirmed case of COVID-19 in London was detected on 12 February 2020, in a woman who had arrived from China with the virus a few days earlier.

[13][14] By 18 June, Sixteen of the 20 British local authorities recording the highest excess death rates were in London.

[36] From 25 March, London Underground measures to combat the spread of the virus by slowing the flow of passengers onto platforms included the imposition of queuing at ticket gates and turning off some escalators.

[41] On 25 March, London City Airport announced it would temporarily close due to the coronavirus outbreak.

[44] This measure was extended to all routes on 20 April, and passengers were no longer required to pay, so they did not need to use the card reader near the driver.

[47] Without government financial support for TfL, London Assembly members warned that Crossrail, the Northern line extension and other projects such as step-free schemes at tube stations could be delayed.

[49] On 12 May, TfL documents warned it expected to lose £4bn due to the pandemic and said it needed £3.2bn to balance a proposed emergency budget for 2021, having lost 90% of its overall income.

Without an agreement with the government, deputy mayor for transport Heidi Alexander said TfL might have to issue a "Section 114 notice" – the equivalent of a public body going bust.

[50] On 14 May, the UK Government agreed £1.6bn in emergency funding to keep Tube and bus services running until September.

[54] During the third wave of infections in the UK in early 2021, a third lockdown was introduced in England with all schools shutting down until 8 March[55] at the earliest.