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Hello and welcome to More or Less. As the nation's children head back to school,

this program is always on the lookout for statistics that have been erated

and are at risk of crumbling under pressure. This week, Grant Chaps was barely energy secretary

long enough to utter an untruth about the environmental impact of North Sea gas, but we think he's

managed it. The UK's economic figures have been dramatically revised,

have we been getting the narrative about the British economy, all wrong? A loyal listener wants

to know if it's really true that the England footballer Chloe Kelly has a more powerful shot than

any man in the Premier League. But first, the newspapers are starting to publish unnerving headlines

about the return of Covid. How worried should we be? Last week, a headline in the Daily Mail told us

Biggest surge in Covid deaths this year. Number dying due to virus jumps 57% in a week.

At the same time, we've seen the government move its autumn Covid and flu vaccine

program forward in response to the identification of a new variant. Gosh, it's been a while since we

looked at the state of play with Covid on this program. I can feel the vivid memories of that

first wave come flooding back, the lockdown, the daily death toll. If I close my eyes, it's almost

like I can hear the voice of Kate Lamble inside my head. Hi Tim. Yeah, that's exactly how she sounded.

Tim, I'm sat right here. Hello. Hello, Kate Lamble, former, more or less series producer.

Now, science correspondent on News Night, yes, you are indeed here. And to be frank, I wasn't losing

too much leap over that Daily Mail headline, but seeing you back in the more or less studio is making

me very anxious. You're actually triggering flashbacks. Should I be anxious? Is the 57% figure correct?

It is, but it needs some context. When the Daily Mail said deaths due to Covid rose by 57% in a week,

they were referring to deaths in England and Wales, where Covid was recorded as the underlying

...