The UK government has denied the G7 summit caused a “tsunami of Covid-19 cases" in south-west England.
Infection rates have risen rapidly in Cornwall, where the three-day gathering of world leaders was held, increasing from 4.9 for every 100,000 people on June 3 to 130.6 for every 100,000 people on June 16.
The summit, held from June 11 to 13, took place in Carbis Bay but international media and other delegates stayed in surrounding towns such as Falmouth.
The surge in cases was also linked to an influx of tourists in the county over the recent school holidays.
Andrew George, a Cornwall councillor and former MP for St Ives, urged the British government to release its risk assessment for the summit.
“The correlation between G7 and the tsunami of Covid-19 caseload in St Ives/Carbis Bay and Falmouth is undeniable,” he told the Press Association.
“It ought to drive public bodies to at the very least maintain an open mind about the connection between the two.
"Those who were responsible for that decision and for the post-G7 summit Covid-19 case management and assessment should be held to account for their decisions and actions.”
A spokesman for UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson rejected claims the surge in infections was linked to the summit.
G7 summit in Cornwall - in pictures
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People watch from the beach as two giant balloons, depicting US President Joe Biden and British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, float on a dock in the harbour of Falmouth, Cornwall. AP Photo -
Freshly baked G7 Cornish pasties are placed in the window of a pastry shop in St Ives. AFP -
Climate activists dress in blue costumes as they demonstrate in St. Ives. AP Photo -
Protesters dressed as Pikachu characters demonstrate on Gyllyngvase Beach, calling on the Japanese government to stop burning coal by 2030, in Falmouth. Getty Images -
Members of the public visit the 'Mount Recyclemore' sculpture depicting G7 leaders at Sandy Acres, St Ives. EPA -
Extinction Rebellion protesters stage a "Stop Rearranging the Deckchairs" Titanic theatrical beach action in St Ives. Getty Images -
Members of the media work at desks screened-off due to Covid-19, in the media centre at Falmouth, Cornwall. AFP -
Oxfam activists with 'Big Head' caricatures of G7 leaders, during a protest at a beach near Falmouth. Reuters -
Officers from Britain's Metropolitan Police force sit on their jet ski as they patrol on the sea in St Ives. AFP -
Extinction Rebellion activists stage a "Wake-up Call" theatrical action in St Ives. Getty Images -
An incoming tide washes away a part of a giant beach sand artwork depicting the faces of the G7 leaders at Watergate Bay Beach, Newquay. Reuters -
An RAF Giraffe Agile Multi Beam Radar looks down on Gwithian Bay from its location in a car park near St Ives, England. The radar is a coastal surveillance and tracking radar which can monitor air targets and warn against incoming rocket, artillery and mortar rounds. Getty Images -
The motorcade of President Joe Biden is driven through Carbis Bay, Cornwall. AFP -
A caricature of Boris Johnson is pictured between the handle bars of a motorbike in Carbis Bay. AFP -
A local resident dressed as a chick, protests against the G7 summit in St Ives. AFP -
HMS The Prince of Wales aircraft carrier patrolling the waters off of St Ives. EPA -
Extinction Rebellion stage a protest on the beach of St Ives. Getty Images
“We are confident that there were no cases of transmission to the local residents. All attendees were tested, everyone involved was also tested during their work on the summit,” he said.
He said the government had always predicted there would be an increase in cases across the country.
“That is what we’re seeing playing out,” he said.
Covid-19 cases were reported at police headquarters, hospitality venues, a hotel and a protest site linked to the summit.
World leaders were criticised for a lack of social distancing at a beach dinner on the final night of the event.
Prof Rowland Kao, an epidemiology expert at the University of Edinburgh, said the surge in Cornwall was replicated in other parts of England.
“Of course, any risks would have been exacerbated by the large numbers of people arriving in Cornwall both for the G7 summit and for recreational purposes, increasing both crowding and contact,” he said.
Dr Duncan Robertson, a Covid-19 modelling expert at Loughborough University, said Cornwall and neighbouring Devon previously had the lowest Covid-19 case rates in England.
He said natural immunity was lower in the area because fewer people had been exposed to the virus than elsewhere in the country.
