Death rates fall to all-time low

Death rates in England and Wales have fallen to their lowest recorded level, new figures have shown.

The infant mortality rate in 2009 was also at its lowest point, the Office of National Statistics said.

There were 491,348 deaths registered in 2009 compared with 509,090 in 2008 - a fall of 3.5%.

Researchers found that between 1999 and 2009 the number of male deaths fell by 26% while the number of female deaths fell by 22%.

Infant death rates - of children under the age of one - fell from 4.8 deaths per 1,000 live births in 2008 to 4.7 in 2009.

The report said: "The infant mortality rate in 2009 - based on registrations - is the lowest ever recorded in England and Wales.

"The age-standardised mortality rates in 2009 were also the lowest ever recorded in England and Wales at 6,573 deaths per million population for males and 4,628 deaths per million for females."

Between 1999 and 2009, the number of deaths caused by circulatory diseases, such as heart disease and strokes, fell by 42% in men and by 40% women. The number of people dying from coronary heart disease fell by 28% in men and 32% in women between 2004 and 2009.

However, circulatory diseases were the biggest killers last year - accounting for 33% of all deaths. Heart diseases accounted for one in six male deaths and one in eight female deaths during 2009.

British Heart Foundation medical director Professor Peter Weissberg said: "We can't afford to take our eye of the ball because heart disease is still the UK's biggest killer. We have a long road and a lot of hard work still ahead of us."