This is compared to a national average of around 25%.
A report has revealed that ethnic groups in Scotland were over two times more likely to experience the death of someone close to them during Covid-19 than the white population.
Conducted by researchers from the University of St Andrews, the report titled ‘Racism, belonging and Covid’s legacy of ethnic inequalities in Scotland’ was authored by Professor Nissa Finney from the School of Geography and Sustainable Development.
It found that in Scotland, experiencing bereavement was highest for those identifying with ‘Any other’ ethnic group (68%), Indian (44 %) and Pakistani (38%).
Similar levels of bereavement experience were found for ethnic groups in England and Wales.
This is compared to a national average of around 25%.
There are several reasons why some ethnic groups had higher rates of experiencing Covid-related bereavement than others.
This includes differential Covid-19 impact, the different nature of family structures and social networks across ethnic groups, differential underlying health of ethnic groups, varying levels of poverty and deprivation and differential access to care and support services.
These results mean that in Scotland, people from some ethnic groups (Indian, Pakistani, Black African, Mixed, Other) are especially likely to have experienced someone close to them dying, and dying from Covid-19.
This increases the pressure on them, which can include grief and mental health impacts, caring responsibilities and financial demands.
The impact of bereavement was undoubtedly unpleasant during the pandemic and can also be expected to have ongoing, long-term effects.
The report is a collaboration between researchers at the Centre on the Dynamics of Ethnicity (CoDE) at the University of St Andrews and the University of Manchester and the Ethnic Minority Voluntary Sector umbrella body BEMIS.
For the first time, it has collated data to show the ethnic inequalities in the experience of bereavement during the Covid-19 crisis.
The report also collated data around various questions relating to discrimination and racism in Scotland’s ethnic groups.
This includes attitudes to nationhood, belonging, political trust and relationship to policing.
It revealed that 9 in 10 Black Caribbean respondents in Scotland had recently experienced being a victim of a racist insult.
Other minorities – Chinese (44%), Other Black (41%, and White Irish (33%) – had also experienced insult in the last five years for reasons to do with their ethnicity, race, colour or religion.
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