If this new strain isn't as severe as the original, why has the number of people been admitted to hospital and the death rate increased ?
I think because it spreads more easily = more people are infected. So the same % of a higher number will need hospital treatment. (eg if the hospitalisation rate is, say, 5%, then if 100 people have it, 5 will need hospital treatment, but if 1000 have it, 50 will need treatment and so on).