As of October 20, there were 15,120 confirmed cases in England since it was first detected in July.
It accounted for approximately 6 per cent of all cases during the last week. Cases have been confirmed through whole genome sequencing in all nine regions of England.
The UKHSA said it’s monitoring it closely, although the original Delta variant is “overwhelmingly dominant” in the country, making up approximately 99.8 per cent of all cases.
While evidence is still emerging, so far it does not appear this variant causes more severe disease or renders the vaccines currently deployed any less effective.
More than 86 per cent of people aged 12 and over in Britain have had their first dose of vaccine and around 79 per cent have received both doses, the latest figures showed.
Source: IANS
