Almost 900,000 people – one in 60 – had Covid on any given day in England last week
Almost 900,000 people — one in 60 — had Covid on any given day in England last week as infections rose 4%, official figures show
Office for National Statistics weekly surveillance estimated 898,900 people had the virus last weekThis was up four per cent on the previous seven-day spell, and the second week in a row that they have risenCovid cases rose among two to 11-year-olds and in London, the North East, and Yorkshire and the Humber
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Almost 900,000 people in England had Covid on any given day last week, official data suggested today as the outbreak continued to trend upwards.
Office for National Statistics weekly surveillance — based on random swabs of 100,000 people — estimated 898,900 people were infected over the week to November 27, equivalent to one in 60 having the virus.
This was the highest number since early November, when 925,000 were estimated to be infected. It was about 200,000 infections off the record set at the peak of the second wave when 1.1million had Covid.
In another sign the country’s outbreak may be growing No10’s top scientists said the R rate may be above one for the first time in three weeks. They suggest it is now between 0.9 and 1.1.
But Omicron is yet to gain a foothold in the UK, with ONS statisticians saying they saw no sign it was spreading in the community. The Delta variant was behind almost every case, they said.
It comes after Norwegian doctos say the 60 people who caught the variant at a Christmas party are all suffering mild symptoms including headaches and sore throats.
WHO officials suggest the variant may trigger less severe symptoms than the old virus. But a top UK epidemiologist suggests this may only be because people now have immunity to Covid.
South Africa’s Covid cases are spiralling more than four-fold week-on-week as the Omicron variant takes hold in the country and spreads to every province.
The R rate — which measures the spread of the virus — in epicentre Gauteng has spiralled from one to more than three in recent weeks. For comparison, in the UK it has never surged above 1.6.
Office for National Statistics weekly surveillance suggested almost 900,000 people in England had Covid over the week to November 27. At the height of the second wave 1.1million had the virus
Covid infections rose slightly among children aged two to 11, but remained flat in all other age groups. Separate surveillance has also pointed to infections rising in younger age groups after children returned from half term
Infections also appeared to tick up in three out of England’s nine regions. These were the North East, Yorkshire and the Humber and London
The above graph shows the infection rate by age group. It suggests Covid cases fell in all age groups over the week to November 28, despite only some receiving the booster jab. Testing fell over this period, but experts have also suggested that immunity from past infection and jabs may now be high enough in younger age groups to keep cases low until the spring
The ZOE symptom-tracking study estimated that 80,483 people fell ill on any given day in the week ending November 27, based on test results from around 650,000 volunteers
ONS statisticians take random swabs of 100,000 people every week to estimate the infection levels across the country.
Their estimates are seen as the gold-standard by ministers, because they can catch infections in hard to reach groups that would not normally get a Covid test.
ONS estimates suggest Covid cases also rose in the other three UK nations.
In Northern Ireland they ticked up by 10 per cent to 41,100 infections — equal to one in 45 —, in Scotland they rose by 9.7 per cent to 83,300 infections — one in 65 — and in Wales they rose by eight per cent to 64,100 — one in 45.
Almost every infection checked for variants was found to be Delta, with statisticians saying there is no sign that Omicron is spreading in the community
ONS head of analytical outpots for the survey Sarah Crofts, said: ‘We have not yet identified any infections compatible with the new Omicron variant in our survey. The Delta variant remains the most common across the UK.
‘We will continue to monitor for different variants among our survey participants as part of our work tracking the virus.’
UKHSA data published yesterday showed Covid cases fell in every age group in England last week and all regions except London despite fears the super-strain Omicron may already be spreading in the community.
Its surveillance report showed the sharpest declines were among the over-70s (down 29 per cent) and over-80s (22 per cent) where most people have received their boosters.
But infections dipped across the board including for under-40s who are yet to be offered a top-up dose, but have had much higher infection rates than older age groups.
Across England infections fell in every region except London, where they rose by two per cent, and in 116 of 149 local authorities or 78 per cent.
The number of lateral flow and PCR tests carried out tumbled 15 per cent, with 4.2million completed in the last seven days compared to 5million the week before.
Despite concerns over Omicron none of the 16 local authorities that have detected the mutant strain recorded a sudden spike in infections. In South Africa, where the strain has taken hold, cases are surging more than sixfold week-on-week.
UKHSA sources said there was still nothing to suggest that the variant was spreading in the community.
Separate data from a surveillance study yesterday showed symptomatic Covid cases in the UK rose by nearly five per cent to more than 80,000 per day last week.
The ZOE symptom-tracking study estimated that 80,483 people fell ill on any given day in the week ending November 27, based on test results from around 650,000 volunteers.
It marked a rise of 4.9 per cent compared to the estimate on the previous week and means one in 61 Britons suffered a symptomatic infection at any given time, King’s College London scientists who run the study said.
But infections started to fall in the over-55s, in a clear sign of the effect of booster vaccine doses — with more than 19million people now having had a third dose according to Government data.
No10 unveiled its new scheme to vaccinate all over-18s by the end of January on Tuesday, with the UK yesterday buying 114million more doses in an effort to stop the spread of the new supermutant Omicron variant.
Professor Tim Spector, the epidemiologist behind the ZOE study, warned the Omicron variant has ‘rudely awakened’ the UK to the pandemic and encouraged more volunteers to continue tracking their symptoms to help monitor the strain.
He said said: ‘Omicron has rudely awakened many countries, including the UK, from the slumber they had fallen into over Covid.
‘While we need more data to understand the risks this variant presents, I would advise the public not to panic, but remember that it’s important for everyone to be more cautious.
The above maps show percentage change in Covid cases across England in the week to November 21 (left), and November 28 (right). They reveal Covid cases in the country are not surging in any areas where Omicron has been detected
Britain’s Covid cases are continuing to climb with more than 53,000 recorded yesterday, official Government data revealed amid fears that the Omicron variant could wreak havoc on Christmas plans.
UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) data shows there were 53,945 positive tests in the last 24 hours, up 14.2 per cent on the 47,240 recorded last Thursday and the most since July 17.
It was the second day in a row cases have increased week-on-week and only the second time in a week cases have breached the 50,000 mark.
There is no indication that the Omicron variant is behind the rise, with only 42 cases officially confirmed in the UK so far but there are signs that it could be spreading domestically.
Meanwhile, the number of people dying with the virus fell to 141, down 4.1 per cent on the 147 fatalities registered last week.
And hospitalisations also dropped, with 700 admissions recorded on Sunday, the latest date data is available for. It was down six per cent on the 745 seen the previous week.
Boris Johnson has urged Britons not to call off their Christmas parties after his government’s muddled messaging sparked a wave of festive cancellations and a super-spreader event in Norway infected up to 60 people out of 120 with Omicron. The Prime Minister received his booster shot live on TV before telling Sky News there was no reason for Britons to change their plans.
