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The estimated R number for the coronavirus is between 0.8 and 1.0 in the UK, its lowest level since August.
R represents the average number of people with whom each person COVID-19 continues to infect.
The growth rate, which estimates how quickly the number of infections changes from day to day, indicates that the number of new infections is reduced by 1% to 3% every day.
It comes as the UK surpassed 60,000 infections on Thursday, reporting a new 14,879 cases and 414 deaths.
Last week, the estimated R number was between 0.9 and 1.0, which suggests that the rate has fallen slightly.
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A sprout can grow exponentially when the number is greater than 1.
This week’s estimate means that, on average, every 10 infected people will infect eight to ten more people.
With coronavirus restrictions across the four UK nations now varying, the R estimate for the entire country has become less significant in recent weeks.
It is the first time since early September that all English regions have had a lower bound for R estimates below 1.
This week’s estimates are based on the latest data available as of December 1, and most of the impact of the second national lockdown in England from November 5 is now reflected in the data.
Tighter COVID measures, which were lifted on Wednesday, suggest that estimates will continue to fall further next week.
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Estimates of R and growth rate are provided by the Scientific Pandemic Influenza Modeling Group (SPI-M), which is a subgroup of SAGE.
SAGE said Friday’s figures represent the average situation of the past weeks rather than the current situation.
Boris Johnson told Commons today that the virus “has not been eradicated” following the R number estimate.
He said: “The national measures now ending shortly in England have eased the burden on the NHS and started to reverse the advance of the virus; today the R is again below 1 and the ONS survey shows signs of the infection rate is stabilizing.
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COVID-19 infections decline in most of the UK
“Imperial College London has found that the number of people with COVID has dropped by a third in England since 2 November.
“But although the virus has been contained, it has not been eradicated.”
