[ad_1]
The new variant of Covid-19 that has swept through the Southeast is said to be 50% more contagious than the original strain.
Boris Johnson was in hiding in emergency meetings Friday night after he was presented with evidence that the new Covid strain sweeping the Southeast is “frighteningly transmissible.”
⚠️ Read our live coronavirus blog for the latest news and updates
3
A government source told The Sun: “What we don’t know yet is whether the new strain is more or less likely to harm you, but what we have learned is that it will spread from person to person much more easily and that. it’s what we’re really worried about. “
Johnson could announce the new travel advice at a news conference on Saturday, according to Whitehall sources.
A source said Friday night: “This is a live and fluid situation, but it doesn’t look good and we have to act fast.”
One source claimed that evidence showed the new strain was 50 percent more contagious than previous Covid-19 cases.
A source from Health said: “The last 48 hours have changed everything.”
Professor Sir Mark Walport, a member of the Government’s Scientific Advisory Group on Emergencies (Sage), said there was a real possibility that the new variant could have a “transmission advantage”.
He told BBC2’s Newsnight: “The thing about viruses is they naturally mutate all the time and the ones that are likely to do well are the ones that increase transmission.
“We know that this is a new variant, it has been seen in other countries but it seems to be quite widespread which suggests that it has a transmission advantage.
“Scientists are working very hard to find out what is happening. But it definitely seems possible that this is more easily transmitted.
“It will make social distancing even more critical.”
The Sun understands that the new evidence shows a dramatic increase in positive cases in London over the last week.
The new strain is blamed for a sudden spike in hospitalizations in the capital.
And there is a fear that people will contract it despite wearing PPE and social distancing, again pointing to an increase in the virus’ ability to spread.
Large swaths of the southeast were placed at Level 3 this week after the government’s review.
Scientists have found that this new strain of Covid-19 spreads faster than the original strain of the virus.
The new variant that has been found predominantly in Kent and neighboring areas, but has spread to Scotland.
The prime minister could announce new travel restrictions in London and Kent on Saturday after a chilling warning from doctors that he is about to ruin Christmas for millions.
Such action would risk ruining Christmas for millions of people mired in a deeper lockdown rather than allowing them to rally under the festive bubble scheme.
While it is too late to change the law, Johnson consulted with Cabinet colleagues Friday night on whether to change the holiday council to beg people not to leave the capital next week.
And the southeastern commuter belt has been ruined by rising virus numbers, meaning Christmas is about to be canceled in Home counties.
It came as Boris Johnson today refused to rule out a third national lockdown after Christmas, warning that the rate of Covid infection was growing.
GRIM FIND
Body found ‘in suitcase’ after neighbors ‘reported bad smell for weeks’
JABBY NEW YEAR
The Oxford vaccine ‘will be approved in days and millions will receive injections in January’
DOOR DOC JAB
GPs refuse to give Covid vaccines to more Britons before Christmas
BURST BURST
Christmas scare as millions face travel restrictions in the Southeast over mutant strain Covid
SANTA MOLIA
Amateur archaeologist says the Holy Grail is in a ‘secret crypt’ under the Hounslow River
The prime minister said he “hoped” England would not have to shut down once again, after Northern Ireland joined Wales in saying it would shut down from Boxing Day onwards.
Britain’s R rate has risen this week as coronavirus cases continue to rise across the country.
The current value of R, the number of people to whom an infected person will transmit Covid, is now estimated between 1.1 and 1.2.
[ad_2]
