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ANOTHER new Covid variant has been detected in the UK with 38 confirmed cases identified, health bosses said today.
Thirty-six cases of the new variant, dubbed B.1.525, are spread across England, with an additional two cases in Wales.
On top of the 38 confirmed cases, another four are “probable”.
Public Health England (PHE) initially stated this afternoon the variant was focused in Bristol – but later admitted to The Sun this was an error, and that the variant has been found in various parts of England.
Like strains found in South Africa and Brazil, B.1.525 carries a mutation that can make Covid jabs less effective.
It has been categorised as a “variant under investigation” following a risk assessment.
Surge testing will not be carried out to find more cases, PHE said, because it is not seen as a “variant of concern”.
A University of Edinburgh report said more than 100 cases have been identified globally in total.
But this is likely an underestimate because only a proportion of Covid swabs go through laboratory testing – used to detect cases of new variants.
The variant appears to be most prevalent in Nigeria at this stage.
The report said 24 per cent of swab samples analysed genetically in Nigeria were caused by this variant (12 of 51).
Canadian health officials first detected the variant last week and said it was related to travel to Nigeria, according to CTV News.
The report said the variant was first discovered in the UK in mid-December.
But it doesn’t mean it evolved here — the UK does at least half the world’s genetic sequencing of the virus, therefore may pick up new variants ahead of other countries. — The Sun.
Online Reporter