The Guardian is reporting that UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock announced Monday “We have identified a new variant of coronavirus, which may be associated with the faster spread in the south-east of England. Initial analysis suggests that this variant is growing faster than the existing variants.”
We’ve currently identified over 1,000 cases with this variant, predominantly in the south of England, although cases have been identified in nearly 60 different local authority areas, and numbers are increasing rapidly.” He added that the World Health Organization (WHO) has been notified.
The announcement was made in the House of Commons Monday morning. Hancock said there is no reason to suggest the variant is more likely to cause serious disease. He added that the latest clinical advice is “it’s highly unlikely this mutation would fail to respond to a vaccine.”
Earlier this month, a three-tiered system of restrictions was put in place across England intended to help curb the spread of the coronavirus following a month-long lockdown. Millions of people across the country were placed into “Tier 3” at the time, but London was put into the second-highest tier of restrictions, according to CNBC News.
London and parts of Essex and Hertfordshire are set to move into “Tier 3” from 00:01 London time on Wednesday, Hancock said. “I know that this is difficult news, and I know that it will mean plans disrupted and that for businesses affected it will be a significant blow.”
“But this action is absolutely essential, not just to keep people safe but because we have seen early action can help prevent more damaging and longer-lasting problems later,” he added.
What does Tier 3 mean?
Under these toughest of restrictions, people cannot mix indoors, in private gardens, or in most outdoor venues. They may meet up to six people outside at parks, public gardens, or sports facilities. Additionally, all hospitality venues including pubs, cafes, and restaurants will close except for takeout and delivery. Retail stores may stay open, reports CNN.
The restrictions are necessary due to hospital admissions being up 13 percent, and cases increasing by 14 percent over the previous week, across the country. there have been particularly sharp rises in south Wales, in London, and in parts of the east and south-east of England.
This is not the first time a variant in the coronavirus has been identified. According to Digital Journal, In May, scientists identified a new strain of the coronavirus that has become dominant worldwide and appears to be more contagious than the versions that spread in the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic.
According to a new study led by scientists at Los Alamos National Laboratory, the new strain of SARS-CoV-2 appeared in Europe in February and quickly migrated to the East Coast of the United States and has become the dominant strain around the world since March.
The Los Alamos team, assisted by scientists at Duke University and the University of Sheffield in England, identified 14 mutations. Those mutations occurred among the nearly 30,000 base pairs of RNA that other scientists say make up the coronavirus’s genome.
