Coronavirus: Delta variant cases in UK rise four-fold in less than a month

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Andrew Feinberg

White House Correspondent

Cases of the more transmissible Delta Covid variant have risen nearly four-fold in just under a month, official figures show.

According to Public Health England data released on Friday, confirmed cases of the strain, first detected in India, stood at 161,981 as of 30 June – up by 50,824 on the previous week.

Of the 161,981 cases, 148,538 have been in England, 10,185 in Scotland, 1,749 in Wales and 1,509 in Northern Ireland.

The Delta variant continues to account for approximately 95 per cent of confirmed cases of coronavirus across the UK.

On 9 June, there were 42,323 confirmed and probable cases. The latest figure of 161,981, as of June 30, represents a four-fold increase.

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Dr Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, said: "Cases across the UK continue to rise and it is incredibly important that we do not forget to be careful.

"The best thing we can do to protect ourselves and the people we love is to get the vaccine if eligible, get tested twice a week and practise 'hands, face, space, fresh air at all times.

"Although cases are rising, we are not seeing a proportional rise in the number of people who are being admitted to hospital.

"The data suggest this is testament to the success of the vaccination programme so far and clearly demonstrates the importance of getting both doses of the vaccine."

Meanwhile, separate Office for National Statistics data shows the percentage of people testing positive for Covid-19 is estimated to have increased in all regions of England except eastern England and the South West, where trends are uncertain in the most recent week.

In many regions positivity rates are low, meaning trends are difficult to identify since they are affected by small changes in the number of people testing positive from week to week.

Northeast England had the highest proportion of people of any region in England likely to test positive for coronavirus in the week to 26 June, around one in 100.

Southeast England had the lowest estimate, around one in 640.

Additional reporting by Press Association