Coronavirus in UK 'gives grounds for hope' says Nabarro
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The latest figures released by the Government show that tens of thousands of Britons are still contracting Covid every day. On Sunday, January 30, another 62,399 reported a positive test – likely a conservative estimate given the news was released on the weekend. While the figure is more than 100,000 cases fewer than the Omicron peak, the figures suggest that the decline has slowed.
Has Covid recovery stalled?
The latest daily stats show cases are currently declining at a slower rate than they did earlier this month.
From January 14 to January 27, cases stuck between 72,000 and 90,000, occasionally rising above 100,000.
These cases led the average horizontally across Government graphs, with infections plateaued at significant rates.
Case declines were notably lower compared to the first two weeks of January.
Omicron infections reached their peak on January 5, when officials recorded 218,174.
In the 11 days following, the daily rate dropped by more than 130,000 to 75,041.
And data from the last few days suggests cases may have started declining at a similar rate again.
On January 26, Covid infections briefly surged to 102,202 before dropping modestly to 96,871 on January 27.
The next available data drop came on January 30, with 62,399 new infections.
The data marks a total decline of more than 34,000, suggesting a newly invigorated downwards slope.
But datasets from the weekend are often incomplete, meaning cases may rise again later this week.
People will likely see a significant spike today as officials change reporting methods.
For the first time in the pandemic, the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) will include reinfection figures.
The agency will class anyone who contracted Covid in the last 90 days after having a previous infection as “reinfected”.
The figures include current and retrospective reinfections, meaning the country may see hundreds of thousands of new additions today.
The Omicron variant, as well boasting enhanced vaccine escape, was identified as highly capable of reinfection.
Data from the ONS found people are 16 times more likely to catch the variant again compared to its predecessors.
As such, the UKHSA thought it necessary to add reinfection figures to the mix.
Sajid Javid is due to update the House of Commons on the Covid situation today after Boris Johnson addresses the Sue Gray report at 3.30pm.
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