The United Kingdom has detected a new version of Covid-19, which the medical director of England says is more contagious than previous versions.
Professor Chris Whitty says work is being done “urgently” to rule out whether the new strain, which is spreading in the south-east of England, could cause a higher mortality rate.
“There is no current evidence to suggest that the new strain causes a higher mortality rate or that it affects vaccines and treatments, although urgent work is being done to confirm this,” he said in a statement.
Here’s what we know.
What we know about the variant:
- British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the new variant could be up to 70% more transmissible than the old one, although there is still “considerable uncertainty”.
Where it was detected:
- The World Health Organization says the new variant has also been identified in Denmark, the Netherlands and Australia.
- Australia said on Monday that it had detected two cases of the new variant in quarantine facilities in Australia.
What other countries are doing in response:
- More than a dozen countries ban travel from the UK in response to the new option.
- These countries include the Netherlands, Belgium and Germany.
- Other countries impose restrictions – The Czech Republic has imposed a mandatory 10-day quarantine on anyone arriving from the UK.