The UK reported the highest number of COVID-19 cases in a single day on Wednesday since the outbreak of the pandemic, as the country imposes new radical restrictions to combat the spread of the virus.
Statistics released by the British government showed that about 40,000 cases were registered on Wednesday, and 744 new deaths were registered within 28 days of a positive test, the highest total number of deaths at the end of April.
There have been more than 236,000 positive cases in the last seven days, an increase of over 61% over the previous seven-day period.
Worrying figures come as Britain works to protect its inhabitants from a new, rapidly spreading strain of COVID-19, which experts warn is more infectious than the virus that has killed people since the initial outbreak of the pandemic.
To combat the spread of the virus, the government announced on Wednesday that several areas in England will be subject to level 4 restrictions, the worst in the kingdom.
Restrictions mean that residents in these areas will have to stay at home, except for travel for essential work, which must be closed by retail, indoor gyms and leisure facilities.
“After all the efforts made to control this virus and in many parts of the country, this virus is under control. As we developed a leveling system that managed to control this virus, we discovered a new, more contagious virus, a variant that is spreading at a dangerous rate. And I know that the vast majority of people who follow today and across the country understand what we need to do together to get through this, “said Secretary of State for Health and Welfare Matt Hancock in a press briefing.
The UK has had about 2.2 million cases of COVID-19 since the pandemic began and more than 69,000 people have died.