{"id":150468,"date":"2022-01-25T07:24:17","date_gmt":"2022-01-25T07:24:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/?p=150468"},"modified":"2022-01-25T07:24:17","modified_gmt":"2022-01-25T07:24:17","slug":"covid-r-rate-creeps-up-and-could-be-1-1-in-parts-of-uk-amid-fears-of-indian-variant-spreading","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/precoinnews.com\/world-news\/covid-r-rate-creeps-up-and-could-be-1-1-in-parts-of-uk-amid-fears-of-indian-variant-spreading\/","title":{"rendered":"Covid R rate creeps up and could be 1.1 in parts of UK – amid fears of Indian variant spreading"},"content":{"rendered":"
THE official coronavirus R rate has risen slightly in England<\/strong> this week.<\/p>\n Government advisers at Sage say the value now sits between 0.8 and 1.1.<\/p>\n \ud83d\udd35<\/strong> Read our coronavirus live blog\u00a0for the latest updates<\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n It comes as surge testing has been rolled out across the country in order to detect cases of the Indian and South African variants.<\/p>\n Experts fear the Indian variant could be more transmissible than the Kent variant but it is not thought that it can evade vaccines.<\/p>\n Last week the rate sat between 0.8 and 1 – but that it may have been as high as 1.1 in some parts.<\/p>\n The R rate in England has remained relatively constant since February 5, having peaked on January 15\u00a0at between 1.2 and 1.3.\u00a0<\/p>\n For the last few weeks Sage has been unable to give a rate for the UK as a whole.<\/p>\n When cases are so low, the R rate is a less reliable indication of the spread of infection – this is why when infections are low – as they are now – the rate is widened as measuring it becomes more challenging and less accurate.<\/p>\n It comes as: <\/strong><\/p>\n <\/p>\n Infection data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) today revealed that cases are still falling despite a growing concern surrounding the Indian variant.<\/p>\n Around one in 1,340 people in private households in England had Covid-19 in the week to May 8 – down from one in 1,180 the previous week<\/p>\n This is the lowest figure since the week to September 5 when the estimate, which is based on a sample of the population, stood at one in 1,400.<\/p>\n Experts however said that infection data would be less clear as cases fall.<\/p>\n Prof Kevin McConway, Emeritus Professor of Applied Statistics, The Open University said "estimates can't be precise".<\/p>\n He added: "We can be very confident that infection rates are low, but exactly how low is difficult to estimate, and the margins of error are very wide."<\/p>\n While cases are falling, ministers have said they will "do whatever it takes" when it comes to suppressing the virus.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n Further coronavirus restrictions are set to be lifted on Monday with pubs being able to serve people inside and over night stays permitted.<\/p>\n While this is set to go ahead, ministers are still concerned about the spread of variants.<\/p>\n Vaccine minister Nadhim Zahawi\u00a0today said that one option is "flexing" the vaccine rollout to deliver extra jabs to the worst affected parts of the country.<\/p>\n Ministers are looking at the possibility of vaccinating whole intergenerational households in those areas regardless of age.<\/p>\n Another possibility is\u00a0speeding up the delivery of second doses\u00a0to give more people a greater level of protection.<\/p>\n Boris Johnson has said No 10 is "anxious" about the spread of the variant\u00a0and that there "may be things we have to do locally" to stop it.<\/p>\n Looking specifically at the English regions and the percentage of people testing positive for Covid-19 is thought to have decreased in Yorkshire and the Humber, but the trend is uncertain across the other regions of England, the ONS said.<\/p>\n Yorkshire and the Humber had the highest proportion of people of any region in England likely to test positive for coronavirus in the week to May 8 – around one in 780.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, the West Midlands had the lowest estimate at around one in 3,020.<\/p>\n The R rate is highest in the East of England, the North West and the South West at 0.8 to 1.1.<\/p>\n There are several areas in the North West where surge testing is taking place to catch cases of the Indian variant.<\/p>\n Residents in Bolton, Blackburn and Sefton have all been urged to get a test – whether they have symptoms or not in a bid to catch cases.<\/p>\n Across London, the Midlands, North East and Yorkshire and the South East, the R rate is at 0.8 to 1.<\/p>\n Surge testing is also taking place in some London boroughs, as well as certain areas in the West Midlands in order to catch cases of the South African variant.<\/p>\n While surge testing is currently taking place in several areas across the capital, these have been specifically rolled out to catch cases of the South African variant.<\/p>\n But the Department of Health said this didn't rule out the surge testing also catching cases of the Indian variant if they were detected.<\/p>\n Cases of the Indian variant have\u00a0more than doubled in the space of seven days\u00a0from 520 last week to 1,313 this, sparking alarm in Whitehall.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n Professor in medicine at the University of East Anglia, Prof Paul Hunter today said: "It's now in most regions of the UK, with the possible exception of Yorkshire and Humber in the North East, which seem to have very few cases so far."<\/p>\n The most recent data from Public Health England (PHE) states that cases of the virus are now rising in 159 areas in the UK.<\/p>\n Two areas where surge testing is being rolled out are also some of the most infected areas in the country.<\/p>\n\n
REGIONAL BREAKDOWN<\/h2>\n
SURGE TEST<\/h2>\n
Most read in Health News<\/h3>\n