India’s coronavirus variant expected to dominate UK

Published
0

Britain’s health minister has said that a fast-spreading coronavirus variant first identified in India is likely to become the dominant strain of the virus in the UK, AP reports

Health Secretary Matt Hancock said the new strain, formally known as B.1.617.2, is more transmissible than the UK’s dominant strain. He told the BBC: “It is likely it will become the dominant variant.”

Hancock said scientists had a “high degree of confidence” that current vaccines work against the new variant, and there is no evidence it causes more a severe disease.

Opinion

Editorial

Yemen offensive
Updated 04 Oct, 2026

Yemen offensive

The best option, therefore, is for Muslim and Arab states to help restore the Saudi-Houthi ceasefire.
Growth transition
04 Oct, 2026

Growth transition

PRIME Minister Shehbaz Sharif’s recent call to move from stabilisation to growth, job creation and export ...
Protection at risk
04 Oct, 2026

Protection at risk

THE recent warning from UNHCR should alarm donor governments. Nearly 8.3m refugees and other forcibly displaced...
Talks, at last
Updated 03 Oct, 2026

Talks, at last

The government’s constant threats to suspend KP’s elected dispensation over a political protest have escalated hostilities considerably. In that context, both sides did well to start talking.
IWT’s future
Updated 03 Oct, 2026

IWT’s future

TOGETHER with the Kashmir dispute, India’s unilateral suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty has become the biggest...
Pained minds
03 Oct, 2026

Pained minds

IN Pakistan, mental healthcare is wedged between two extremes — a luxury or a stigma. Estimates cited by the...