Another 2,657 people in Britain have tested positive for COVID-19, bringing the total number of coronavirus cases in the country to 4,444,631, according to official figures released Thursday.
The country also reported another 11 coronavirus-related deaths. The total number of coronavirus-related deaths in Britain now stands at 127,651. These figures only include the deaths of people who died within 28 days of their first positive test.
Earlier Thursday, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said Britain is "anxious" about the coronavirus variant first detected in India and his government is "ruling nothing out" to tackle its spread in the country.
The consortium of scientists studying new variants in the country, COG-UK, has identified a total of 1,723 cases of the Indian variant known as B1617.2.
Although some of these will be duplicates, it is more than triple Public Health England's confirmed figure last week of 520, according to Sky News. Scientists have raised concerns that the current vaccines may be less effective against the new variants.
However, Johnson said the easing of lockdown will go ahead as planned for now.From May 17, pubs, bars and restaurants in England will be permitted to open indoors, while indoor entertainment will also resume, including cinemas, museums and children's play areas. (ANI/Xinhua)
( With inputs from ANI )
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