Ten people are now in hospital in England with the omicron variant of Covid, discovered earlier this month.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid said he is not able to confirm any deaths in England from the Omicron variant of Covid-19 to date.
But he stressed that a delay between infection, admission to hospital and death should be expected.
Asked how many people are in hospital with the new variant, Mr Javid told Sky News: “In England, there’s about 10 people that are confirmed, in England, with Omicron.”
He added: “At this point in time I can’t confirm a death.”
But he said: “There is always a lag between infection and then hospitalisation and then, sadly, death.”
