UK: Omicron Spreading Quickly; Time To Work From Home Again
Two coronavirus vaccine doses appear to be less effective against omicron than the delta variant of coronavirus, but booster jabs remain up to 75 per cent effective against symptomatic infection, early research by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has found.
Protection against severe illness, hospitalisation and death is expected to be significantly higher, the UKHSA said, as it predicted that the new variant will likely become dominant by next week and could reach one million infections by the end of December if current trends continue unchanged.
Dr Mary Ramsay, head of immunisation at the UKHSA, said: “These early estimates should be treated with caution but they indicate that a few months after the second jab, there is a greater risk of catching the omicron variant compared to delta strain.
“The data suggest this risk is significantly reduced following a booster vaccine, so I urge everyone to take up their booster when eligible.”
Downing Street had earlier said that while it would impose tougher coronavirus measures in England “if necessary”, it did not currently plan to do so, amid reports that officials have drawn up contingency measures including the return of table service in pubs and increased mask-wearing, dubbed “plan C”.
Meanwhile, a further 58,194 new Covid infections were reported on Friday – the highest daily leap in infections since 9 January, as Nicola Sturgeon warned of a “tsunami” of omicron infections in Scotland, where the new variant will likely become dominant in “days, not weeks”.
“Given the volume of people who could be infected by omicron because of its greater transmissibility, even if most of those cases are mild, the number of cases of serious illness will put massive strain on the ability of the NHS to cope,” Scotland’s first minister said.
