Cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant have risen in the UK, with more than 17,000 new cases being reported.
Today (December 28), The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has said there has been 17,269 additional confirmed cases of the Omicron variant of Covid-19 reported across the UK.
This brings the total confirmed cases of the Omicron variant in the UK to 177,201, although no case numbers have been reported in Scotland or Wales since December 23.
The number of deaths in England of people with the Omicron variant has risen to 49, according to the UKHSA.
Hospital admissions in England for people with confirmed or suspected Omicron has also risen, to 668.
The latest figures mark yet another increase in Omicron cases, which have been steadily rising over Christmas weekend and into this week.
On Christmas Eve, the total number of Omicron cases in the UK numbered 114,625. On December 27, the total was 159,932, according to UKHSA daily reports.
For Covid cases overall, including all variants, the number of people who tested positive on December 27, the most recent update available, was 98,515.
Over the course of the last seven days (December 21 to 27), 763,295 people tested positive - a 30.5 per cent increase on the seven days prior (December 14 to 20).
A total of 9,546 people were in hospital in England with Covid-19 as of 8am on December 28, according to new figures from NHS England. This is up 38 per cent from a week earlier and is the highest number since March 3.
During the second wave of coronavirus, the number peaked at 34,336 on January 18.
In London, 3,024 people were in hospital with Covid-19 on December 28, up 59 per cent week-on-week and the highest number since February 19. The second-wave peak for London was 7,917 on January 18.95.
However, experts have warned that data reporting over this period may not be a full picture of the coronavirus situation.
“Data will be unreliable over the festive period as testing and hospital admission patterns change. This will make it difficult to interpret any apparent trends over the next few days,” said Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) on Thursday.
There were 1,374 Covid-19 hospital admissions in England on December 26, NHS England said.
This is up 48 per cent week-on-week and is the highest number since February 11.
During the second wave of coronavirus, admissions peaked at 4,134 on January 12.
In London, 374 admissions were reported on December 26, up 53pc week-on-week but slightly below the 390 admissions reported on December 23.
Admissions during the second wave peaked in London at 977 on January 6.
The number of Covid-19 admissions includes people admitted to hospital in the previous 24 hours who were known to have Covid-19, plus any patients diagnosed in hospital with Covid-19 in the previous 24 hours.
