World health experts have renamed key coronavirus variants found across the globe to avoid discrimination.
The World Health Organisation (WHO) has given new names to the mutant Covid strains based off the Greek alphabet.
Previously, the variants were given names based on the places where they were first detected - such as the so-called Indian, South African and Brazilian variants.
The UK variant is known as Alpha and the South African has now been named Beta.
Variants first detected in Brazil and Indian should now be known as Gamma and Delta respectively.
These particular labels were chosen after consultation and a review of many potential naming systems.
WHO selected an expert group of partners from around the world, including people who are part of naming systems, virus experts, researchers and national authorities.
It is hoped that the new system will make the variants simple and easy to say and remember.
The new labels will not replace the existing scientific names, which will continue to be used in research by virus experts.
A spokesperson for WHO said: “WHO has announced a new naming system for key Covid-19 variants. The labels are based on the Greek alphabet, making them simple, easy to say and remember.
“The labels do not replace existing scientific names, which convey important scientific information and will continue to be used in research.
“The naming system aims to prevent calling Covid-19 variants by the place where they are detected, which is stigmatising and discriminatory.
“WHO encourages countries and others to adopt these names as they will ease public discussions about global Covid-19 Variants of Concern and Interest.”
The Scottish Government recently referred to the so-called Indian variant as “April 02” over fears that the previous name would lead to prejudice.
The Indian Council of Scotland branded the decision as “silly” and accused Nicola Sturgeon and her Government of “playing to the galleries.”
President of the group Neil Lal said: “It just looks like gesture politics and empty ones at that. India has bigger problems of its plate than a variant name.
“When I heard about it, I just thought it was very silly.”
Former US President Donald Trump was repeatedly slammed by anti-racism campaigners for referring to Covid-19 as the 'China virus' - an inflammatory reference to the first country to record cases of the virus.
