LONDON (Reuters) – The prevalence of COVID-19 infections in England is estimated to have risen to 1 in 260 people in the week to June 26, Britain’s Office for National Statistics (ONS) said on Friday, as a new wave of cases of the Delta variant gathers pace.
The previous week, there was an estimated prevalence of 1 in 440 people infected with the coronavirus.
The ONS said it was the highest estimated rate of positivity since week to Feb 27, though Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said that he expects to reopen England’s economy fully on July 19, even though cases are rising, as the vaccine rollout is breaking the link between cases and deaths.
(Reporting by Andy Bruce and Alistair Smout)
