Indian variant hotspot Blackburn offers jabs to all over-18s as Boris admits he s anxious over 100% increase in some areas as national infection rate creeps up
Count of new positive tests was on par with last Thursday, with a 1.7 per cent rise. Deaths fell 15 per cent
Dr Yvonne Doyle, Public Health England medical director, said falling hospital admissions are proof jabs work
Almost 640,000 more vaccine doses were given out yesterday, with 35.9million having had at least one dose
Number of Brits getting ill with Covid every day has risen by 65% in a week to 2,800 amid rapid spread of Indian variant but top expert says vaccines have changed the game because they are making the infection mild
ZOE and King s College London experts estimated 2,800 Britons were infected with the virus a day last week
This was up 65 per cent in a week, but they said vaccinated people who caught the virus had a mild infection
It comes as SAGE scientists are called to an emergency meeting because of rising Indian variant cases
Sanger Institute data showed the strain is focused in hotspots Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen, although it is also responsible for most cases in Bedford and South Northamptonshire.
Cases of vaccines failing and people getting severe Covid have still been very, very rare even in the face of India s colossal outbreak, according to virologist Dr Shahid Jameel.