Coronavirus new variant live updates as number of cases grows Coronavirus latest from the UK and across the world The video will auto-play soon8Cancel Play now Sixteen cases of another new Covid variant have been found in the UK. The strain was identified by Public Health England and anyone who tested positive and their contacts have been tracked down and told to isolate. It shares a mutation in common with the South African and Brazilian variants and has been designated a 'Variant Under Investigation' - meaning that scientists aren't immediately worried about it. But the change it shares with the others, E484K, could help the virus avoid immunity from vaccinations or previous infection.