spread between people who are double vaccinated. there is also a very extensive mutation which means it diverges quite significantly from previous configurations of the virus, and as a result, it might in part reduce the protection of our vaccines over time. we need to take targeted and proportionate measures now as a precaution while we find out more. first, we need to slow down the seeding of this variant in our country. we need to buy time for our scientists to understand exactly what we're dealing with and for us to get more people vaccinated and above all to get more people boosted. as well as to help our nhs prepare for what is a challenging winter. yesterday we took steps to protect the uk against the