UK coronavirus cases pass 2 million as another 27,052 test positive and 534 more die

THE number of people diagnosed with coronavirus in the UK has surged past two million as another 27,052 tested positive overnight.

Meanwhile, another 534 deaths have been recorded as the country battles surging rates of Covid.

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The death toll now stands at 67,057.

This time last week, another 21,502 cases were recorded along with 519 new fatalities.

Yesterday, another 28,507 new cases were reported.

Boris Johnson has today cancelled Christmas for millions of Brits across London and the South East – putting them in Tier 4 lockdown.

Travel and different households mixing will be banned under the new highest level tier – with families elsewhere only allowed to form ‘Christmas bubbles’ on December 25 itself, a leaked memo suggests.

It comes as…

  • Christmas is expected to be cancelled for millions with London and the South East expected to be put in Tier 4 lockdown
  • A new highly contagious strain of coronavirus has been detected and referred to WHO
  • The Oxford vaccine is set to be approved in the New Year
  • A Brit firm has developed a saliva test that can detect Covid in just 15 minutes, it was claimed

It comes after a new Covid-19 variant that has ripped through the South East is said to be 50 per cent more contagious than the original strain.

Boris Johnson was holed up in emergency meetings on Friday night after being presented with evidence the new Covid strain ripping through the South East is "frighteningly transmissable."

A government source told The Sun: "What we do not know yet is whether the new strain is more or less likely to cause you harm, but what we have learnt is that it will pass to person to person much more easily and that is what we are really worried about."

Professor Chris Whitty, chief medical officer for England, today said the UK has informed the World Health Organisation that the new variant coronavirus can spread more rapidly.

He said: "There is no current evidence to suggest the new strain causes a higher mortality rate or that it affects vaccines and treatments, although urgent work is under way to confirm this.

"Given this latest development, it is now more vital than ever that the public continue to take action in their area to reduce transmission."

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But in good news, yhe UK COVID-19 vaccination programme began last week, with more than 137,000 people across the UK already receiving their first dose of the Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine.

The UK is expected to receive a total of 40million doses by the end of 2021 – enough to vaccinate up to a third of the population.

The Oxford vaccination is also expected to be approved in the days following Christmas.

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