Health officials have confirmed that a new variant has entered the UK from an amber list country and is currently under investigation.
The Indian variant has become the dominant strain in the UK which could effect the 21 June end date for lockdown.
The new variant was originally from Egypt and was imported into Thailand and both countries are on the UK government’s amber list.
The government has said that no one is allowed to travel to an amber list country for a holiday and you should only go for essential reasons, upon return to the UK you must quarantine for 10 days.
Public Health England (PHE) said there are 109 known cases of the C.36.3 variant which is under investigation with test being carried out to find out if it is a “variant of concern.”
On Monday a probe started “on the basis of the mutation profile and increased importation from a widening international area.”
PHE said in a statement, “There is currently no evidence that this variant causes more severe disease or renders the vaccines currently deployed any less effective.
“PHE is carrying out laboratory testing to better understand the impact of the mutations on the behaviour of the virus.
“All appropriate public health interventions will be undertaken, including additional contact tracing and targeted testing.
“Where cases have been identified, additional follow-up of cases, testing of contacts and if required targeted case finding will limit its spread.”
The Health Secretary, Matt Hancock said, “The latest estimates are that more than half and potentially as many as three-quarters of all new cases are now of this [new Indian] variant.”
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