Cases of the Delta variant of Covid-19 first identified in India have risen 46% in a week across the UK, new figures show. Public Health England said there had been 35,204 more cases since last week to reach a total of 111,157 - a 46% increase.
Some 42 of these cases are the Delta AY.1 sub lineage. India's health ministry has said studies show that this so-called Delta plus variant spreads more easily, binds more easily to lung cells and is potentially resistant to monoclonal antibody therapy, which can help neutralise the virus.
But while the Delta variant now accounts for around 95% of new cases sequenced in the UK, PHE said vaccines continue to have a "crucial effect on hospital admission and death".