Great Britain could be facing a new wave of Covid infections, driven by Omicron subvariants BA.4 and BA.5
The latest data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) up to June 2 suggests that England and Northern Ireland are beginning to see a rise in cases, with obfuscated trends for Wales and Scotland.
Experts worry these latest mutations may have evolved to infect lung tissue, as did the earliest forms of the virus, making them more dangerous.
BA.4 and BA.5 - first detected in Africa in January and February - were designated as variants of concern in the UK on May 20, though the bulk of infections appear to continue to be down to the dominant BA.2 variant.
Some 797,500 people in private households in England were likely to test positive for Covid-19 in the week ending June 2, the equivalent of about one in 70, the ONS said. This is up week on week from 784,100, which was also about one in 70.
