The UK, Which Started Vaccinations the Earliest... Records 8,000 Daily Cases Due to the 'Delta Variant'

Amid the emergency in the UK due to the spread of a new variant of the coronavirus (COVID-19) originating from India, a 'social distancing' sign was displayed at a shop on Oxford Street, a busy area in the capital London, on the 7th (local time).

[Asia Economy Reporter Seoyoung Kwon] The United Kingdom has reported the highest number of new COVID-19 cases in three months, with the majority confirmed to be infections of the Delta variant.

On the 11th (local time), the daily newspaper The Guardian reported that the UK's daily new COVID-19 cases increased by 8,125. This figure is significantly higher than the approximately 2,500 cases reported in early last month and is the highest since the 8,482 cases recorded on February 26.

The UK is one of the earliest countries to start COVID-19 vaccinations, with 60% of the total population having received at least the first dose. In particular, over 70% of adults aged 18 and older have received the first dose, and more than 50% have completed the second dose. In UK parks and beaches, millions of people gathered to enjoy their holidays without social distancing or wearing masks.

However, despite the high vaccination rate, the recent increase in COVID-19 cases in the UK has been confirmed to be mostly due to infections with variant viruses. UK Health Secretary Matt Hancock stated that 91% of new cases are infections of the 'Delta variant.' Accordingly, the UK's COVID-19 reproduction number, which indicates how many people one infected person can infect, has risen from 1.2 to around 1.4.

The World Health Organization (WHO) classifies COVID-19 variants as follows: the UK-origin variant as 'Alpha,' the South Africa-origin variant as 'Beta,' the Brazil-origin variant as 'Gamma,' and the India-origin variant as 'Delta.' Since the Alpha variant previously caused a second wave of COVID-19 in the UK, the UK government is closely monitoring the current spread of the Delta variant.

Earlier, experts from Public Health England (PHE) and other UK authorities analyzed that the Delta variant is about 60% more transmissible than the Alpha variant and that the probability of hospitalization upon infection is twice as high. The UK government is also evaluating the effectiveness of existing vaccines against the Delta variant and is reportedly considering postponing the planned lifting of lockdown measures scheduled for the 21st of this month by up to four weeks.