UK reports over 35,000 COVID-19 cases of Delta variant in a week

Britain has reported 35,204 new coronavirus cases of the Delta variant first identified in India in the latest week, marking a 46 percent increase, Public Health England (PHE) said Friday.

The total number of confirmed cases of the variant now stands at 111,157, according to the PHE.

The Delta variant now comprises 95 percent of all sequenced cases, the PHE added. Last week, it made up 99 percent of new COVID-19 cases across Britain.

Meanwhile, the PHE said the current vaccines continue to have a "crucial effect on hospital admission and death", adding there is currently no evidence that this new variant causes more severe disease or renders vaccines less effective.

A total of 117 people has died in England having the Delta variant, eight of which were people under the age of 50, according to the PHE.

Six of these eight people were unvaccinated, while two died after more than 21 days of receiving a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine.

Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), said though the data suggested "we have begun to break the link between cases and hospitalisations", she warned against complacency.

She urged Britons to get vaccinated and book their second jabs as soon as possible."Whilst vaccines provide excellent protection, they do not provide total protection, so it is still as important as ever that we continue to exercise caution," she said. "Protect yourself and the people around you by working from home where possible, and by practising 'hands, face, space, fresh air' at all times." (ANI/Xinhua)

( With inputs from ANI )