Office for National Statistics (ONS) figures showed 3.5million people were infected on any given day in the week up to March 19. It means one in 16 people had the virus at any given time.
A letter on the NHS website confirmed that the flu vaccination programme for 2022/23 will be only offered to patient groups eligible in line with pre-pandemic recommendations .
Michael O Leary said he would like to see the end of face coverings on Ryanair planes by the end of April after Jet2 became the first UK airline to drop the requirement for travellers to wear masks.
Professor Graham Medley, chair of No10 s Covid modelling group, said he expects a one to two week delay in picking up new mutants when England scraps free testing on April 1.
Government dashboard data showed another 44,017 infections were detected today, up 11 per cent on the tally from last Wednesday. It coincides with the rise of a more infectious Omicron strain.