Boris Johnson must wait until there are fewer than 1,000 Covid infections a day before lifting lockdown, NHS bosses and scientists have warned. Experts say it could take months .
Ed Miliband today insisted Labour s shadow attorney general Lord Falconer is very, very sorry after he described the coronavirus pandemic as a gift that keeps on giving for lawyers.
Covid vaccine UK updates as South African variant spreads
All the latest coronavirus updates from Hull, East Yorkshire and beyond
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According to research the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine offers only limited protection against mild disease caused by the South African variant of coronavirus.
But the British company said early data from the study has shown the jab can protect against severe disease caused by the mutation.
The study - due to be published on Monday and first reported by the Financial Times - into the E484K mutation involved some 2,000 people, most of whom were young and healthy.
Nadhim Zahawi says AstraZeneca is confident its vaccine prevents serious illness caused by South African strain after study of 2,000 patients found some got mild or moderate symptoms – as he reveals roll-out almost hit 1,000 jabs EVERY MINUTE
A small trial of 2,026 people found jab had limited efficacy in protecting against mild and moderate disease
The pharmaceutical giant said scientists will now start adapting the vaccine to kill the new variant
Nobody died or was hopitalised during study by South Africa s University of the Witwatersrand and Oxford
A testing blitz is underway in some parts of the country to track down cases of the South African variant
Data published by the Department for Health today shows that another 15,845 cases were recorded in the UK, down by 25 per cent from 21,088 cases last Sunday.