The UK has recorded 106,122 daily Covid-19 cases – the first time the total has gone above six figures as the Omicron surge continues.
The lab-confirmed coronavirus cases were as of 9am on Wednesday, the government said, which added a further 140 people had died within 28 days of testing positive for Covid.
It comes as Boris Johnson has been urged to outline his post-Christmas Covid strategy, as Wales became the latest part of the UK to outline a tightening of restrictions.
The prime minister has reassured people that no further curbs will be introduced in England before December 25, given there is not enough evidence on the severity of the Omicron variant and hospital admission to justify stricter measures.
But in Wales, first minister Mark Drakeford has announced new measures to be introduced from 6am on Boxing Day and claimed Johnson and his Cabinet are “paralysed by their internal divisions”.
Elsewhere, a new formulation of the Pfizer/BioNTech coronavirus vaccine has been approved for use in children aged five to 11.
The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) is advising that children aged five to 11, who are in a clinical risk group, or who are a household contact of someone (of any age) who is immunosuppressed, should be offered a primary course of vaccination.
it was also reported that UK Government scientists are set to conclude that Omicron is causing a milder disease than the Delta strain in most Britons.
Politico’s London Playbook said the UK Health Security Agency is expected to publish early real-world data on the disease’s severity before Christmas, with its findings also suggesting Omicron is not necessarily mild enough to avoid large numbers of hospital admissions.
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