Covid infections down again to one in 50, says ONS

Covid infections have fallen again to one in 50 people in the UK, according to the latest estimates from the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

That means around 1.27 million people had coronavirus in the week to 13 May - down 14% from the week before.

Infections have been coming down steeply since the end of March, after the Omicron variant pushed up cases.

Over-65s and health and care staff are among groups to be offered a vaccine in the autumn to top up protection.

Clinically vulnerable adults aged 16 to 64 will also be offered a Covid jab ahead of the winter, when the virus could spread more widely.

A form of the Omicron variant of coronavirus, called BA.2, is the most common cause of Covid, but two others - BA.4 and BA.5 - have now been named 'variants of concern' by UK health officials.

"They are likely to have a growth advantage over BA.2," says the UK Health Security Agency in its latest report on variants.

However, it cautions that this is based on a small number of cases, and there is still a lot of uncertainty.

BA.4 and BA.5 are currently causing another Covid wave in South Africa. In the UK, levels are very low.

Covid infections are now at their lowest level since mid-December, the ONS says, based on swab tests of thousands of people in households across the UK, whether they have symptoms or not.

Since free testing has now ended in England, and is restricted in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the ONS survey is the most accurate picture of the spread of Covid-19.

From the positive tests collected, the ONS estimates that infections fell in all four UK nations in mid-May.

Current rates are:

• one in 55 in England - down from one in 45 the week before

• one in 40 in Wales - down from one in 35 the week before

• one in 60 in Northern Ireland - down from one in 55 the week before

• one in 45 in Scotland - down from one in 35 the week before

However, the ONS found that infections may no longer be falling in the south-east and south-west of England. And among under-35s, the drop in infections looks to be slowing down.

• More detail on coronavirus cases, hospital admissions, deaths and vaccinations in the UK

Sarah Crofts, head of analytical outputs for the Covid-19 Infection Survey, said: "Today's figures continue to show a welcome decline in infections across the UK, reaching their lowest point in England since the start of December last year.

"While younger age groups continue to be the lowest infected, there are early signs of the decrease slowing for under-35s.

"We will continue to monitor these patterns over the coming weeks, since it is too early to say if this is part of a longer trend."

Official figures from hospitals in the UK show the number of patients with Covid continues to fall, to levels last seen towards the end of 2021.

Deaths are also decreasing, with 169 deaths within 28 days of a positive test reported on 19 May.

In total, more than 177,000 people have died in the UK since the outbreak of the virus.

At least one dose of a vaccine to protect against Covid-19 has so far been given to nine in 10 people aged 12 and over.