Michelle Roberts
Health editor, BBC News online

Experts are keeping a watch on a new mutant version of Covid called BA.2.75 that has emerged.

It's not clear yet whether this subvariant of Omicron is one to worry about or not.

It was first spotted in India in May. Since then, at least 10 other countries, including the UK, Germany and the US, have seen some cases.

Nicknamed by some as Centaurus, it has some structural and genetic changes to the spike protein - the bit of the virus that our vaccines are designed around.

It's still too early to know if this means it will be better at dodging our immune defences or cause more severe disease. We have to wait and see, says the World Health Organization's chief scientist Soumya Swaminathan.

The European Centre for Disease Prevention and Control has listed it as a "variant under monitoring" rather than a "variant of concern".

A bit more from Dr Stephen Griffin now, who was asked if it’s a good thing that the majority of cases now come from sub-variants of Omicron – a type of Covid that spreads quicker but makes people less ill.

“It’s a complicated picture,” he tells the Today programme, before making the point that if a virus is infecting a lot of people, it’s still potentially severe – even if the symptoms aren’t as bad.

“It’s fair to say that the current wave in the UK is causing strain on the NHS, we can see that with the indicators such as ambulance wait time,” he says, adding there are now other issues to worry about such as long Covid – something more and more people are experiencing.

Dr Griffin adds that Omicron is “extremely good” at evading our “antibody immunity”. And even though “it’s all Omicron now”, which many see as less of a threat, it’s important to remember we can get “broadsided” by Covid variants and sub-variants “pretty quickly”.

Image source, .

Image source, PA Media

The fact new sub-variants of Omicron are still being found shows Covid “isn’t done”, a leading virologist has warned.

Dr Stephen Griffin, from the University of Leeds, says a fascinating feature of the most recent BA.2.75 sub-variant, nicknamed Centaurus, is the many changes that have occurred to its spike protein – the protein on the outside of the virus, which allows it to enter our cells.

“And it’s made those changes against the background of an already successful form of the virus [BA.2, which was spreading in April] – which all suggests the virus isn’t done with changing,” he tells BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

He adds it's the “the unique characteristic of these number of changes and the combination of changes” that means Covid sub-variants are still being flagged by the World Health Organisation.

Asked how severe the new sub-variant is, Dr Griffin says severity is determined by a number of factors – including whether someone is taking medicines or has an underlying illnesses – but that it's positive BA.2.75 "hasn’t been growing in communities outside of India”.

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By the end of June, 93% of all people aged 12 or over in the UK had had their first dose of the Covid vaccine, external, 87% their second dose, and 68% their third.

However, a recent report from an influential committee of MPs, external says that take-up has been much lower for some important groups, including pregnant women, young people and those from some minority ethnic groups.

Most adults have been offered two doses and a booster.

Anyone vulnerable would have been offered an extra booster (fourth) with the promise of another one to come (fifth).

Some people at highest risk of getting very sick with Covid – people with impaired immune systems, for example – will already have been offered a 5th dose and can expect a sixth in the autumn.

Autumn booster shots will be offered to anyone over the age of 65, health and care staff, and adults aged 16-64 who are particularly vulnerable to severe Covid.

There's plenty more information on vaccines and how to book them here on the NHS website., external

Michelle Roberts
Health editor, BBC News online

Image source, EPA

Pressure on NHS emergency services is getting worse, with patients in England waiting longer for ambulances, many staff off sick and record numbers of people going to A&E.

Figures for June show it took an average of 51 minutes for ambulances to respond to category two emergencies, such as heart attacks and strokes.

That is a big rise on May's average of 40 minutes - the target is 18.

Some 2.8 million people visited A&E and 22,034 had to wait more than 12 hours.

It was also the busiest June on record for 999 calls, with almost 900,000 answered.

The Royal College of Nursing called the situation bleak.

You can read more about the pressures facing hospitals here.

Image source, Suhail Patel

Two major hospitals in west London have reintroduced compulsory mask wearing policies as Covid cases continue to rise in Ealing, Brent and Harrow.

London North West University NHS Trust, which runs Northwick Park and Ealing Hospital, is asking people to wear face coverings in clinical areas and waiting rooms to prevent the virus from spreading again.

Deputy Head Nurse Helen Hardy says: “We are adopting a more cautious approach but there will be no changes to our current visiting policy.

“It’s about protecting our most vulnerable patients and staff so we are asking visitors to wear PPE and masks in wards and clinical areas.”

During the first wave of Covid, Northwick Park became the first hospital in the UK to declare a critical incident as it became overwhelmed by the sheer volume of patients being admitted with coronavirus.

Image source, Getty Images

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage as we await the latest data on UK Covid infections from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) at 12:00 BST.

We'll bring you latest news and analysis once the figures are released.

Here’s a recap of what’s been happening:

• Last week's ONS data showed an 18% rise in infections in the UK. An estimated 2.7 million people were believed to have Covid
• Nearly three million adults in England have still not come forward for a Covid vaccine, data reveals
• Meanwhile a sore throat and cough are now the top symptoms that could be the virus, according to latest research
• The NHS is facing significant pressures from rising Covid admissions and staff sickness
• Extreme heat warnings are also causing concern for healthcare professionals
• Two sub-variants of Omicron - called BA.4 and BA.5 - are driving new infections in the UK
• These variants aren’t thought to be more lethal than other types of Covid, and vaccines are still protecting people and saving lives
• Meanwhle, virologists are concerned about another Omicron sub-variant – BA.2.75 – nicknamed "Centaurus". It was first detected in India in early May