Covid: Four more cases of Brazil variant found in England

Four further cases of the Covid variant of concern first found in Brazil have been identified in England, bringing the total in the UK to 10.

Three cases of the P.1 variant are in South Gloucestershire and are said to be close or household contacts of the two existing cases in the area.

The other new case was identified in Bradford.

Scientists previously said the variant appears more contagious and there were concerns over its response to vaccines.

But Dr Susan Hopkins from Public Health England said last week it was hoped that vaccines would have a strong impact on reducing hospitalisations and deaths in cases of the new variant.

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The new Bradford case tested positive for Covid-19 in late February after travelling back from Brazil via Paris on 14 February.

Subsequent genomic sequencing identified the case as the P.1 variant, Public Health England said in a statement.

Thousands of positive Covid cases, from all across the UK, are sent for this further sequencing every week as scientists aim to identify any variants of the virus.

The new South Gloucestershire cases were uncovered when people were offered testing in response to the initial cases found in the area last month - and those who tested positive had their results sent on for further analysis.

Specialist contact tracing teams are working to identify any further contacts and additional testing has been in place since the initial cases were identified.

Contact-tracers have advised close contacts of the individual in Bradford to isolate and get a test.

There are now seven cases of the P.1 variant in England and three in Scotland, all of which have links to travel or to a previously confirmed case that has travelled to Brazil.

It was always known more cases of the P.1 Brazil variant were coming.

When it was confirmed 11 days ago the variant was here, it was known two household members of the original South Gloucestershire cases had tested positive for Covid.

The results of the genomic sequencing to check which variant they had was not yet complete, but the expectation was it would be P.1.

Where does this leave us? A quarter of all Covid cases are being checked for variants and all the indications are that they are not spreading.

The new P.1 cases brings the total to 10, while there have been just over 300 cases of the South African variant and another 113 cases where the UK virus has acquired the E484 mutation which allows it to escape some of the immune response.

There will be more variants out there that have not been detected, but given that overall week-on-week Covid infection levels are lower we can be confident the variant is not taking hold.

Monitoring this though is crucial to help the UK decide if vaccines updates are needed ahead of next winter.

Separately, Public Health England said a new variant identified in the UK was designated a "variant under investigation" on 4 March. It is not known where this variant first emerged.*

It said the variant - known as VUI-202103/01 - contains the spike mutations E484K and N501Y, both usually associated with so-called "variants of concern".

But it added that "it does not feature specific deletions that would lead to a designation as a [variant of concern]".

No additional cases have yet been found.

In other developments, rough sleepers and other homeless people in England will be prioritised to receive a coronavirus vaccine, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said.

It comes after the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation said people who are homeless or sleeping rough were likely to have underlying health conditions and should be offered jabs alongside those in priority group six - people aged 16 to 64 with underlying health conditions that put them at higher risk of serious disease and mortality.

They should also be offered the vaccine without the need for an NHS number or GP registration, the JCVI added.

Meanwhile, the number of coronavirus cases in the UK has risen compared with recent days, after a further 6,753 cases were reported, according to the latest data.

Another 181 deaths within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test have also been recorded.

As of 10 March, some 23,053,716 people had received a first dose of a coronavirus vaccine, and 1,351,515 had received a second dose.

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News that the Brazil variant had been found in the UK was released in February. Three cases were initially found in England, and separately three in Scotland.

The three cases in Scotland were all oil workers who were returning to their families from Brazil, via Paris and London.

In England, two of the cases are from the same household in South Gloucestershire who tested positive after someone returned from Brazil on 10 February.

The third case in England - now confirmed to be in Croydon - prompted intensive tracing efforts in the region as the identity of the person was initially unknown as he or she failed to register their test properly.

But that person was found at the end of last week and it was confirmed that he or she had "stayed at home" and there was no sign of any onward transmission.

Under current Covid restrictions, holiday travel is not allowed in the UK or abroad. Anyone travelling abroad has to fill in a "Declaration to Travel" form, stating a valid reason for leaving the country, such as education or work, and journeys within England are only allowed for limited reasons.

There are also travel bans on 33 countries "where the risk of a new variant is greatest", including Brazil and other South American nations.

However, the ban on travellers from South America came into effect on 15 February, after one case of the Brazilian variant had already been detected in the UK. The latest Bradford case is also a person known to have travelled from Brazil via Paris just before that change came in.

*This story has now been updated to reflect new information on UK variants on the Public Health England website. PHE previously reported two cases of the VUI-202103/01 variant had been found in the south-east of England in individuals who had recently been in Antigua. PHE now says: "Despite the travel history of these cases there is no scientific evidence to determine where this variant first emerged."

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