New variant of Covid-19 discovered in the UK

Mr. Hancock announced the news during a statement to MPs in the House of Commons on Monday afternoon - the Health Secretary was explaining to MPs why it was necessary for the UK government to put London into the top tier of lockdown rules.

In fact, Mr. Hancock said it was possible that this new strain could have contributed to a spike in the number of individuals testing positive for Covid-19.

“We’ve currently identified over 1,000 cases with this variant predominantly in the south of England although cases have been identified in nearly 60 different local authority areas.”

Hancock added: “But it shows we’ve got to be vigilant and follow the rules and everyone needs to take personal responsibility not to spread this virus,” he said.

Meanwhile, First Minister, Arlene Foster, has told MLAs that the Northern Ireland Executive will “undoubtedly” meet in the days immediately before or after Christmas to discuss Covid-19 restriction measures.

“Unfortunately our numbers are not where we would like them to be,” said First Minister Foster.

“We will undoubtedly have discussions about this in the days just before or after Christmas,” she added.