'Massive effort' ongoing to contain spread of new variants
'Massive effort' ongoing to contain spread of new variants

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said a "massive effort" is under way to prevent new coronavirus variants spreading.

"If you look at what we have done in the case of the South African variant, a massive effort went in there" he said, "The same is going on now to contain any spread of the Brazilian variant." Health officials are currently looking for a person in the UK who is infected with a worrying Brazil variant of Covid-19 in a bid to stop it spreading into the wider community.

It is thought the individual was tested on February 12 or 13, possibly via a home postal test or a test collected from a local authority.

The Prime Minister added that there is "no reason not to think that our vaccines are effective against these variants of concern at the present time" and Public Health England "don't think that there is a threat to the wider public".

Mr Johnson made the comments during a visit to a primary school in Stoke-on-Trent ahead of all pupils returning to the classroom on March 8.

Report by Thomasl.

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