Two cases of new Covid variant Omicron detected in UK

UK: Two cases of the new Covid variant, Omicron, have been reported according to the health secretary.

Sajid Javid, the health secretary stated that the UK Health Security Agency had detected cases in Chelmsford, Essex, and in Nottingham. According to him, the cases were linked to travel in southern Africa and they and their households were self-isolating as more tests and contact tracing take place.

The new variant has also been identified in South Africa, Botswana, Belgium, Hong Kong and Israel.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will be holding a press conference at Downing Street later with the chief scientific advisor to the government, Sir Patrick Vallance, and the chief medical officer Prof Chris Whitty.