UK’s new daily Covid cases down 26% on last week – as 1 in 19 still infected

CORONAVIRUS cases have fallen by 26 per cent in the last week, as one in 19 people now have the bug in England, new data has revealed.

A further 68,214 people tested positive for the bug today, with most parts of the UK still seeing a rise in infections.

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Sadly, a further 276 people have died 28 days after a positive coronavirus test, this is down from yesterday’s figure of 314.

Today’s infection rates are up from yesterday, after 66,183 people tested positive – with 92,594 people having also tested positive last Wednesday.

Data from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) shows that around 2.8 million people are currently being infected and isolating.

It’s up from 2.6 million last week and means that prevalence of the virus is up slightly from last week, when one in 20 people had the bug.

But the ONS says the data is uncertain due to the number of infections currently being seen in the community.

Rates have also continued to increase in Northern Ireland over the last week, going from one in 15 people having the bug, to one in 13 – this is the highest rate in Northern Ireland since records began.

Meanwhile in Scotland and Wales, one in 25 people have the bug.

The fresh data comes after it was revealed that Prime Minister Boris Johnson is set to scrap all remaining coronavirus laws in days.

It will include abolishing the requirement for people who catch coronavirus to self-isolate for six days.

The PM will ditch the quarantine requirement at the end of February – a full month before it was originally earmarked to lapse on March 24.

Downing Street hailed the super vaccine rollout for letting England throw off the restraints early and get back to normal.

Mr Johnson told MPs this afternoon he will unveil his full plan to “live with Covid” on Monday February 21.

He said: “Provided the current encouraging trends in the data continue, it is my expectation that we will be able to end the last domestic restrictions, including the legal requirement to self isolate if you test positive.”

Health Secretary Sajid Javid added: “We are the freest country in Europe thanks to the strong defences we have built. We’re learning to live with Covid.”

Downing St said that while the law would be dropped health guidance would remain.

Mr Johnson’s spokesman said: “Obviously in the same way that someone with flu, we wouldn’t recommend they go to work, we would never recommend anyone goes to work when they have an infectious disease.”

The PM’s promise to bring forward the end of all Covid laws was praised this afternoon.

Ex-Cabinet Minister Lord Frost said: “The PM’s plan to end all Covid restrictions a month early is the right thing to do and is extremely welcome.”

While most people who catch Omicron will experience a cold, people who caught other variants of the virus might also experience fatal complications .

New research has found that people who have survived Covid-19 are 63 per cent more likely to suffer a heart attack – irrespective of pre-existing conditions and age.

The paper, published in Nature Medicine, shows how important getting the vaccine is when it comes to protecting our health.

The experts stated that there was an increased risk of myocarditis and pericarditis in those who were not vaccinated.

Analysis of 150,000 Covid-positive people found that the rate of conditions such as coronary disease, strokes and heart failure, was noticeably higher in those who were infected compared to those who had not.

The researchers said that this difference was also visible in people who had mild cases of the virus – so may not have been hospitalised with the bug.

In order to compare, they looked at the results of the 150,000 patients against 11 million people people who never contracted the virus.

The experts said that Covid can linger well beyond actually being infected.

The risk of heart attack increased by 63 per cent after Covid, and the risk of suffering from coronary artery disease or a stroke, was higher at 72 per cent and 52 per cent.