UK health agency investigates AY.4.2 variant amid COVID-19 surge
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The Delta variant has been the dominant strain in the UK, however, scientists say the subvariant AY.4.2 has been spreading rapidly.
As Britain continues to battle the virus, the country reported over 40,000 coronavirus cases amid rising hospitalisation cases.
Reports said the rate of hospitalisation has touched the highest since March. Amid the rising cases, UK's Health Security Agency (UKHSA) announced that the AY.4.2 variant has been designated as a "variant under investigation".
The health agency said the variant "may have an increased growth rate in the UK compared to Delta".
The Delta variant has been the dominant strain in the UK, however, scientists say the subvariant AY.4.2 has been spreading rapidly.
Last week the country had recorded 50,000 COVID-19 cases as reports claimed school children have been increasingly affected by the virus.
UK health expertsBritain's health secretary Sajid Javid had warned that coronavirus cases could touch 100,000 a day. Britain is one of the worst-hit countries with the virus with over 8.6 million cases and over 163,515 fatalities.
UK had earlier announced that it had cut 47 countries from its "red list" with just seven countries still on the list including Colombia, Ecuador, Haiti among others. The development means travellers would no longer need to enter hotel quarantine.
(With inputs from Agencies)