Covid infections are still at near-record levels over most of the UK

According to fresh numbers from the Office for National Statistics, the number of Covid-19 infections in most of the UK is near or at record levels, with only Scotland reporting a decrease.

For the second week in a row, according to ONS data based on swabs gathered from randomly selected households, about 1 in 13 people in the UK are likely to have had Covid – an estimated 4.88 million infections.

However, the situation differed each country. In England, the number of infections remained stable during the week, with an estimated 7.6% of the population, or 1 in 13, infected with Covid.

Meanwhile, the predicted rate in Wales increased from one in 14 to one in 13 persons. In Scotland, the virus was expected to have infected 396,800 people, or around one in every 13 people, down from one in every 12 the week before.

Infections increased in the north of England and the east Midlands, but decreased in the south-east. The trend was uncertain in other parts of the country, including London, while levels remained highest in the south-west, where about 9% of the population was considered to have Covid.

Variation by age was also seen, with infection levels climbing among individuals between the ages of 12 and 34, while 7.1 percent of those aged 70 and up were suspected of having Covid in their system.