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Britain's chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance, and the chief medical adviser Chris Whitty have provided details about the new coronavirus variant that has been identified in the United Kingdom, Reuters reported. 

According to them, the new variant is thought to have first occurred in mid-September in London or Kent, in the south-east of England. British analysis suggests it may be up to 70 per cent more transmissible than the old variant. There is no evidence to suggest it is more lethal or causes more severe illness and no evidence suggesting vaccines will be any less effective against the new variant.

According to the source, the new variant contains 23 different changes, many of them associated with alterations in a protein made by the virus. In London, 62 per cent of cases were due to the new variant in the week of Dec 9. That compared to 28 per cent three weeks earlier.

In areas where the new variant was dominant, hospital admission rates were rising quickly and previously agreed social restrictions were no longer strong enough.