Horror in Great Britain, 1.7 million infections with Covid-19 in just one week

The UK has raised the alarm about COVID-19 infections, with the number rising by 32% to almost 2.3 million, according to the latest figures.

The number has increased by 1.7 million people in the past week and the highest for total infections since the end of April.

But still far from the record high of 4.9 million, which was reached at the end of March.

The Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 variants are likely after the latest increase, the Office for National Statistics said, which are thought to be the most dominant in Britain.

The rise in UK infections comes amid a warning from the World Health Organization that the pandemic is far from over, as more than 100 countries report rising cases.

The virus continues to be most prevalent in Scotland, where 288,200 people tested positive for COVID last week, or one in 18.

In England, more than 1.8 million people were likely to have had the virus last week, equivalent to about one in 30.

That's up from 1.4 million, or one in 40 people, last week.

Wales has seen infections rise sharply to 106,500 people, or one in 30, from 68,500, or one in 45.

In Northern Ireland, infections rose to around 71,000 people, or one in 25, from 59,900, or one in 30.

Sarah Crofts, ONS head of analytical results for the COVID-19 infection survey, said: In the UK we have seen a steady increase of over half a million infections, likely caused by an increase in BA.4 and BA.5 variants. This increase is seen across all ages, countries and regions of England. We will continue to monitor the data closely to see if this growth continues in the coming weeks.