Covid-19: 1 in 15 infected in England in last week of 2021; opposition leader tests positive for second time

New figures show 1 in 15 people infected in week ending December 31, up from 1 in 25 the previous week

Labour leader Keir Starmer has now tested positive for second time; had been due to quiz Prime Minister Boris Johnson about pandemic policies

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Britain’s Labour leader Keir Starmer making a speech on January 4, setting out his party’s ambition for a new Britain. He has tested positive, again, for Covid-19. Photo: AP

Published: 9:14pm, 5 Jan 2022Updated: 12:00am, 6 Jan 2022

The leader of Britain’s opposition Labour Party has tested positive for Covid-19 for the second time as Britain reported record prevalence of the virus for the last week of 2021, with one in 15 people in England infected.

Keir Starmer will miss the chance to grill Prime Minister Boris Johnson about the government’s pandemic policies as the soaring infections strain the nation’s health system.

Figures also showed record prevalence in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. In all, an estimated 3.75 million people were infected across the United Kingdom.

Johnson said on Tuesday that the country has “a chance to ride out” the Omicron variant-driven surge in infections without imposing tough lockdown measures. He was due to answer questions in Parliament on Wednesday afternoon and deliver a statement on Covid-19.

Boxes of Covid-19 lateral flow self-test kits in the UK. The nation is dealing with a supply crunch for these cheaper, quicker tests. Photo: Bloomberg

Johnson has resisted imposing stringent lockdown measures in England. Instead, he has bet that a vaccine booster drive and caution among the population will be enough to constrain the latest wave of infections, despite the arrival of the highly transmissible Omicron variant.