The United Kingdom (UK) on Wednesday, 15 December, recorded its highest ever cases of COVID-19 in a single day. The nation reported 78,610 new cases on Wednesday, about 10,000 cases more than the previous peak in January.
Further, 165 deaths due to COVID-19 were reported on Wednesday.
The UK, where the newly-emerged Omicron variant has clawed in, has reported 4,04,869 cases in the last week. The surge has been attributed largely to the highly transmissible Omicron variant, as well as the dominant Delta variant.
“Let's slow down Omicron's spread and reduce the harm Omicron can do to us by building up our vaccine defences. We are throwing everything at it and wherever you are we'll be there, with a jab, for you, so please, get boosted now," Prime Minister Boris Johnson said at a press conference at Downing Street on Wednesday, reported news agency PTI.
Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency, has indicated that a staggering hike in cases can be expected in the coming days.
"The numbers that we see on data over the next few days will be quite staggering compared to the rate of growth that we've seen in cases for previous variants," she was quoted as saying by news agency Reuters.
Meanwhile, the UK also set a record for the number of booster shots of the COVID-19 vaccine that were administered in a single day on Wednesday, with 6,56,711 receiving the booster dose.
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