UK likely to see reliable data on Omicron in January, says health official

Britain will most likely only have reliable data on the spread of the new Omicron coronavirus variant in early January and possibly in the week between Christmas and New Year, a leading health official said today.

Susan Hopkins, the chief medical adviser at the UK Health Security Agency, said so far there were 15 proven cases of Omicron in hospitals, but that the number was likely to be much higher.

"I think the earliest that we will...