London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Thursday, Aug 28, 2025

Brazil variant: Search for mystery case narrows to 379 households

Brazil variant: Search for mystery case narrows to 379 households

The search for an individual infected with the Covid variant first found in Brazil has narrowed to 379 households in south-east England, Health Secretary Matt Hancock has said.

He said the batch of home testing kits in question had been identified and each household was being contacted.

It is one of six cases of the P.1 variant found in the UK in February.

Mr Hancock told MPs the UK's current vaccines had not yet been tested against this variant.

But work is already under way to tweak the vaccines to make them a better match for some of these new "variants of concern".

Updated vaccines could be ready within months, enabling people to get a booster shot in the autumn.

Preliminary data from Manaus - the Amazonian city hit hard by the P.1 variant - suggest it is more contagious and may evade immunity provided by past Covid infection.

This raises questions about how well current vaccines, which were designed around earlier versions of the virus, might work.

Mr Hancock said the variant had caused "significant challenges" in Brazil.

He added: "We're doing all we can to stop the spread of this new variant in the UK, to analyse its effects, and to develop an updated vaccine that works on all these variants of concern and protect the progress that we've made as a nation."

The search comes as the UK recorded 6,391 new coronavirus cases, down 33% on last Tuesday.

The number of daily deaths reported has also fallen to 343 deaths within 28 days of a positive test, down 60% on last week.

Meanwhile, Mr Hancock said the government was "on track" to meet its target of offering a vaccine to everyone in the top nine priority groups, including all over-50s and those with underlying health conditions, by 15 April and all adults by the end of July.

"Although the day-to-day figures of supply are lumpy, we have some bumper weeks ahead later this month," he added.


It almost went unnoticed with all the focus on the Brazil variant, but during his statement to the House of Commons Mr Hancock made an uncharacteristically confident prediction about vaccine supply.

He said there are some "bumper" weeks to come. It contrasts with the policy to date, which has been to not talk about supply or, when pushed, to keep referring to it as lumpy.

So why the change of tack? It is mainly related to production at AstraZeneca's two UK plants which are now both fully up-to-speed.

It could mean around four million doses a week could be given in the second half March - compared to between two and three million in recent weeks. Soon after that supplies of a third vaccine, Moderna, may start arriving in the country.

Ministers often refer to the programme as a race - the vaccine against the virus. Well, if that's the case, the vaccination programme could soon be at full throttle.


The person infected with the variant who has not been traced used a home testing kit but did not complete their contact details, Mr Hancock said.

"Incidents like this are rare and only occur in around 0.1% of tests," he added.

News of the mystery case prompted an appeal for anyone without a result from a test on 12 or 13 February to come forward immediately by calling 119.

The case is not linked to five other cases of the Brazil variant in the UK and Mr Hancock said all these individuals quarantined at home as they were legally required to.

Two of the cases are from the same household in South Gloucestershire. They tested positive after someone returned from Brazil on 10 February - five days before the government's hotel quarantine rule came into force for arrivals high-risk countries.

Everyone in five postcode areas of South Gloucestershire is now being invited to take a Covid test, even if they do not have symptoms.

Mr Hancock said testing and sequencing in South Gloucestershire was being stepped up "as a precaution" and there was "no information to suggest the variant has spread further".

Two other people in the same household have also since tested positive for Covid - but tests are still ongoing to check if it is the same variant.

PHE has said officials are tracking down passengers who were on the same flight - from Sao Paulo to Heathrow, via Zurich - as the two South Gloucestershire cases.

A BBC reporter, Juliana Gragnani, was on another flight arriving at Heathrow from Brazil around the same time on 10 February.

She said on Tuesday she had been has been sent a Covid test kit, along with other passengers on her flight.

"After quarantining for more than two weeks, just to make sure, this afternoon I got a call from Test and Trace," she said. "They're sending me a Covid kit and said this is being done with all passengers in my flight - AF1580.

"They also asked if I had taken a test after arriving in England."

Labour's shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth said tougher border controls should have been in place sooner.

He asked: "How on earth can a test be processed that doesn't collect the contact details and what mechanisms will be put in place to fix this in the future?"

The other three cases are Scottish residents who flew to Aberdeen from Brazil via Paris and London, the Scottish government said.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman said there was no reason to believe the variant is in circulation in Scotland.

However, she urged all those who were on board the BA1312 flight from Heathrow to Aberdeen on 29 January to contact the NHS National Contact Tracing Centre, because the correct details were not available for all passengers.


Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
Labour set to freeze income tax thresholds in long-term 'stealth' tax raid
Coca‑Cola explores sale of Costa coffee chain
Trial hears dog walker was chased and fatally stabbed by trio
Restaurateur resigns from government hospitality council over tax criticism
Spanish City funfair shut after serious ride injury
Suspected arson at Ilford restaurant leaves three in critical condition
Tottenham beat Manchester City to go top of Premier League
Bank holiday heatwave to hit 30°C before remnants of Hurricane Erin arrive
UK to deploy immigration advisers to West Africa to block fake visas
×