THE Office for National Statistics has revealed its estimations for how many people have had coronavirus in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
An estimated one in eight people in England would have tested positive for Covid-19 by December last year, up from one in 14 in October, new figures show.
Antibody data on infection in private households suggests that one in 10 in Wales had also been infected by December, alongside one in 13 in Northern Ireland and one in 11 in Scotland.
The figures come from the Office for National Statistic’s Covid-19 Infection Survey in partnership with the University of Oxford, University of Manchester, Public Health England and Wellcome Trust.
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They are based on the proportion of the population who are likely to have tested positive for antibodies to Covid-19, based on blood test results, from a sample of people aged 16 and over, but do not reflect all the people who have had coronavirus and does not take account of antibodies waning over time.
The ONS found “substantial variation” between regions in England, with 17% of people in private households in Yorkshire and the Humber estimated to have tested positive for antibodies in December, compared with 5% in south-west England.
In London, the figure was 16% in December, up from 11% in October, while it was 15% in the North West, up from 6% in October.
In the West Midlands, 14% have had Covid, up from 8% in October, while 8% in the South East and the East of England have had the virus, both up from 5% in October.
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The study came as Health Secretary Matt Hancock revealed he is self-isolating after receiving an alert through the NHS Covid-19 app.
In a video posted on Twitter, he said: “Last night I was pinged by the NHS coronavirus app, so that means I’ll be self-isolating at home, not leaving the house at all until Sunday.”
Hancock, who has previously had coronavirus, said self-isolating is important because it is “how we break the chains of transmission”.
Elsewhere Wales’s health minister, Vaughan Gething, said 70% of care home residents and staff in the country should have received a Covid-19 vaccine by the end of this week. He expects over-70s in Wales to be invited for their vaccinations “in the near future”.
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