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The UK Government has reported a third case of the Omicron COVID-19 variant.
It said the case involves a person who visited the Westminster area of London but who is no longer in the country, the BBC reports.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) said the person in the third UK case has been linked to travel in southern Africa.
Testing is being carried out at locations that they had visited in London.
The UKHSA said it was “very likely” more cases would be found in the UK over the coming days.
The emergence of the new case comes after the UK government introduced new restrictions on the weekend in response to the variant. They included mandatory face masks in shops and on public transport in England.
In an attempt to slow the spread in the UK, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said it was necessary to take “targeted and precautionary measures” after two people tested positive for the new variant in England.
“Right now this is the responsible course of action to slow down the seeding and the spread of this new variant and to maximise our defences,”
Among the measures announced, Mr Johnson said anyone arriving in England will be asked to take a a mandatory PCR test for COVID-19 on the second day after their arrival and must self isolate until they provide a negative test.
And if someone tests positive for the Omicron variant, then he said their close contacts will have to self-isolate for 10 days regardless of their vaccination status — currently close contacts are exempt from quarantine rules if they are fully-vaccinated.
UK Health Secretary Sajid Javid earlier confirmed that two people tested positive with the Omicron variant in the south-eastern English town of Chelmsford and in the central city of Nottingham.
He said the cases were linked and related to travel from southern Africa.
– With AP
Source: 9News
