Covid hospitalisations in London have reached their highest peak in two months amid the spread of the XEC variant, new figures show.
Data published by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) shows that the hospital admission rate for new Covid cases stood at 3.3 per cent in the capital in the week up to September 30.
It is a rise from the 3.1 per cent reported the week before and the highest weekly average since July 29.
Meanwhile, surveillance by the UKHSA shows that the new XEC variant now accounts for around one in ten cases in the UK.
The XEC variant was first identified in Germany in June and experts believe it has some new mutation that might help it to spread this autumn.
The health agency said that current evidence does “not suggest that we should be more concerned” about the variant but that the UKHSA is “monitoring it closely”.
Dr Jamie Lopez Bernal, UKHSA consultant epidemiologist, said: “Covid-19 is continuing to circulate, with a slight increase in hospitalisations over the past two weeks.
“As winter approaches, we expect flu and RSV to increasingly circulate too, so if you’re eligible to get vaccinated against the three main winter threats – Covid-19, flu and RSV – now is the time to take them up and get winter strong.
“We understand people may be concerned about new variants. Our surveillance shows that where Covid cases are sequenced, around one in 10 are the ‘XEC’ lineage.
“Current information doesn’t suggest we should be more concerned about this variant, but we are monitoring this closely.
“The most important thing to do is to get your vaccination as soon as possible if you’re eligible.”
Last month, scientists said that although XEC has a "slight transmission advantage" over other recent Covid variants, vaccines should still offer good protection.
Prof Francois Balloux, Director of the Genetics Institute at University College London, told the BBC it is possible XEC will become the dominant subvariant over the winter.
All adults aged 65 and over are able to receive both the latest Covid-19 booster vaccination and this year’s flu jab, along with residents in older adult care homes and people with underlying health conditions aged six months to 64 years.
