The World Health Organisation (WHO) is urging governments around the world to reinstate Coronavirus-restricting measures such as masks and ventilation, as its leader speaks of concerns regarding an 'increasing trend of deaths'.
While the British government, as well as many others of wealthy countries, have dropped restrictions, the WHO director-general Dr Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus claims that the pandemic is 'nowhere near over'.
This comes after new figures from the Office for National Statistics today show more than 200,000 people in the UK have had Coronavirus recorded on their death certificate since the rapidly-spreading pandemic of 2020 began.
Read more: The nine North East areas with highest Covid infection rates as cases rise across UK
With infections driven by the subvariant of Covid 19 - Omicron BA.2 - experts have seen infections and hospital admissions rise once again, warning that new variants can re-infect even those with some form of antibody immunity a mere matter of weeks later.
Amid a spike in Coronavirus transmission and increasing hospitalisations, Dr Ghebreyesus has urged governments to 'deploy tried and tested measures' such as masking, improved ventilation, and test and treat protocols.
He said: "I am concerned that cases of Covid-19 continue to rise - putting further pressure on stretched health systems and health workers," adding: "I am also concerned about the increasing trend of deaths."
Sky News reports that Dr Ghebreyesus has in-turn urged governments to regularly review and adjust their Covid-19 response plans based on changing situations.
One of the more concerning variants and subvariants being tracked by the WHO was the BA.2.7.5, nicknamed the Centaurus, with scientists believing that since its discovery in India, it has the potential to rapidly spread and infect even those who have vaccination and antibody immunity.
Governments were facing 'interlinked' challenges around their response to Covid-19, Dr Ghebreyesus said, including reduced testing and sequencing. He then went on to explain that there was a disconnect in Covid-19 risk perception between scientific communities, political leaders and the general public.
Communicating risk and building community trust in health tools was another challenge identified, as well as public health social measures according to the doctor. The pandemic was 'nowhere near over', he said, adding that we were in a better position than at the beginning of the pandemic to push back.
Dr Ghebreyesus urged officials to regularly review their response plans relating to Covid-19 on ever changing situations. The idea of implementing restrictions once again across the UK was raised on Tuesday - should an increase in cases worsen leading backlogs facing the National Health Service. The warning from the WHO came just days after a SAGE advisor blasted the Tories for failing to take urgent action needed to stop numerous hospital cases and needless deaths.
Britain could grind to a standstill as Covid-19 cases surge - but the government’s policy is to ‘shut your eyes and let it rip,’ SAGE advisor Susan Michie warned - fearing that the current make-shift cabinet will continue to 'sit on its hands' as 350,000 new cases are expected to be reported each day next week - according to leading Covid study app ZOE.
Recent statistics show that 2.7million people across the UK are currently infected - with one in 16 carrying the virus in the worst hit areas.
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