The Omicron variant BA.5 is now the dominant Covid strain in the UK, health officials have announced. The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) confirmed the update on Friday, adding that the news was "as expected".
BA.5 was first identified in South Africa in February and the highly transmissive strain was designated a Variant of Concern by the UKHSA on May 18. It comes as the Office of National Statistics' (ONS) latest update reported that Scotland had the highest proportion of people infected with Covid in all four UK nations.