Covid infections down again to 1 in 50 says ONS

That means around 1.27 million people had coronavirus in the week to 13 May - down 14% from the week before.

Infections have been coming down steeply since the end of March, after the Omicron variant pushed up cases.

Clinically vulnerable adults aged 16 to 64 will also be offered a Covid jab ahead of the winter, when the virus could spread more widely.

Covid infections are now at their lowest level since mid-December, the ONS says, based on swab tests of thousands of people in households across the UK, whether they have symptoms or not.

Since free testing has now ended in England, and is restricted in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, the ONS survey is the most accurate picture of the spread of Covid-19.

From the positive tests collected, the ONS estimates that infections fell in all four UK nations in mid-May.

However, the ONS found that infections may no longer be falling in the south-east and south-west of England. And among under-35s, the drop in infections looks to be slowing down.

Sarah Crofts, head of analytical outputs for the Covid-19 Infection Survey, said: "Today's figures continue to show a welcome decline in infections across the UK, reaching their lowest point in England since the start of December last year.

"While younger age groups continue to be the lowest infected, there are early signs of the decrease slowing for under-35s.

"We will continue to monitor these patterns over the coming weeks, since it is too early to say if this is part of a longer trend."