Covid R rate rises slightly days before lockdown rules ease
The R rate is now between 0.7 and 0.9.
The coronavirus reproduction number has risen slightly to between 0.7 to 0.9, latest Government figures have revealed.
The new value, which compares to a figure of between 0.6 and 0.9 last week, comes days before the next round of lockdown rules ease.
The coronavirus R rate represents the average number of people each Covid-19 positive person goes on to infect.
An R number between 0.7 and 0.9 means that, on average, every 10 people with Covid-19 will infect between seven and nine other people.
Figures also show the UK growth rate is between minus 5% to minus 2% – meaning the number of infections is shrinking by between 2% and 2% daily.
It comes days before people in England can enjoy new freedoms when lockdown restrictions ease on Monday.
Outdoor sports facilities such as tennis, basketball courts and open-air swimming pools will also be allowed to reopen, while organised sports including amateur football leagues will be back on the cards.
Meanwhile, new figures from the Office of National Statistics found around one in 340 people in private households in England had Covid-19 in the week to March 20.
It is the lowest figure since the week to September 24 2020, when the estimate stood at one in 470 people. The ONS said the percentage of people testing positive ‘is likely to have levelled off’.
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