The latest data shows up to 13 in 1000 people aged 60 who contract the variant strain could die, compared with 10 in 1000 who caught the original virus

The Prime Minister gives an update on the daily figures:

40,261 new cases have been reported
38,562 people are now in hospital, which is 78% higher than the first peak in April
Further 1,401 deaths

5.4 million people have now received their first dose of the vaccine, with 400,000 new doses being administered in the last 24 hours

Boris Johnson says the UK's vaccine target of 15m people by February 15 is "stretching" but the Government is on target

Prof Chris Whitty says, "We are turning the corner...the number of people testing positive has gone down, but it has gone down from an exceptionally high level"

The Chief Medical Officer adds that the number of people dying is still climbing, and is now over 1000 people per day on average

Chris Whitty says the number of people in hospital with Covid is still very high and it will take "some weeks" before the numbers fall to a manageable level

Sir Patrick Vallance says the Kent variant is between 30 and 70% more transmissible, and does not discriminate by age.

He stresses that the data is "uncertain", but suggests that for a man in his 60s, the risk of death with the new variant is 13 in 1000 rather than 10 in 1000

People who have received the vaccine appear to be immune to the new variant, and people who have previously been infected with the original variant appear to be immune to the new variant, Sir Patrick Vallance says

Vaccine numbers are low in some of Britain's worst-hit areas.

In East London, where almost 60 people per 1000 have the virus, less than 4% have received the jab

A further 993 people who tested positive for coronavirus have died in English hospitals today, taking the total number to 65,104.

London was the worst-affected region, with 233 deaths registered, followed by the East of England, with 195, and the South East, with 156