Indian variant more transmissible than Kent variant, says England's Whitty
LONDON (Reuters) - British scientists now believe that the coronavirus variant originating in India is more transmissible than a variant first found in the English county of Kent, Chris Whitty, England's chief medical officer, said on Friday.
"There is now confidence ... that this variant is more transmissible that B.1.1.7 (Kent variant), now the question in practical terms over the next two to three weeks is is this somewhat more transmissible than B.1.1.7. or is this a lot more transmissible and that will have implications for the long-term prospects of this epidemic in the UK and indeed the pandemic internationally," he told a news conference.
(Reporting by Guy Faulconbridge and Kate Holton, writing by Elizabeth Piper; editing by James Davey)
