UK adds six African countries to red list due to fears over new variant

The UK has added six African countries to its travel red list over fears of a new Covid variant that some experts have called the “worst one we’ve seen so far”.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said that the new variant of Covid (B.1.1.529) may be “more transmissible” than the Delta strain and also said that “the vaccines that we currently have may be less effective.”

Flights from South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho, Botswana, Eswatini and Zimbabwe will be suspended from 12pm on Friday.

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