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Good news?

The number of people in hospital with the Covid variant now known as Delta is rising but not "very significantly," the boss of NHS Providers has said.

Chris Hopson said many of those in hospital in Bolton - the area worst hit by the variant - were younger, with "very few" fully vaccinated patients.

He said this appeared to show vaccines had "broken the chain" between infection and serious illness.

But a scientist pointed to "concerning signs" of the variant's spread.

Another 5,765 infections were recorded in the UK on Saturday, and another 13 deaths were recorded within 28 days of a positive test.

The recent surge in cases is being partly driven by the increased transmissibility of the Delta variant, which was first identified in India.

Mr Hopson said that in Bolton, people in hospital with Covid were "a lot younger" than patients in earlier stages of the pandemic, which meant there was "less demand on critical care".

He added that there were "very, very few" people in hospital who had had both doses of a Covid vaccine, as they had the "build-up of protection after those jabs".
A chart showing the number of patients in hospital with Covid in the UK

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-57367849