R number now stands below 1 after 30% drop in cases across country over almost a fortnightCovid infections in England down by nearly a third since second lockdownCoronavirus infections in England have fallen by nearly a third since the country entered its second lockdown, swab tests on 105,000 volunteers have shown. The proportion of people infected in the English areas worst affected in the pandemic’s second wave – the north-west, north-east, and Yorkshire and the Humber – have fallen dramatically. The study, undertaken by Imperial College London and polling experts Ipsos Mori, has produced regular reports during the pandemic on infection rates in England. “These trends suggest that the tiered approach helped to curb infections in these areas and that lockdown has added to this effect.”Infections remain high in the Midlands, however. The West Midlands has the highest proportion of infections of any region in England, at 1.55% – down just 0.01 percentage points since the previous React study.

Source: The Guardian November 30, 2020 00:02 UTC