Don't miss a thing by getting the day's biggest stories sent direct to your inbox Health officials are investigating a new coronavirus variant which has caused 49 cases of infection, mostly concentrated in Yorkshire and the Humber region.
Public Health England (PHE) has been monitoring the VUI-21MAY-01 variant since April. It has been designated Variant Under Investigation - which is currently less serious than a Variant of Concern.
The variant is from a lineage which was designated a signal in monitoring on May 6, based on an unusual mutation profile, Public Health England said.
PHE said there was "currently no evidence that this variant causes more severe disease or renders the vaccines currently deployed any less effective".