Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson (L) works the screen-pressing machine in the Arts and Design area during a visit to Kirklees College Springfield Sixth Form Centre in Dewsbury, West Yorkshire, Britain June 18, 2021. (Oli Scarff/Pool via REUTERS)
London: The UK is undergoing a third wave of Coronavirus infections as a result of the highly transmissible Delta variant, an expert who advises the government on its vaccination program said today.
Professor Adam Finn, who advises on the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunization (JCVI), said that the country is now in a firm race between the vaccines and the Delta variant first identified in India.
"It's going up, perhaps we can be a little bit optimistic it's not going up any faster, but nevertheless it's going up, so this third wave is definitely underway, said Professor Adam Finn.
"We can conclude that the race is firmly on between the vaccine program, particularly getting older people's second doses done, and the Delta variant third wave," he said.
He was asked about how confident he was that the UK's vaccination program can outpace the Delta variant with the current rate of jabs, which have now opened up to all adults.
According to the latest data from Public Health England (PHE), a single dose of vaccine reduces a person's chances of catching Coronavirus and needing hospital treatment by about 75 percent, even with the Delta variant.
And among people who had received the recommended two doses, the chances of catching and being hospitalized by Coronavirus was reduced by more than 90 percent.
