The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said the R now had a growth rate range of 3% to 6% a day and every 10 people with Covid-19 will go on to infect another 12 to 14 people

The UK’s  coronavirus R number has dipped slightly to to 1.2-1.4 according to new estimates from the Government’s scientific advisers.

The reproduction “R” number has fallen slightly and there might have been a slowdown in the daily growth rate, government
scientists said- implying the spread of infections could be levelling off.

The location with the highest R rate is now the south west of England – one of the shrinking numbers of areas without toughened Tier restrictions.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (Sage) said the R across the UK now had a growth rate range of 3% to 6% a day, and warned growth still remains ‘almost certainly exponential’.