Covid infections continue to decline, with just 1.4 million people (one in 40) infected in the UK last week –

The Covid wave continued to subside throughout the summer in the UK, with only one in 40 people infected on any given day in the first week of the month.

Analysts from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) estimate that by August 6, more than 1.4 million people per week had the virus. It was 32% lower than the week ending July 26, when the numbers were updated earlier.

ONS’s weekly issues were suspended last week as hundreds of thousands of survey respondents turned to self-testing and reporting results online rather than being visited at home.

Today’s data also showed that the number of infections decreased in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, while also reductions in all age groups and regions of England.

The lowest levels were seen in children who were on school vacation, statisticians said. They will continue to “closely monitor the data” before returning to schools next month.

Despite the promising data, calls for resuming Covid restrictions were renewed last night after a study found that most people with the virus were contagious for longer than previously thought.

After Imperial College London’s research found that two-thirds of infected people were still contagious at the time, scientists are asking people to isolate themselves for five days if they have the virus.

Tony Blair’s Institute for Global Change has also urged the government to “mandatory masks on public transport and in most public places” this winter to ease the pressure on the NHS.

Health leaders announced yesterday that the UK will begin offering its next booster vaccines, including Moderna’s new targeted bivalent Micron injection, from the first week of September to help relieve the pressure.

Today’s data also showed that infections were declining in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The ONS weekly numbers were suspended last week, with hundreds of thousands of survey respondents now doing self-tests and reporting results online instead of being visited at home.

Statisticians say they’ve seen “decrease at almost every age in England, lower levels in children”.

Sarah Crofts, Head of Analytics for the Covid-19 Infection Survey, said: “Infection rates continued to fall to levels last seen in mid-June in most of the UK.

“Our latest data shows that these declines are occurring in the UK at nearly every age, with the lowest being in children. We will continue to monitor the data closely to understand the impact of the summer break,” he said.

Statistics from the ONS show that the number of cases in Scotland fell 37% in two weeks from the latest data, from 260,800 to 164,100 on 8 August. This means that about one in 30 people became infected in the last week.

The number of infections fell 34% to 72,600 (one in 40) in Wales and two-thirds to 36,600 (one in 50) in Northern Ireland.

The east of England recorded the largest decline at 43%, with cases falling in every region of England.

This is followed by the East Midlands (37%), South West (35%), London (21%) and South East (21%).

The smallest decrease was found in Yorkshire and the Humber (7.85%), where one in 35 people contracted the virus on any given day.

Meanwhile, the age group with the sharpest decline in cases was the over 70s who saw positivity rates drop by 36%.

These are followed by the ages of 50-69 (36%), 11-16 (24%) and 35-49 (17%).

Children between the ages of two and eleven had the lowest rates of Covid of any age group: only one in 68 tested positive.

It comes after health leaders confirmed yesterday that the fall vaccine launch in the UK will begin in the first week of September and will use Omicron’s special injection.

NHS England said 26 million Brits in age, middle age and frailty will be recalled in order of age and risk factors.

Nursing home residents and household dependents will be among those to be revaccinated from 5 September.

All over 75 and clinically vulnerable subjects will be invited for their fifth hospitalization from 12 September before falling into age groups, as in previous presentations.

This week, the UK became the first country in the world to approve Moderna’s bivalent vaccine, which targets both the original strain of the virus and the Omicron variant.

The NHS states that it will be made available to people as a first default option “subject to adequate provisions”.

The original Pfizer and Moderna vaccines will also be used as part of the launch alongside the Novavax vaccine.

An updated Pfizer shot targeting Omicron is also expected to be approved by the drug regulator “in the coming weeks.”

Health officials cautioned that getting vaccinated is more important than the type of vaccine used, saying the new bivalent vaccines will likely only offer slightly more protection.

According to ONS data, the effects of quarantine could cause more deaths than Covid, as nearly 10,000 more deaths were recorded than the five-year average.

Meanwhile, scientists made new demands last night to “consider” masks and isolation measures this winter, after a study that puts the UK’s current lockdown into question.

A study from Imperial College London found that two-thirds of cases may pass within five days of the onset of symptoms, and a quarter are still contagious a week later.

This is against NHS guidelines which state that “many will not be contagious to others after five days”. In the UK, no one is legally required to self-isolate after testing positive for Covid.

Professor Ajit Lalvani, of Imperial College London and lead author of the study, recommended that people isolate for five days and stay in isolation until they come back negative on lateral flow tests twice.

It comes after Tony Blair’s Institute for Global Change called on the government to “mandatory masks on public transport and in most closed public places” this winter to ease the pressure on the NHS.

The World Health Organization (WHO) urged people to “wear masks and maintain social distancing” and added: “Learning to live with Covid-19 means not pretending it doesn’t exist”.

Health leaders have warned the NHS is facing a crisis this winter as the threat of a triple coronavirus, flu and rising fuel prices begin to put pressure on hospitals during the colder months.