‘Nepal mutation’ of the so-called Indian Covid-19 variant detected, Grant Shapps warns
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said this evening “a sort of Nepal mutation of the so-called Indian variant” has been detected.
“It has been detected and we just don’t know the potential for that to be vaccine-defeating mutation and simply don’t want to take the risk as we come up to June 21 and the review of the fourth stage of the unlock,” Shapps said.
A total of 12,431 cases of the Indian variant, also known as the Delta variant, have been confirmed in the UK up to June 2, according to Public Health England (PHE), which is up 79% from the previous week’s total of 6,959.
Dr Jeff Barrett, director of the Covid-19 Genomics Initiative at the Wellcome Sanger Institute, said the Nepal mutation (B.1.617.2 with an additional mutation: K417N) of the variant first detected in India (B.1.617.2), has also been observed in other variants including the one first identified in South Africa.
He said it “is believed to be part of why that variant (South African) is less well neutralised by vaccines”.
Monitoring
Dr Barrett added that because of this possibility and because the Indian variant appears more transmissible than the variant first detected in South Africa, scientists are monitoring it carefully.
He explained this Indian variant plus the K417N mutation has been seen in numerous countries, including the UK, Portugal, the USA, India, Nepal and Japan.
In an interview, Mr Shapps said: “I want to be straight with people, it’s actually a difficult decision to make, but in the end we’ve seen two things really which caused concern.
Transport Secretary Grant Shapps said this evening “there’s a sort of Nepal mutation of the so-called Indian variant which has been detected and we just don’t know the potential for that to be vaccine-defeating mutation and simply don’t want to take the risk as we come up to June 21 and the review of the fourth stage of the unlock.”