INDIAN variant cases have surged by 77 per cent with a rise of 1,000 infections in just three days, Matt Hancock revealed this afternoon.
On Friday the latest data showed 1,313 cases in the UK, and today there are 2,323.
Covid-hit Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen have seen 483 cases of the Indian variant and 27 people hospitalised, with Bedford now on the watchlist as infections rise.
Mr Hancock said: "The next biggest case of concern is Bedford where we are surging testing - and I would urge everybody in Bedford to exercise caution and engage in testing where it is available."
He said there are 86 local authorities with five or more cases of the mutation, but did not specify where they were.
Britain is now seeing more than one in five cases of Covid emerging as the Indian variant, with infections quadrupling in a fortnight.
The Health Secretary told the Commons: "We have been in a race between the virus and the vaccine.
"As a nation we've taken some huge strides forward and we can make careful progress today and we must remain vigilant.
"The vaccination programme can give us confident but we must be alert to new variants."
He warned today the majority of people in hospital in Bolton and Blackburn with Darwen had been offered the vaccine but chosen not to take it.
Mr Hancock also confirmed the mutation is more transmissible than the Kent variant which ripped through the country at Christmas.
Local outbreaks have also been seen in Sefton, Nottingham and Leicester.
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Indian variant cases in Britain surge by 77% with 1,000 extra in just three days – here is the next hotspot
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