Figures from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show an estimated two million people in private households in the UK had the virus in the week to April 30, or May 1 in Scotland, down 32% from 2.9 million the previous week. It is the biggest week-on-week drop since figures for all four nations were first reported at the beginning of November 2020.
It suggests around one in 35 people in England were infected, down from one in 25, and represents the lowest level in England since the start of the year. Wales has seen infections drop for the third week in a row, with one in 25 thought to have the virus, down from one in 18.
Meanwhile, in Scotland, Covid-19 infections have fallen for the sixth successive week. Around one in 30 are thought to have had the virus in the week to May 1, down from one in 25. In Northern Ireland, the figure was one in 40, down from one in 25.
