Up to 50 cases of Omicron COVID-19 variant found in Liverpool City Region

Up to 50 cases of the Omicron COVID-19 variant have been detected in the Liverpool City Region, according to the latest figures from the Government.

Three cases have been confirmed - two in Liverpool and one Sefton - with a further 47 suspected infections of the mutated version of the virus still being checked.

Professor Matt Ashton, Liverpool Council’s Director of Public Health, said: “It is important that we all play our part to slow its spread and prevent transmission by keeping COVID-safe.

“Vaccination is crucial – please get your first, second and your booster jab without delay.”

The Omicron variant continues to spread across the UK with 568 confirmed cases and Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced this week that England would be placed into Plan B containment measures.

The new rules include the introduction of a COVID-19 pass for entry into large venues, a return of working from home guidance and face mask measures will be extended.

The move comes in a bid to tackle the mutated strain - the first Liverpool case was confirmed on Tuesday, 30 November.

‘Suspected’ cases explained

About one in every six positive PCR tests are sent for genome sequencing to determine which variant they are - a process which can take many days.

A quicker way to spot potential Omicron cases is to look for a marker called the S-gene, which is missing in variants such as Omicron and Alpha but present in Delta cases.

Once identified, swabs showing so-called ‘S-gene dropout’ can then be sent for definitive testing for Omicron.

Cases with the ‘S-gene dropout’ that have not yet been formally identified as Omicron are classed as suspected cases.

Omicron cases in the Liverpool City Region

Here we break down the confirmed and suspected cases by council in the Liverpool City Region as of the latest Government data up to 6 December.

• Halton - 0 confirmed - 6 suspected
• Knowsley - 0 confirmed - 5 suspected
• Liverpool - 2 confirmed - 16 suspected
• Sefton - 1 confirmed - 11 suspected
• St Helens - 0 confirmed - 7 suspected
• Wirral - 0 confirmed - 2 suspected