Public Health England on Tuesday said two new cases of the P.1 coronavirus variant first discovered in northern Brazil had been reported, bringing the total number of reported cases of the variant in Britain to 12.

The health authority said both new cases were linked to international travel with Brazil.

PHE added that another variant, first identified in the Philippines, was also being investigated after two cases were identified in England. One of the cases was linked to international travel, with the other still under investigation.Also, two new cases of the P1 variant first reported in Brazil have been found in the London area of Haringey and the West Midlands.
The London case was picked up through surge testing. The agency said even more testing will be done in Haringey to clamp down on the variant’s spread.