Overview

• UKHSA says the XFG lineage known as Stratus is now the dominant strain in England, with NB.1.8.1 (Nimbus) also circulating widely.
• Clinicians and UKHSA highlight throat-related symptoms linked to recent variants, including a hoarse voice and a particularly painful sore throat sometimes dubbed 'razor‑blade throat'.
• Hospital admissions for Covid in England rose about 60% month on month in the latest UKHSA reporting, with cases climbing as flu and other respiratory viruses return.
• Public guidance urges vaccination for those eligible, testing and staying home when unwell, mask use in busy or poorly ventilated places, handwashing, and improving ventilation.
• This autumn’s Covid booster is limited to people aged 75 and over, immunocompromised individuals aged six months to 74, and residents in older adult care homes, as WHO lists XFG under monitoring with low global risk and experts see no clear increase in severity.