Today's numbers were lower than 587 deaths and 21,088 cases reported the day before and confirm a trend of improvement in the epidemiological situation.

Between January 26 and February 1, 8,033 deaths were recorded, which is equivalent to a daily average of 1,148 and a decrease of 7.4% in relation to the previous seven days.

The daily average of infections also dropped to 23,732 cases between January 26 and February 1, during which 166,126 received a positive test result, a reduction of 29.7% over the previous seven days.

As of Thursday, the date of the most recent data, 34,783 people were hospitalised with SARS-CoV-2, the lowest value in three weeks.

Between January 22 and 28, 21,604 people with coronavirus were hospitalized, a reduction of 20.6% over the previous seven days.

Despite the positive evolution, the authorities maintain the call for people to respect the lockdown rules in force, which should not be lifted until the first phase of the vaccination campaign of the four priority groups is completed, until February 15.

"We cannot be complacent, and it is absolutely necessary that everyone continues to do their part, staying at home and protecting the NHS [public health service] while vaccination continues," urged Health Minister Matt Hancock in a statement.

By the end of Sunday 9,296,367 people had been inoculated with a first of two doses, while 494,209 had already received the second dose.

However, the Ministry of Health has revealed that it has initiated local tracking operations, with the mobilisation of mobile testing stations and door-to-door contacts in different parts of the London and regions in England.

At issue is the identification of several cases of infection with the coronavirus variant first detected in South Africa, which is considered highly infectious and potentially more resistant to vaccines currently in use.

Since December 22, 105 cases have been found in the UK, including some more recently unrelated to travel from the African country, suggesting that the variant is circulating within the community.

"It is vital that we do everything in our power to stop the transmission of this variant and I strongly recommend to everyone in these areas to get tested, whether they have symptoms or not," urged Hancock.

The United Kingdom is one of the countries most affected by the covid-19 pandemic, during which it recorded 106,564 confirmed deaths to date, the highest number in Europe and the fifth worldwide, behind the United States, India, Brazil and Mexico.