North Yorkshire 'ready to deal with omicron variant'
The county's Public Health Director is asking people to get the booster jab
North Yorkshire's Director of Public Health says the county is ready to deal with the new variant of coronavirus.
Louise Wallace is asking people to continue protecting themselves and to help stop the spread of Covid-19.
It is as the Government has brought in mandatory mask wearing on public transport and in shops.
Louise said: "The guidance was always that if you're in an enclosed space or on public transport to continue wearing a mask, it was definitely there in terms of advice and guidance. I'm just encouraging people to think about the risk and think about wearing a mask in other settings where it might make sense to do so where you might be at risk in an enclosed space.
"The dominant strain of the virus currently is the Delta variant across the county so we do have experience of dealing with new variants. It was part of our planning and our outbreak control arrangements, so we work incredibly closely with the UK health security agency when any of these new variants come along to act accordingly.
"One of the key messages that we want to get across is around the booster campaign and making sure that anybody who's eligible for a vaccine to come forward, and even if you haven't had your first dose yet it's never too late. I'd really encourage people to come forward for their first, their second and of course the booster now because it's been extended to people over 18.
"Alongside the Covid vaccine, we've obviously been promoting the flu vaccine as well and we'd really encourage people to take up that offer. I suppose one of the key message that I'd like us all to remember is around basic hand washing. I know it sounds really simple but it's an effective measure as it not only protects against not only coronavirus but other infectious diseases at this time of year.
"Any coronavirus rate worries me and I'm always concerned to make sure that we get infection rates down across the county but of recent weeks and certainly back into October, we did see very high rates before half term but thankfully it's coming down and it looks like it's heading more in the right direction. It's good to see it coming down but obviously it needs to come down even further.
"I think what I'm picking up around the new variant is that we've still got things to learn about it. As the Prime Minister said over the weekend, we're learning hour by hour about what this new variant's got the potential to do. We need to understand how it works in relation to the vaccine but the overarching message is to come forward and get that vaccine."