There have been outpourings of joy as relatives have met and hugged, some for the first time in over a year.

May 17 was a landmark, with the easing of restrictions hopefully a stepping stone to June 21, when normal service might resume.

Against this is the ever-present threat of coronavirus mutations, this time in the form of the Indian variant, named after where it was first identified and one of the reasons for the catastrophic rise in cases and deaths in the Indian subcontinent recently.

Cases in India have accounted for a massive 50 per cent of worldwide numbers and 30 per cent of deaths in the last few months. There are clearly many reasons for the speed of spread of infection, including hygiene, levels of overcrowding and availability of PPE, not just the virulence of the bug. Nevertheless, the magnitude of the figures is sobering.

The Indian variant, specifically B1.617.2, has arrived in Britain. Unfortunately, it is spreading like the proverbial wildfire. With 86 boroughs having more than five cases each, total numbers have doubled in the last two weeks. Hotspots have been identified as areas in London as well as Blackburn and Bolton.

Although the vaccination programme has inoculated almost 40 million so far, a third of the country remain unprotected. Many of these will be younger and more active in socialising and travel. With greater ease of movement allowed, the fear is that this strain may take hold, with a surge in cases, hospitalisations and deaths. It may even put a halt to the plans for the complete lifting of lockdown, or worse put us back into restrictions.

Against this bleak news is the fact that current vaccines appear to be effective against B1.617.2 Those vaccinated in India have had fewer hospitalisations and deaths and there have been fewer cases in those in the over 60 age group in the UK who have had both doses of vaccines available. Figures quoted show the jabs are 97% effective.

It appears that while the Indian variant can spread faster, it does not have the ability to evade vaccines.

The biggest concern is low vaccine uptake among certain groups, due to lack of understanding, cultural differences and fear. It is vital that groups do not get left out of the vaccination programme, because any break in the chain means the virus has the potential to spread exponentially, not just in the UK, but also around the world.