Should face masks be reintroduced in public places - Vote in our poll

16 August 2023 , 11:40

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Scientists have called for face masks to be reintroduced amid fresh wave of Covid-19 cases (Image: Getty Images/iStockphoto)

Experts have urged people to start wearing face coverings in indoor public places once again, as well as covering their mouths when coughing near others.

The latest Covid variant - 'Pirola' - was first spotted in August with 54 reported cases in the UK as of September 18, of which 48 were in England. Now public health officials have brought forward an autumn boosters drive to make sure as many vulnerable people are as up to date as possible with their jabs.

Symptoms of the variant - officially titled 2.86 - have so far been listed as a high fever, cough, blocked or runny nose, loss of taste or smell, headaches, muscle aches and fatigue. Doctors on Friday confirmed that tests show no evidence the mutation is any more contagious or deadly than other strains.

But moving into the colder months and with schools heading back from the holidays, the number of bugs spreading will head into overdrive, hence the call to reintroduce face coverings. One expert has warned that the sub-strain, currently known as ‘BA.6’, is showing an alarming tendency to mutate, leaving many of her peers concerned.

Dr Trisha Greenhalgh, a primary healthcare expert at the University of Oxford, shared on Twitter: "My various science WhatsApp groups are buzzing. Genetic lineage clips and diagrams flying back and forth. I understand little of the detail but it looks like it's once again time to MASK UP."

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Meanwhile, Professor Christina Pagel, a mathematician from University College London who is a sitting member on the Independent SAGE group, has shared her thoughts on the future of the disease on social media. The expert highlighted that the variant has a "LOT of new mutations that makes it v different to previous Omicron strains". She added that this meant it was "potentially more able to cause a big wave".

Writing in an opinion piece in the British Medical Journal, she claimed to be "reasonably certain that we have entered another Covid-19 wave" - though stressed it was "unlikely that this wave will cause a large surge in hospital admissions or deaths" because of the UK's high rate of vaccinations.

The expert said that since the start of July, daily hospital admissions have been increasing and had "more than doubled" as of August 4 compared to a month earlier, adding the number of patients in hospital "primarily because of Covid" has also increased.

The legal requirement to wear face coverings ended on January 27, 2022 and there is currently no official guidance to wear the masks in the UK. But do you think face masks should be reintroduced in public places? Vote in our poll HERE to have your say.

Let us know which couple you voted for and why in the comments section below.

The Mirror will also be discussing the topic with you below in the comments and you can join in! All you have to do is sign up, submit your comment, register your details and then you can take part.

Paul Speed