LUCEA, Hanover — Health and Wellness Minister Dr Christopher Tufton says Jamaica is closely monitoring developments in the United Kingdom, where a new variant of the coronavirus has been identified.

The minister said this will guide Jamaica’s decision-making process.

“It is an interesting development. It is a concerning development [but] what we will do is monitor, get feedback, enquire, and then take decisions from there,” said Dr Tufton.

He was responding to queries from the Jamaica Observer about the level of concern locally, in relation to the UK’s findings.

On Monday, British Health Secretary Matt Hancock told the House of Commons that the coronavirus is growing fast in some parts of England, with at least 60 different local authorities recording COVID-19 infections caused by the new variant.

Hancock also stated that UK scientists were doing detailed studies, and that the World Health Organization (WHO) had been notified of the discovery.

Dr Tufton noted that Jamaica currently has a capacity deficit, and as such is dependent on multilateral institutions.

“The international scientific community continues to monitor and study the virus,” Dr Tufton said, adding that “there are capacities that we don’t currently have in Jamaica, so we depend on those in the multilateral agencies like PAHO [Pan American Health Organization], WHO, or some of the more wealthier countries, that may have significant clinical research trials, and so on, going on.

“We take our cue, in the first instance, from what their discoveries are, and as a collaborative process, as a world, we make decisions based on what we have, our local knowledge, and what is happening elsewhere,” the minister added.

Besides, the minister said the “core message is that even if there is now a different variant of the virus, we must continue to practise more prevention rather than to focus on a cure. And, prevention means wearing the mask, social distancing, hand sanitising, and we have to keep pushing that”.

Jamaica has recorded a total of 11,905 cases of the novel coronavirus to date, with 276 deaths.