PUBLIC health experts do not know if the new variant of coronavirus has reached Berkshire.

The government said it imposed Tier 4 restrictions on Berkshire and other areas of the South East because the variant has caused “a rapid rise in infections”.

First detected in September, it transmits more easily than other variants of the virus but there is currently no evidence to suggest it is more deadly.

The government says 144 local authorities have recorded at least one case of the new variant so far and “the vast majority” of those cases are in London, the South East and the East of England.

READ MORE: New West Berkshire Covid-19 hotspots revealed after surge in cases

Meradin Peachey, a director at Public Health Berkshire, said: “They need to do genome sequencing on the tests to be able to work out exactly where it (the variant) is and why, but there’s only a very small sample.

“At the moment, we don’t know if that particular variant is in Berkshire.

“They are doing testing in various areas. They started in Kent and in Medway in particular, because Medway’s numbers were skyrocketing.

“They did a deep dive and couldn’t find any outbreak or particular age group or particular reason why.

“That’s when they started doing sequencing testing and found the variant.”

She added: “There’s no change in the way the virus is transmitted. They are not changing any of the guidance.”

When the four-week national lockdown ended on December 2, West Berkshire had one of the lowest seven-day infection rates in the country (54.9 cases per 100,000).

It now stands at 265.1 cases per 100,000 after 420 new cases in just seven days.

Ms Peachey believes this sharp increase has been caused by “transmissions in households in the community”.

READ MORE: UK likely to see increased restrictions as new COVID variant spreads

“I think people are taking their foot off the peddle, in terms of being very particular every day and every minute, which is what it takes,” she said.

“Treat everybody as if they have got the virus – whether they’ve got symptoms or not. We’ve got to do that even more so now.

“If the postman comes to the door and gives you a parcel, assume he’s got it and it’s on the box, so when you touch it, wash your hands.”

Her comments came at a meeting of West Berkshire Council’s Local Outbreak Engagement Board on Monday, December 21.