China reports first case of UK Covid strain after woman, 23, visiting Shanghai from Britain tests positive

CHINA has confirmed its first case of a mutant strain of Covid-19 which was recently detected in Britain, health officials said.

The first patient in China with the new coronavirus variant is a 23-year-old woman who flew into Shanghai from Britain on December 14, the Chinese Centre for Disease Control said.

It said the case “poses a great potential threat” to China’s efforts to curb and control the spread of the virus.

The new strain — which experts say potentially spreads faster than the original one — has prompted travel restrictions on the UK by more than 50 countries.

This includes China, where the coronavirus first emerged late last year. 

But pulling up the drawbridge appears to have failed to stop what has been dubbed as “super-Covid” arriving on its shores.

CHINA MOCKED UK AS ‘SICK MAN’

It is set to spoil the anti-virus efforts by the country, which has seen cases rising in the Chinese capital Beijing and northern China in recent days after appearing to have largely contained the outbreak. 

China has sparked fury after its state media mocked the UK as the “sick man of Europe” over the new mutant Covid strain.

China’s leading Global Times newspaper — which is considered the unfiltered mouthpiece of the Communist Party — published a string of fiery articles taking down the UK.

The state-run publication also produced a cartoon showing Covid-riddled UK planes grounded, while British private jets carrying the bug continue to take off.

The Communist regime blamed Britain over the new variant — despite their own failures being suspected to have led to the coronavirus pandemic that has killed 1.7million worldwide.

The regime in Beijing has become increasingly bullish amid ongoing allegations over its failures to contain the devastating virus which originated in Wuhan.

It has been accused of bungling its response, failing to share information, and actively attempting to cover up the outbreak.