Falling infection rates are providing some good news at last for the UK government's battle against the COVID-19 virus.

The latest reproduction, or R, number is estimated to be between 0.7 and 0.9 for the first time since last July. Which is being hailed as evidence (supported by the country's Office for National Statistics), that the various lockdowns around the UK are working. 

But government officials have said now is not the time to relax, with infection rates remaining high.

The vaccine roll-out is another reason to be positive, with more than 13.5 million of the UK's most vulnerable people having received at least their first dose. The government target is to offer one of the two vaccines currently in use, to around 15 million people in the main priority groups by mid-February.

Wales is the first of the four UK nations so far to shield the clinically most vulnerable by vaccinating them.

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As the fight against the coronavirus continues, so does the pressure on the government to announce when it will lift the lockdown in England. The devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are likely to follow their own timetables.

Unlocking too soon risks another surge of the virus, even though more people are vaccinated against the disease each day. Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said he will outline plans for easing any restrictions in the week of February 22. His immediate priority he says is getting children back into schools.

While the country is under lockdown, the economy is taking a hit with businesses struggling to cope.

Official figures show the UK economy in 2020 shrank by a record 9.9 percent as coronavirus restrictions hit output. According to the Bank of England's historical data, the current economic slump is the worst for more than 300 years.

Government borrowing has topped $550 billion, which will feature in Finance Minister Rishi Sunak's new budget on March 3.

"Figures show the economy experienced a significant shock in 2020," he said. "Many families and businesses are experiencing hardship ... [we have] put in place a comprehensive plan for jobs to support people through this crisis."

His counterpart from the opposition Labour Party, shadow minister Anneliese Dodds, said the "figures confirm that not only has the UK had the worst death toll in Europe, we're experiencing the worst economic crisis of any major economy."

On Monday, the UK's latest attempt to control the spread of new variants that were first discovered in Brazil, South Africa and England, will come into force at a handful of airports.

Rules over quarantining travelers arriving from more than 30 so-called "red list" countries, where there's a high incidence of coronavirus cases, will mean they have to stay in hotels and pay to isolate themselves and their families in England.