Outbreaks of flu, measles, mumps and rubella have been almost non-existent in the UK since the outbreak of COVID-19, a batch of scientific data has confirmed.

Out of 685,243 samples tested by Public Health England, not a single case of influenza was detected in the first seven weeks of 2021.

The imposition of social distancing, combined with the prevalence of face coverings and handwashing, has been credited with blocking the usual routes of transmission for influenza. The reduction in international travel and an increased uptake in the flu vaccine probably also had a major impact.

Vanessa Saliba, head of flu at Public Health England, said this season's flu immunization program is on track to be the most successful ever.

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The fall in cases has led some experts to suggest reconsidering the UK's approach to influenza. Christina Pagel, a professor of operational research at University College London, told The Independent: "There's been no flu season anywhere in the world this year, including the UK. 

"People say we live with flu deaths every year and kind of assumed they were unavoidable. Yet clearly they're not. If we wanted to, we've shown we can reduce flu deaths to pretty much zero.”

Although there will clearly be little public appetite to impose lockdowns to prevent flu, the figures may add weight to suggestions that the public wear masks next winter to reduce new outbreaks of COVID-19.

In a separate study published by Public Health England on Tuesday, it was revealed there were no laboratory-confirmed measles cases in the UK in the final quarter of 2020. With the last laboratory confirmed case reported in March 2020, measles infections fell 900 percent last year – from 798 in 2019 to just 79.

"This sharp decline reflects the significant impact the COVID-19 pandemic and related public health control measures have had on the spread and detection of other infections including measles," said the report. 

It added that a downward trend in measles notifications has been observed across the world.

There were also no laboratory confirmed cases of rubella reported in the UK last year, while mumps cases fell from 5,042 in 2019 to 3,216. Just five laboratory-confirmed mumps infections were registered in the UK between October and December.

Public Health England says the closure of universities and schools for much of the past 12 months has played a role in interrupting transmission of measles, mumps and rubella.

The study did report one negative consequence – that the number of children scheduled for their first dose of MMR vaccine at 12 months of age fell. Public Health England said it was working on a recovery plan to vaccinate children who missed out on their jab, to prevent outbreaks occurring as social distancing measures ease.