LONDON: The number of people in England with COVID-19 fell below 500,000 last week for the first time since mid-October, an official estimate showed on Friday.

The Office for National Statistics reckoned 481,500 people in England had COVID-19 during the week from Nov. 29 to Dec. 5, down 8% on the previous week.

The estimate, formulated with the University of Oxford, is based on samples of the population.