One in 19 people in Northern Ireland had Covid last week, up from one in 25 the previous week.
according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS), only Scotland had a worse infection rate, with one in 17 people there testing positive for the virus in the week ending June 30.
The Omicron BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants are behind the explosion in case numbers.
An estimated 2.7 million people in private households in the UK had Covid last week, up 18% from 2.3 million the previous week.
That was the highest mark since late April, but was still below the record high of 4.9 million reached in late March during a wave of infections caused by the BA.2 variant.
In England, 2.2 million people likely had the virus last week, which equates to about one in 25, up from one in 30. Wales also saw infections jump to one in 20, up from one in 30.
Paul Hunter, professor of medicine at the University of East Anglia and an infectious disease expert, said: “I suspect we will see a peak in infections that is bigger than previous waves, probably before the end of this month.
“I’m not sure how high the number of people in hospital due to Covid or the deaths where Covid appears on the death certificate will go, but I think it is likely – but not certain – that they will fall below what has been seen after previous waves . “
Mark Woolhouse, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the University of Edinburgh, said the UK was in a “significant wave of infection”, highlighting that the coronavirus was “not just a winter problem”.
Vaccines continue to provide significant protection, but “not all older adults have received their fourth or even third dose, increasing the risk of severe illness, hospitalization and death,” he added.
“There are hints that the wave may be starting to peak. The rise in cases appears to be slowing in the most affected regions, particularly Scotland. We hope next week’s data will confirm this trend,” Mr Woolhouse said.
“There is no reason to expect that the ripples associated with the new options will stop anytime soon, so we must plan for continued pressure on the NHS.”
Separately, there were 20 local Covid-related deaths in the week to July 1, according to figures from the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency. This brings the total number of virus-related deaths to 4,684.
Three-quarters of local Covid-related deaths are in people aged 75 and over.
A separate analysis showed that the provisional total number of deaths from all causes recorded in Northern Ireland in the week ending July 1 was 347.
That was 25 more than the previous week and 65 more than the five-year average of 282.
Sarah Croft of the ONS called for caution.
“We continue to see a rise in infections across all UK countries, English regions and age groups,” she said.
“These increases are due to an increase in infections with Omicron’s BA.4 and BA.5 subvariants, which have been dominant since mid-June.
“Scotland continues to have the highest rate of infection, although it has recently been increasing at a slower rate than other UK countries.”
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