LONDON: British health officials expressed optimism Sunday that the coronavirus restrictions remaining in England can be lifted in June after an official study found that the Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines offer effective protection against the variant first identified in India.

Authorities in Britain have expressed concern in recent weeks that increasing cases of the Indian variant could jeopardize the United Kingdom's so-far successful plan to reopen its economy. More than 2,880 cases of the Indian variant have been recorded in England, figures show.