CORONAVIRUS infections may be receding in the UK - but that does not mean that the virus has suddenly become yesterday's problem.

Far fewer masks are seen on buses and trains and other public spaces. Indoor gatherings seem to be back to where they were pre-pandemic. Restrictions have been lifted and most people are enjoying the freedom.

But Covid is likely to remain with us for years to come. So what will it mean to live with the virus in the longer term?

Covid can still kill. But, thanks to vaccinations, innovative treatment and drugs, the chances of getting seriously ill and not surviving are much lower than in earlier waves.

Ministers have told the public they need to live with coronavirus and treat it like flu.

The message is to stay off work or away from vulnerable people if you have symptoms - whether it's Covid or flu, there is a need to minimise the risk of infecting others.

Pressure on the NHS has eased with the number of patients with Covid in hospital about 11,000 compared with more than 20,000 in early April.

The latest survey from the Office for National Statistics (ONS) showed a continued fall from a recent peak in April.

The arrival of summer means more people will congregate outdoors at lower risk to themselves.

But the return of people from holidays to work and study after summer holidays, and the onset of cooler autumnal weather could create conditions for another uptick in infections.

More immediately, new strains of the Omicron variant could cause problems. The BA.2 version has proved more transmissible than BA.1.

Now two newer members of the Omicron family - BA.4 and BA.5 - are thought to have contributed to a new wave in South Africa.

Experts are still assessing whether they spread faster than their predecessors.

Prof Peter Openshaw, of Imperial College, London, said: "Everyone is thinking of sub-variants - we just don't know whether they will cause a surge in infections and where they will go in the UK."

He added that existing immunity was important. But this would help protect against serious illness much more than the risk of getting an infection in the first place.

The assumption with viruses is that they evolve and become milder over time, with Spanish flu after World War One quoted as an example.

However, experts say this is not guaranteed.

Prof Mike Tildesley, of the University of Warwick, and one of the key modellers of the spread of Covid in the UK, says the virus may evolve rapidly, but "this is not nailed on - it might only happen over the long term".

He believes the next two to five years will be uncertain.

This is the possibility which makes experts nervous.

Right now there is no sign of a completely new variant. But there have been warnings that if one appears, there is no guarantee it will be milder than Omicron.

While not ruling it out, Prof Paul Hunter, of the University of East Anglia, thinks it is unlikely that a new killer variant will suddenly materialise.

He says the relatively high vaccination levels in the UK will still offer protection against serious disease: "Covid will be with us forever, but we will see less severe disease, even with more infections."

Those will underlying health conditions, including compromised immune systems, will continue to feel vulnerable. Infections may be receding, but the potential threat of getting seriously ill remains.

Living with flu is one thing but living with Covid, and the higher risk of death, will be challenging for those with existing health issues, according to the charity Blood Cancer UK.

Chief executive Gemma Peters argues that ministers and NHS leaders could do more to reassure the 600 000 severely immunosuppressed people across the UK.

"Lots of people are still shielding and not going back out. They feel forgotten and let down, but would relax if more medical responses are in place."

She says that access to top-up vaccine doses has been poor and the rollout of antiviral drugs and preventive treatments has been too slow.

Case numbers have fallen sharply, but however low they get there will always be a small proportion with symptoms which last more than a few weeks, and sometimes many months.

These include extreme tiredness and shortness of breath.

According to the ONS, about 1.7 million people in private households in the UK (2.7% of the population) had long Covid symptoms in March.

Nearly 800 000 first had the virus at least a year previously. This was based on self-reported long Covid.

Prof Christina Pagel, of University College London, argues that this is one of the biggest worries about the continuing presence of the virus.

"We don't know the long-term impact of Covid after people have been vaccinated - long Covid has a high attrition rate."

She adds that estimates suggesting 5% of those who have been jabbed and then get the virus will go on to get long Covid are concerning.