Yeah it's true, traced back to Belgium. It's down to the UK having something like 60% of the world's genome sequencing capacity. UK shared the data to help, ironically EU shut borders with the UK as a result despite it was the UK essentially going "You lot need to be worried, this strain is already over there but you haven't the ability to know, so we're letting you know"
Politics is a funny old game
First identified in Kent you say, is that the English county with a very busy exit and entry points from the mainland of northern Europe including France / Belgium and Holland ?
Strange coincidence that then
Archie