LONDON — British health officials say the country’s coronavirus outbreak may have stopped growing for the first time in three months.

The government’s scientific advisory committee says the R rate — the number of people each infected person transmits the disease to — is between 0.9 and 1.0. That means that on average every 10 people with COVID-19 will infect between 9 and 10 others. If the figure is below 1, the number of new infections will shrink.

There are regional variations, with infections likely flat or growing in London and southeast England but falling in the northwest and northeast, which previously had the highest infection rates.

Coronavirus cases in Britain fell over the summer but surged again in the fall. The government imposed a four-week national lockdown in England on Nov. 5 to curb the new surge. It is due to be replaced next week with a system of regional restrictions. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland all have their own measures in place.