Rapid Coronavirus test being developed in South Wales

The R number, which shows the rate at which coronavirus is spreading in the UK, is continuing to creep up. It’s now between 1.3 and 1.6  – meaning the epidemic is still “growing exponentially” across the country.

Some 770 students have tested positive at Northumbria University, while there’s also been a steep rise in daily infections in Northern Ireland with a further 934 cases, more than twice the previous daily high.

In the last 24 hours – a further 6,968 people in the UK tested positive for coronavirus, a slight increase on the day before.

Sixty-six more coronavirus deaths were reported, taking the total to 42,268. In a glimmer of positive news, in Wales a new rapid Covid test has moved into the final stages of evaluation, raising hopes that it could be in use by January.

Our home affairs correspondent Andy Davies reports.