Second phase of mass testing launched in Wales in areas worst affected by Covid-19

The first doses of Corona Virus vaccine may have arrived in the country. But overburdened hospitals have been warned the jab will have only a “marginal impact” on their patient numbers this winter. In a letter, the UK’s four Chief Medical Officers said the Health Service should prepare for an “especially hard” winter.

Latest figures show a further 397 UK deaths have been reported. That brings the total to 61,014. And there have been another 15,539 new cases of the virus in the last 24 hours.

All four nations will begin to administer jabs in the coming week. In the meantime, the governments in Westminster and Cardiff continue to put their faith in mass testing – despite concerns about the accuracy of tests deployed in Liverpool’s pilot study.