CORONAVIRUS PANDEMIC LATEST

ALMOST a fifth of people who have tested positive for Covid-19 in Wales are healthcare workers.

First Minister Mark Drakeford confirmed yesterday the number of care workers who have tested positive for the disease.

At a press conference he confirmed figures showing the stark reality for frontline NHS workers who are battling to tackle the virus.

When the First Minster was challenged as to why Public Health Wales had said they were not recording how many healthcare workers were tested he said: “We have tested over 1,500 healthcare workers in Wales. The figure I have seen says that 7/10 tests prove negative.”

This would mean that at least 450 healthcare workers in Wales have the disease, with the true figure likely to be higher.

This follows criticism from healthcare workers over a lack of personal protection equipment (PPE).

There have been 2,466 cases of Covid-19 in Wales means that almost 20% of cases in Wales are healthcare workers.

Mr Drakeford was also questioned on testing numbers after a deal with the company Roche to provide 5,000 tests a day collapsed. He said he expected Wales to be up to 9,000 tests by the end of the month.

He told the press conference: “We are producing 1,100 tests a day at the moment and 5,000 by middle of the month and on our way to 9,000 towards the rest of April.”

He added: “5,000 is what we can generate ourselves. The extra 4,000 comes from a UK-wide arrangement.”

Mr Drakeford was questioned on test numbers after the UK Government mistakenly said on Thursday evening that 100,000 tests a day would be happening in the UK when it only applied to England.

He said: “It is really important that our colleagues in London check and check again if what they are saying is an announcement for England or for the United Kingdom.”