THE Welsh Government will expand its coronavirus testing operation for front-line workers in Gwent within “seven to ten days”, health minister Vaughan Gething today.

Speaking at the daily press briefing, Mr Gething the Rodney Parade sports ground in Newport was likely to be the next site opened up for drive-through testing of critical workers, following the launch of the Welsh Government’s first such facility at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Rodney Parade is already being used by as a testing centre for Aneurin Bevan University Health Board (ABUHB).

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Mr Gething said it was likely each of the Welsh Government’s testing sites would provide around 200 tests each day. The other sites will be in north Wales and south-west Wales.

Around 1,100 Covid-19 tests are currently being carried out each day in Wales, the minister said, but this number is likely to rise this week. One in five tests are being used on healthcare workers.

The Welsh Government’s current strategy is to test people admitted to hospital with coronavirus symptoms, as well as front-line health and care workers; but there are plans to expand this to other critical workers including the police, fire service, and prison staff.

Of the two types of test available, Mr Gething said only the ‘antigen’ test – which tells you if you have Covid-19 – was currently available in the UK, but that there was a four-nation effort to find a reliable ‘antibody’ test, which tells you if you have recovered from Covid-19, and if you have immunity.

Asked if the expansion of testing will lead to a rise in the number of Covid-19 cases, Mr Gething said he did anticipate an increase, but that those cases would include people with symptoms who were already self-isolating.

More testing would also confirm the spread of coronavirus, but would bring more certainty for people with symptoms and give people who test negatively the confidence to return to work, he added.

Mr Gething said he was “deeply saddened” to hear of the death of Jitendra Rathod, a surgeon at the Cardiff & Vale University Health Board who died on Monday after testing positive for coronavirus.

Mr Rathod’s death “highlights the point that coronavirus is circulating in the broader community” and that “this can affect you” regardless of your professional expertise, he said, adding: “There is a real cost to be paid, and [that’s why] the rest of us need to follow the advice to stay at home and protect the NHS.”

The health minister also wished UK prime minister Boris Johnson a speedy recovery.