Coronavirus: Every Briton with symptoms can now get tested, Matt Hancock announces

Age restrictions to be lifted as test and trace scheme to begin replacing national lockdown

Coronavirus testing is being expanded so that anyone with symptoms can now get checked, the health secretary has announced.

Matt Hancock told a daily news conference in Downing Street that the testing regime was “expanding to include under-fives so every single person who has symptoms can get a test no matter their age”.

Mr Hancock’s appearance on Wednesday came in front of a new lectern slogan, which read “NHS Test and Trace”, as he confirmed further details on the new approach.

The minister said the test and trace scheme would begin to replace the national lockdown with “individual isolation” for people contacted by testing authorities, as well as “local action where it’s necessary to respond to a flare up”.

He said: “We all have our part to play. This is a national effort and we all have a role. If you have symptoms, you must isolate immediately and get yourself a test.”

The health secretary said the UK now had capacity for 161,000 tests a day, though figures showed a lower number of people had actually been checked in the last 24 hours, at just 117,013 tests on 26 May. There have been 3,798,490 tests in total so far, according to the department of health.

Mr Hancock said eligibility for testing was expanding “because of that increased capacity”.

The government initially struggled to stay over its 100,000 tests a day target, despite criticism that it was cooking its numbers to make its record look better.

A further target of 200,000 tests by June also looks unlikely to be met in any meaningful sense.