The self-isolation period for people who have tested positive for coronavirus or shown symptoms has been increased from seven days to ten days.

The decision was announced in a joint statement by Wales’ chief medical officer Dr Frank Atherton, alongside the chief medical officers of England, Northern Ireland and Scotland.

The statement read: “In symptomatic people Covid-19 is most infectious just before, and for the first few days after, symptoms begin. It is very important people with symptoms self-isolate and get a test, which will allow contact tracing.

“Evidence, although still limited, has strengthened and shows that people with Covid who are mildly ill and are recovering have a low but real possibility of infectiousness between seven and nine days after illness onset.”

“We have considered how best to target interventions to reduce risk to the general population and consider that at this point in the epidemic, with widespread and rapid testing available and considering the relaxation of other measures, it is now the correct balance of risk to extend the self-isolation period from seven to ten days for those in the community who have symptoms or a positive test result.”

The statement added: “This will help provide additional protection to others in the community.

“This is particularly important to protect those who have been shielding and in advance of the autumn and winter when we may see increased community transmission.”

It was announced earlier this month that people who are in the shielding category will no longer have to shield from August 16, should infection rates continue to decline.

The latest figures from Public Health Wales show there were five coronavirus-related deaths on Wednesday (July 29), with 32 new cases record.

There were no deaths recorded in Wales on either Tuesday (July 28) or Monday (July 27).

In total, there have been 1,554 coronavirus-linked deaths in Wales, with 17,223 confirmed cases of the virus.