Suspected carriers of a lethal new virus may have been mistakenly told that they only need to be tested for the disease if they have “the sniffles”, the Telegraph has learned.

Public health bosses were on Sunday night accused of leaving the door open to coronavirus after official advice given to potential carriers in the UK was thrown into doubt.

One potential British ‘super-spreader’ revealed that he had not been offered screening despite visiting a fish market at the centre of the epidemic nearly every day.

It came after the Chinese government announced on Sunday that, unlike the previous SARS outbreak, infected people can spread coronavirus for up to two weeks before showing any signs of the disease, making it harder to contain.

However Public Health England has so far advised that people should only be offered tests if they display flu-like symptoms.

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It raises the alarming prospect that potential spreaders in the UK may not have been screened for coronavirus under the erroneous assumption that they cannot be carrying the virus. A source at Public Health England told the Telegraph last night that there was no proof yet that the Chinese announcement was correct, adding that the official advice “may or may not change depending on what the evidence tells us”.

At last 80 Chinese people have died from the virus so far, with confirmed cases in France, the US and Australia. Prof Neil Ferguson, public health expert at Imperial College London, estimated that around 100,000 people globally may be infected with the virus.

The NHS said on Sunday that of at least 2,000 people suspected in recent weeks to have travelled to the UK from Wuhan, the Chinese city at the centre of the outbreak, only 52 have been tested for coronavirus. All have returned negative results.

But David Marland, a mathematics teacher who has lived in Wuhan for the past decade, revealed that he had not been offered a test despite walking through the seafood market suspected to be the source of the epidemic nearly every day.

British national David Marland, 34, maths co-ordinator at a school in Wuhan, China. Mr Marland claims he has not been tested for Coronavirus despite visiting the seafood market at the centre of the epidemic every day before leaving for the UK

Instead, after he called the NHS 111 helpline shortly after returning to the UK last week, a specialist asked only if he or his family members “had the sniffles”.

When he replied that he felt healthy, the specialist told him to call back if he began to feel unwell.

On Sunday night Mr Marland, 34, told the Telegraph that he might be unwittingly carrying the disease, and accused health officials of putting the public in danger.

“I’m potentially a risk to other people,” he said.

“I’m still within the two week period so I could be spreading the disease everywhere without having any symptoms.”

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A senior NHS source confirmed on Sunday that patients who called the 111 service had not been offered tests unless they displayed signs of the disease.

“Our specialists followed the official advice from Public Health England to the letter,” the source said.

Chinese officials said they had discovered that coronavirus is infectious in its incubation period - before symptoms show - making it harder to contain.

As concern grew over the spread of coronavirus, it emerged yesterday that NHS trusts have been issued guidance on how to safely dispose of dead bodies.

Meanwhile Britons trapped in the Chinese province at the centre of the outbreak have been urged to leave the area if they are able to do so.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said the Government was "looking at all options" to help Britons leave Wuhan following reports that officials were considering airlifts from the city.

It was reported last night that plans to evacuate Britons from Wuhan are being thwarted by Beijing. According to The Times, the Foreign Office was awaiting permission for citizens to be repatriated to the UK.

On Sunday night the French government announced citizens would be evacuated from the affected province. Authorities in China have cancelled a host of events marking New Year as they expand their lockdown against the virus.

A public health hub has been set up in Heathrow, staffed by a rotating team of seven clinicians working in shifts to support patients on arrival.

A Public Health England spokesman said: “There is no evidence that any travellers with the virus have arrived in the UK. There are no confirmed cases in the UK, and based on current evidence the risk to the UK population is low.”