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

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

Speaking at a press conference on Friday, he confirmed figures which show the stark reality for front line NHS workers who are battling to tackle the virus.

When the First Minster was challenged on why Public Health Wales had said they were not recording how many health care workers were tested, he said: "We have tested over 1,500 health care workers in Wales. The figure I have seen says that seven out of 10 tests prove negative."

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(Image: Huw Evans Picture Agency)

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 Protective Equipment (PPE).

Last week a staff member at University Hospital of Wales told WalesOnline: "The lack of PPE is the biggest concern. I would have thought we would have a supply of masks. The ones we do have, there are no tests to make sure it has been fitted right."

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

He said that 1,100 tests are being carried out every day at the moment. He said there will be 5,000 a day by the middle of the month and are on the way to 9,000 a day during the remainder of the month.

He said around 5,000 tests will be generated in Wales with the other 4,000 from a "UK-wide arrangement".

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

He said: "I absolutely understand that colleagues across the UK are acting under enormous pressure.

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

The First Minister was also questioned on testing numbers after a deal with the company Roche to provide 5,000 tests a day collapsed.

The pharmaceutical company had refuted a claim by Mr Drakeford that it had struck a deal to supply Wales with Covid-19 tests.

Asked again on Friday about the deal with Roche, Mr Drakeford said: "I have nothing more to say on that. I have answered questions on that all week. The deal fell through and we have another in place. I have not been asked by a single patient in Wales about this."