The health secretary will today give an update to MPs on the latest developments in the country’s efforts to address the spread of the new Covid variant.

Sajid Javid is due to give a statement in the House of Commons at 3.30pm after a raft of new measures were announced over the weekend.

Mandatory face masks, self isolation rules and stricter travel protocols are among the measures being taken after growing concern among scientists that the Omicron strain may be able to evade vaccines.

Six more cases of the new highly transmissible variant have been discovered in Scotland while three have so far been confirmed in England.

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Mr Javid will address MPs as Britain convenes an urgent meeting of G7 health ministers on Monday to discuss the variant first detected in South Africa.

Mr Javid yesterday said the country’s response to the growing threat was ‘proportionate’ as he played down the need for further measures.

He said people should continue planning Christmas ‘as normal’, adding that he thinks the festive season will be ‘great’ this year.

Some MPs have already objected to the prospect of further restrictions including vaccine passports and reintroducing social distancing, which would be more economically damaging.

Alongside the new measures announced by Boris Johnson on Saturday, Mr Javid is looking at speeding up the vaccine booster programme to ensure more people are given their third dose sooner.

Teachers and pupils in Year 7 and above are also now being ‘strongly advised’ to wear masks in communal areas outside classrooms in England.

But health minister Edward Argar has said he was not anticipating that restrictions would be tightened further in the run up to Christmas.

Mr Argar told Sky News he was ‘looking forward to a Christmas spent with family and friends’.

Asked if the Government might tighten up the rules even further in the next three weeks, Mr Argar said: ‘It’s not something I’m anticipating.’

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