Residents in County Durham will be banned from mixing with people from other households and pubs, restaurants and bars will have to close at 22:00 as new measures to curb the spread of coronavirus in the North East come into effect on Friday.

The restrictions will also apply in Northumberland, Newcastle, Gateshead, Sunderland and North and South Tyneside.

In the absence of a vaccine or treatment, social distancing remains the most effective way to limit the spread of COVID-19 in communities. We hope people in the North East will follow the latest measures in order to avoid a total lockdown, which could do great damage to the region’s economy.

We are committed to helping the region going, so if you are asymptomatic and would like a private COVID-19 test for yourself or one of your employees, please contact Complement Genomics on 0191 543 9302.

if you are a private client you can also email us at sales@geneblitz.com.

If you or your company would like to discuss a programme of COVID-19 testing, then please e-mail us at support@geneblitz.com.