New coronavirus variant: Two cases of the new variant, known as Omicron, have been confirmed in the UK

Two cases of the Omicron coronavirus variant feared to have a higher reinfection rate have been detected in the UK, as the Government added extra African countries to the travel red list.

The individuals and all members of their households have been ordered to self-isolate after one case was detected in Chelmsford, Essex, and the other in Nottingham.

Both cases are believed to be connected and there is a link to southern Africa.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said targeted testing is now being carried out, as travel restrictions were set to be introduced for Malawi, Mozambique, Zambia and Angola.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is expected to set out further measures during a Downing Street press conference later on Saturday.

This is a breaking news story and more will be added as it comes in

A message from the Editor:Thank you for reading this article. We're more reliant on your support than ever as the shift in consumer habits brought about by Coronavirus impacts our advertisers.

If you haven't already, please consider supporting our trusted, fact-checked journalism by taking out a digital subscription.