The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) has confirmed that asymptomatic people in England who test positive on lateral flow tests will no longer need a follow-up PCR to officially begin their isolation period.
This change will take effect from 11 January.
At present, people without symptoms who test LFT positive are asked to order a PCR test, and are then told to only begin their isolation period when they get the PCR result, which effectively requires them to isolate for longer than seven days.
Awaiting PCR results is said to be a cause of delay to the official start of isolation for hundreds of thousands of people.
Growing delays in getting PCR test results have also been widely reported across the UK.
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The announcement by the UKHSA today comes after Health Minister Gillian Keegan this morning said that there is likely “about a million people” currently in self-isolation across the UK right now, after official figures released yesterday showed that the UK recorded 218,724 positive cases over COVID-19 in the latest 24-hour period.
Follow-up PCR tests are no longer required for asymptomatic people who test positive on lateral flows / Credit: Flickr (Tom Wolf)
People experiencing the three official COVID symptoms, which are a high temperature, a new, continuous cough and a loss or change to your sense of smell or taste – will still be expected to get a PCR, however, but for those who don’t not show any of those symptoms when the LFT shows positive, will not have to get a follow-up PCR, the UKHSA has confirmed.
This change would allow those who are asymptomatic – about 40% of cases – to return to work more quickly.
According to the UKHSA, this change is just a “temporary measure” while COVID rates remain high and continue to rise across the UK and will free up capacity in laboratories for PCR tests for those who do have symptoms.
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Awaiting PCR results is said to be a cause of delay to the official start of isolation for hundreds of thousands of people / Credit: StockSnap
People who test positive on lateral flow tests will still need to isolate for at least seven days, and register their positive results.
“While cases of COVID continue to rise, this tried and tested approach means that LFTs can be used confidently to indicate COVID-19 infection without the need for PCR confirmation,” explained Dr Jenny Harries – Chief Executive at UKHSA.
“It remains really important that anyone who experiences COVID-19 symptoms self-isolates immediately,” she concluded.
Tyson Fury has announced he is returning to boxing yet again
Danny Jones
Tyson Fury has confirmed that he will once again be returning to the boxing ring for what feels like the umpteenth time.
Honestly, he’s come in and out of retirement so many times now that we’ve genuinely started to lose count at this point…
The Manc fighter last ‘retired’ back in January 2025, so it’s only fitting that, quite literally, almost exactly 12 months on from his last sabbatical, ‘The Gyspy King’ is making another comeback.
Sharing the almost entirely expected news at this point on social media, Fury said: “2026 is [the] year. Return of the Mac. Been away for a while, but I’m back now, 37 years old and still punching. Nothing better to do than punch men in the face and get paid for it.”
Even prior to his own announcement, the Wythenshawe-born boxer had shared multiple updates online about ‘sharpening the edge’ following his hiatus.
Earlier this month, he posted another video of himself sparring along with a caption that read: “This is how I spent my New Year. Grinding and working my ass off!
“Couldn’t think of anything better to do than this! Great things come to those who work hard. All in the name of Jesus, Little by little, on the daily, we keep climbing.”
Another clip of him hitting the punchbag with fight coaches and other members of his entourage has also surfaced online.
There’s no question that he’s still one of the biggest pugilists on the planet, but not everyone is convinced he’s tacked on the right kind of mass.
Fury often piles on weight between bouts and has fought plenty with size on his side, too.
He notably trimmed down to one of his lightest competitive statures ever for the first fight against heavyweight champion Oleksandr Usyk, but even bulking back up wasn’t enough to secure victory.
As for his next opponent, the expectation of a third fight against Usyk is there somewhere down the line, but many feel this could also be the time we finally get to see Tyson Fury vs Anthony Joshua.
Featured Images — High Performance Podcast (screenshot)/@Mike_DiDomizio (via WikiCommons)
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Manchester has been named one of the UK’s top property hotspots for 2026
Emily Sergeant
Manchester has been revealed as one of the most-searched places to move to in the UK according to annual data.
Every year, leading property listing website, Rightmove, takes a look at all the cities, towns, and residential areas across the UK where people searched for homes to live in most, and puts together an interesting top 10 list.
From the suburban neighbourhoods and coastal escapes, to country communities, overseas destinations, and everything in betweeen, Rightmove has been digging into the numbers and trends to see where house-hunters dreamed of moving to the most last year, and found that this year’s trends tell ‘an interesting story’.
Manchester has been named one of the UK’s property hotspots for 2026 / Credit: James Feaver (via Unsplash)
Property experts say this year’s ‘hotspot’ list is shaped by lifestyle changes, shifting priorities, and economic influences that are reshaping demand.
As was to be expected, major cities dominated UK property searches in 2025.
London continued to ‘lead the way’ as the country’s main urban hub, with close to 10 million people calling the English capital home currently, meaning it, unsurprisingly, claimed the top spot when it came to area searches – but Manchester wasn’t very close behind.
Top 10 most-searched UK cities on Rightmove 2025
London
Manchester
Glasgow
Bristol
Edinburgh
York
Bath
Cornwall
Liverpool
Sheffield
Our city claimed second place on the list, with several other major northern cities featuring in the top 10 too, including York, Sheffield, and Liverpool.
Glasgow is third on the list, while Bristol and Edinburgh rounded out the top five.
“Our review of the year spotlights some of the most popular trends from 2025,” explained Rightmove’s property expert, Colleen Babcock.
Emily Sergeant -
5th January 2022 
