The Welsh Government has responded to reports that the UK Government is planning to limit the use of free lateral flow tests.
This comes after The Times reported on Sunday that a "new strategy of living with Covid", which was set to be announced "within weeks", could see lateral flow tests provided only to high risk settings, such as care homes, hospitals, schools and to people with coronavirus symptoms.
Both the Labour Party and Scotland's First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, have warned Boris Johnson against the move, with Sturgeon describing it as "utterly wrongheaded".
The Welsh Government said it had no plans to restrict access to lateral flow tests and said that any changes to the testing system would need "detailed consideration and assessment" in regards to its impact, especially on individuals that are vulnerable.
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The report, which cited a senior Whitehall source, also said that the UK Government were considering reducing the self-isolation period from seven to five days in England and may also see the NHS Test and Trace system scaled back.
The Whitehall source said: "I don't think we are in a world where we can continue to hand out free lateral flow tests to everybody.
"It's likely we will move to a scenario where there is less testing but we have a capacity to ramp it up if necessary."
Asked about the reports, Boris Johnson told reporters on Monday morning in Uxbridge "we'll use [lateral flow tests] as long as they're very important".
Senior cabinet minister Michael Gove also rejected the reports that there were plans to stop supply free tests. He said the tests are a "vital line of defence" and says he doesn't think anyone is talking about getting rid of them.
In an interview with Sky News on Sunday, another UK cabinet minister who is responsible for education in England, Nadhim Zahawi, said: "This is absolutely not where we are at. On the contrary, in January alone we have 425 million lateral flow tests coming in and they'll continue to be available for free because we've got three lines of defence - the booster, testing and anti-virals.
"So I don't really recognise where that story is coming from."
Lateral flow tests are currently provided to individuals at no charge through out the UK.
The Welsh Government has previously said the tests being used in Wales are part of its UK allocation of rapid test kits, which have been paid for by the UK Government.
The UK Government has said the tests are part of its NHS test and trace funding of £37bn over two years. It would need to be seen how the move would affect people in Wales if the UK Government did decide to stop providing tests free of charge.
In response to The Times report, a Welsh Government spokesperson said: "Our current focus with the spread of the omicron variant is ensuring we have an effective testing regime to break chains of transmission and reduce the spread of the virus.
"We continually adapt our testing system in response to how Covid-19 is impacting our communities to reflect balance of harms. Any changes need detailed consideration and assessment on impact especially for the more vulnerable.
"We do not currently have any intentions to move to a system where we would restrict access to lateral flow tests."
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