HEALTH Secretary Matt Hancock has set out a new test, track and trace programme to "hunt down and isolate the virus so it is unable to reproduce".

Speaking at the daily No 10 coronavirus press conference he said: "Crucially, test, track and trace allows us to take a more targeted approach to lockdown while still safely containing the disease.

"Creating this system is a huge national undertaking of unprecedented scale and complexity."

It would involve an "army" of human contact tracers and the new app which is being trialled in the Isle of Wight.

Setting out details of the Isle of Wight trial, Mr Hancock said: "Last week we put in place the testing capability on the island, from tonight the contact tracing capability will go live and from tomorrow NHS staff on the island will be able to download the app.

"From Thursday, each one of the 80,000 households on the island will get a letter from the chief nurse with comprehensive information about the trial.

"Islanders will then be able to install the app."

Mr Hancock told Isle of Wight residents: "By downloading the app you are protecting your own health, you are protecting the health of your loved ones and the health of your community.

"I know that the people of the Isle of Wight will embrace this with enthusiasm because by embarking on this project and by embracing test, track and trace you will be saving lives."

But he stressed the trial of the app did not mean the end of social distancing measures.

The deputy chief medical officer for England, Professor Jonathan Van-Tam, has said the risk of a second wave of Covid-19 was being kept under close review.

Speaking at the daily No 10 press conference he said: "This is really a matter of deep scientific discussion - very, very close following and absorbing of the evidence and one that we are keeping under detailed scientific review as the days and the weeks go by."

Prof Van-Tam said there had been a "steady decline" in the numbers of hospital patients with coronavirus and a "slow and consistent decline" in the numbers of deaths.

However he said that the numbers of new cases of people testing positive for the disease needed to come down further.

"We have to get the cases lower," he said.

The Health Secretary said more than 18,000 contact tracers could be required for the test, track and trace programme.

Matt Hancock said: "There is no magic around the 18,000 figure, that is the initial scale that we think is necessary.

"If it needs to be bigger, when we find out from the ONS survey that is in the field at the moment what the prevalence of the disease is - the number of new cases per day actually out there rather than that we find through positive tests - then we will adjust that figure.

"That is the initial goal but it will be up and running by the middle of the month."

Asked if the app pilot would see the lockdown restrictions eased sooner in the Isle of Wight, Mr Hancock said: "I can reassure you that there aren't any changes to social distancing measures that are proposed as part of this pilot.

"The pilot is to find out how the app works."