Former Maze prison site could be used for Covid-19 hospital - First Minister

A former prison site in Co Down could be used to host Northern Ireland's coronavirus field hospital, the First Minister has said.

At the leaders' daily Covid-19 press briefing at Stormont on Tuesday, MrsFoster said that the Maze Prison was one of a number of sites being explored to increase provision of intensive care beds.

"Some of the sites that are being looked at include Balmoral Park and placeslike that," she said.

"He (health minister) is doing technical assessments on that at this presentmoment in time.

"He will come to a decision on that in the near future."

"The model will be similar to that of Scotland, so the intensive care bedswill not be in the field hospital but the step down will be in the fieldhospital."

At the same briefing, deputy First Minister Michelle O'Neill, called for there to be increased testing for coronavirus in Northern Ireland.

The Public Health Agency say 5,885 tests have been carried out in the region, with the vast majority negative.

"I subscribe to the World Health Organisation's approach," the deputy First Minister said.

"That's the approach that I believe we should be following and their evidence clearly says that we should be doing more testing, we should be isolating and tracing.

"I want us to get to that point and I am going to continue to work with executive colleagues to make sure that we get to that point," shesaid.