Thanks for following our coverage of today's Welsh Government press briefing. Here is a reminder of our top stories today:

• A second Welsh health board has postponed some surgery and routine appointments due to Covid pressures
• Care home vaccinations are to begin in north Wales on Wednesday and will be expanded before Christmas if successful
• Staff and pupils will be able to get daily Covid tests in school from January if they are identified as a close contact of a positive case
• A further 33 people have died with Covid-19 in Wales, while another 1,228 people have tested positive for the virus

Join us again at the same time on Wednesday for the next press briefing from the Welsh Government.

In the meantime you can keep up to date via the BBC News website and social media channels.

Image source, Getty Images

The Welsh Conservative leader in the Senedd said the coronavirus situation was "extremely serious" as figures continue to rise.

Paul Davies said he would "wait and see" what the Welsh Government's new four-level coronavirus system, external would mean, but he and his party had "advocated a more targeted approach many, many months ago".

The Welsh Government has just published the plan, setting out what each level means in terms of restrictions, and the factors behind the decision for setting each level.

Mr Davies added that the four nations of the UK should be working closely together and that he welcomes the refreshed framework.

He added he also welcomed a local tiered system in Wales.

“Nothing is off the table” when it comes to more Covid restrictions over Christmas, Wales' health minister has said.

Vaughan Gething said the Welsh Government “had to consider choices each day”.

He said: “It’s certainly not our preference to interrupt because there is a lot of capital invested in that easing of the rules which all four countries signed up to.

“But as I’ve said…..you can never say never with the course of the pandemic, because if the virus continues to grow , then we will need to make choices to keep people safe.

“So nothing is off the table, but it does rely on the choices that each of us are prepared to make.”

Wales is now five weeks on from the end of its 17-day firebreak lockdown, and case rates are at a record high.

The number of cases did fall for a short time after the end of the firebreak, but have only increased with each passing week.

So, did the short lockdown work?

The Welsh Government has updated its Coronavirus Control Plan, external, changing its traffic-light framework of restrictions to one of four alert levels.

It said the change was "aligned to the measures we will need to have in place to control the spread of the virus through the difficult winter months ahead of us and to protect people’s health".

"It also sets out how and when Wales will move between these alert levels," a statement said.

"The all-Wales measures are designed to be as simple, fair and clear as possible and they will provide greater certainty for people and businesses about what legal restrictions will be put in place, depending on the level of risk, helping them to plan for the future."

Alert level one (low risk): This represents the level of restrictions closest to normality, which are possible while infection rates are low and other preventative measures, such as social distancing and working from home, remain in place.

Alert level two (medium risk): This includes additional controls to limit the spread of coronavirus. These may be complemented by more targeted local actions to manage specific incidents or outbreaks.

Alert level three (high risk): These represent the strictest restrictions short of a firebreak or lockdown. These respond to higher or rising level of infections where local actions are no longer effective in containing the growth of the virus.

Alert level four (very high risk): Restrictions at this level would be equivalent to the firebreak regulations or lockdown. These could either be deployed as a preventative firebreak or as a lockdown measure.

Full details have been published on the Welsh Government website., external

Health Minister Vaughan Gething said the NHS in Wales "isn't overwhelmed", but will need to make "some decisions" to cope with rising virus levels.

It comes as the Aneurin Bevan and Swansea Bay health boards suspend some non-urgent treatment because of the pressure of Covid and staff shortages

"Having two of our health boards making choices about restricting normal treatment, that really does set out the extent of the pressure we face,” he said.

But Mr Gething added that by putting off outpatients and planned surgery appointments, it would “produce a different sort of harm and our NHS will need to catch up in the future”.

“The reason I endorsed our health boards to do that is because otherwise we could see our NHS being overwhelmed," he added.

Image source, Welsh Government

The coronavirus situation "isn't out of control" in Wales, according to the health minister.

Vaughan Gething said the increase in infections "is a concern for all of us" and the virus "gathers and gets more serious".

"We're setting rules, were giving people encouragement. We're trying to set out the consequence of each of our choices, but asking people to think about what they should do", he said.

"But ultimately we need everybody's help, but government can't do this on its own. We need people across Wales to consider how they can do the right thing to protect themselves, and other people around them.

"And that's the point of keeping Wales safe."

The latest case rates in Wales show that the south Wales valleys continues to be the country's hotspot for the virus.

Monday's update shows Merthyr Tydfil still has the highest case rate, which has risen to 870.3.

Case rates measure the number of cases per 100,000 people over the most recent seven days of data.

However, levels remain relatively low in north west Wales, with Anglesey, Gwynedd and Conwy all below a rate of 100 cases per 100,000 people.

The NHS in Wales has just experienced one of its busiest weekends of the year with winter and pandemic pressures coming together, Health Minister Vaughan Gething has said.

“Coronavirus is putting additional and sustained strain on our health service – it is unlike other winter illnesses that we normally see."

He said many people who were admitted to hospital would be there for weeks and needed intensive support to recover.

Significant numbers of NHS staff were either off sick or self-isolating, resulting in staff shortages in key areas, Mr Gething added.

He confirmed that the Swansea Bay University Health Boardhad postponed some surgery and outpatient appointments.

The NHS in Wales is looking at how is supports people who are in hospital but able to go home, according to the health minister.

Vaughan Gething said there were "hundreds" of people in hospital who have finished treatment for the virus but are still testing positive for it.

He said some tests can detect genetic material of the virus four months after infection.

"International research suggests the majority of people are very unlikely to be infectious 14 days after symptoms started," Mr Gething said.

“We are working with the NHS, with local authorities, care providers and with the Older People’s Commissioner to make sure we can safely get these people home again.

“It’s really important for people’s health and wellbeing that they don’t spend any longer than necessary in hospital."

Coronavirus testing is to be rolled out in schools and colleges in Wales from January.

Pupils and staff who have been identified as close contacts will be able to take a lateral flow test - which returns a result in 20 to 30 minutes - every day.

Should they test positive, they will be asked to self-isolate and take a confirmatory test, while those who test negative can attend school or college.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething told the Welsh Government press conference: “From January, new testing arrangements will be available, to help school staff and pupils return to school as quickly as possible and help parents get back to work.

"Serial testing will not get rid of coronavirus in the new year but it will mean children’s education is less disrupted next year."

You can read more on this story here.

Wales' health minister is urging people not to mix outside their households in the run-up to Christmas.

Vaughan Gething said there were more than 14,000 cases of coronavirus confirmed last week with one in five of the tests positive.

He said coronavirus was "widespread" in Welsh communities and the chances of catching or spreading it whenever people were in contact with other people was high.

“That is why we are asking everyone not to mix with people you don’t live with,” he said.

Some surgery and appointments will be postponed at Swansea Bay University Health Board, Wales' health minister has announced.

It follows the Aneurin Bevan board in south east Wales in cancelling some appointments.

Vaughan Gething said "significant numbers" of staff were off sick and there were staff shortages in "key areas".

He added: "Health boards are making difficult decisions to pause some normal services to focus on winter and pandemic pressures."

Image source, Jaggery/Geograph

People living in care homes in Wales will start to receive the coronavirus vaccine from Wednesday, the health minister has announced.

Vaughan Gething said the roll-out will start in north Wales.

The Pfizer/BioNTech vaccine has to be stored at very low temperatures, which means it is more complicated to administer the injections to people who are unable to travel to clinics.

Mr Gething said it will be rolled out at a "greater pace" before Christmas if all goes well this week.

More than 6,000 people have received the vaccine in Wales since the first were given last Tuesday.

Image source, EPA

Health Minister Vaughan Gething is about to give a Welsh Government update on the pandemic.

You can watch proceedings live on BBC One Wales, S4C, the BBC iPlayer and via the Coronavirus Daily Update video link above.

Wales' newest general hospital is "stuffed full" of coronavirus patients, according to an intensive care consultant.

Dr Ami Jones said there were more patients with Covid-19 than not at the Grange hospital in Cwmbran, which opened in November.

Outpatient appointments and non-urgent planned surgery have been halted at hospitals across the Aneurin Bevan health board area of south east Wales.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething said the situation was "incredibly serious".

Image source, Getty Images

The number of Covid-19 cases has been rising rapidly over recent days and weeks, with south Wales now the main hotspot in the UK for cases.

Eight of the UK's top 10 case rates - which measures the number of cases per 100,000 people over seven days - are in Welsh counties.

Merthyr Tydfil is the highest, with 787.4 cases per 100,000 people there, followed by Neath Port Talbot and Newport.

Swansea, Caerphilly, Bridgend, Blaenau Gwent and Rhondda Cynon Taf also rank in the top 10 for case rates.

The Kent areas of Swale, which has the fourth highest at 646.3, and Medway, in ninth, are the only non-Welsh counties in the top 10.

UK seven day rolling Covid-19 cases per 100,000 up to 8 December

1. Merthyr Tydfil - 787.4
2. Neath Port Talbot - 764.7
3. Newport - 651.7
4. Swale - 646.3
5. Swansea - 622.7
6. Caerphilly - 619.1
7. Bridgend - 618.8
8. Blaenau Gwent - 608.3
9. Medway - 604.9
10. Rhondda Cynon Taf - 582.8

While we wait for the press conference to get started, here's a reminder of the latest coronavirus-related news in Wales:

• Wales' newest general hospital - the Grange in Cwmbran - is "at tipping point" and is "stuffed full" of coronavirus patients just a month after opening
• Pupils and teachers identified as close contacts of Covid cases will be able to get daily tests
• Continuing mass testing in Wales could be a "massive-scale waste of resources", a leading public health expert has said
• Loosening Covid restrictions across the UK over Christmas is a "mistake", according to a professor of public health

Image source, Getty Images

A further 33 people have died with coronavirus in Wales, according to Public Health Wales (PHW) figures.

It takes the total number of deaths since the start of the pandemic to 2,882.

Another 1,228 people have also tested positive for the virus.

As of today, PHW will be publishing its updates shortly before 1200 GMT rather than 1400.

Good morning and welcome to our live coverage of the Welsh Government's coronavirus briefing.

Health Minister Vaughan Gething will be giving updates about the situation in Wales from about 12:15 GMT, before answering questions from journalists.

Stay with us.