Nicola Sturgeon and Mark Drakeford have written a joint letter calling for an urgent meeting of the government’s emergency Cobra committee following the emergence of the Omicron variant.

The letter said: “In particular, we believe the reinstatement of a requirement for a ‘day 8’ PCR test for travellers arriving into the UK – alongside the ‘day 2’ requirement already announced, and thereby requiring isolation for that whole period – is now necessary.”

It added: “We also wish to confirm that devolved financial business support schemes will be funded by the Treasury in the event more interventionist measures are required to respond to the public health situation.”

However, speaking on Monday morning, UK foreign secretary Liz Truss indicated there would be no change.

She said it was important “to make sure that we keep travel routes open where possible, particularly to make sure that our economy remains strong, at the same time as taking necessary action. We’ve got the balance right”.