THE potential for a vaccine resistant coronavirus variant has been included on the council’s risk register.

During its meeting on Monday, the cabinet reviewed the council’s strategic risk environment at quarter four of 2021/22.

The report to members said the overall risk is stabilising, as ‘we become more accustomed to managing outbreaks’ and adapting to ‘living with Covid’.

But it stated that ‘we are very aware of the significant impacts’ that a new virus, or a vaccine resistant variant, may have on a system that is already operating to capacity.

According to the risk register, arrangements already in place to reduce the likelihood and/or impact of the potential risk of a new Covid of flu variant, vaccine resistant Covid or flu strains, or new viruses, relate to the work and plans of the local resilience forum, major emergency plan, corporate flu plan, local outbreak plan, business continuity strategy and business continuity plans, subject to regular review and periodic testing, as well as the pandemic response for Warrington and Halton overseen by the health protection board.

In relation to contingency plans, arrangements which can be put into place if the risk was to materialise now, the document highlighted that a major incident plan could be implemented, as well as business continuity plans or local outbreak plans.