Part of Elmley Prison on the Isle of Sheppey has been isolated for a second time amid a Covid-19 outbreak.

Prisoners are even being prevented from attending their trials at Canterbury Crown Court, amid fears of spreading the disease.

The Ministry of Justice said in a statement: “Our priority is to limit the spread of the virus and protect the lives of those who live and work in our prisons.

“We have taken precautionary measures at HMP Elmley following positive cases, in line with public health guidance, and will continue to closely monitor the situation.”

The authority did not specify how many new cases had surfaced or whether staff had been affected.

Staff and inmates only recently started wearing face masks to help mitigate the spread, it is alleged.

Barrister Neil Ross told the court in a hearing last week: "Only recently prisoners and guards have been wearing masks, for whatever reason.”

The latest clampdown comes as more than 90 men in the cell block at HMP Elmley at Eastchurch tested positive for coronavirus in November.

One judge even spared a violent criminal prison this month amid the outbreak.

The fresh measures come as national figures show a significant drop in Covid cases in prisons, dropping from 386 week ending November 30 to 344 on December 7.

The wing for remand prisoners awaiting court appearances normally holds around 300 men.

There were unconfirmed reports that a third of the prisoners had refused to be tested.

Swale continues to have the highest infection rate in England, with 937 new cases recorded in the seven days to December 5.

Read more: All the latest news from Sheppey