A bomb disposal unit is dealing with a suspicious package reported at a plant where the AstraZeneca vaccine is produced, The Leader reports.

Police have put a cordon in place near the Wockhardt plant at Wrexham industrial estate and the public have been asked to stay away.

A spokesperson for North Wales Police said: "We are currently dealing with an ongoing incident on the Wrexham Industrial Estate.

"The roads are currently closed and we would ask the public to avoid the area until further notice."

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The factory which has the capacity to produce 300 million doses of the vaccine a year for distribution around the UK is currently closed off.

In a statement, the company which operates the site and is a supply partner for AstraZeneca, Wockhardt UK, said the estate has been partially evacuated while experts investigate the package.

It said: "Wockhardt UK in Wrexham this morning received a suspicious package.

“Relevant authorities have responded and upon expert advice we have partially evacuated the site pending a full investigation.

“The safety of our employees and business continuity remain of paramount importance."

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The industrial estate is considered a sensitive site given its role in the UK’s Covid vaccination rollout.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited the site in November last year describing the lab as a “salvation for humainity”.

Mr Johnson said: "This could, if we're lucky, if everything goes right - be available just in a few weeks.

"This could - and I stress could - really be the salvation for humanity, these vaccines, not just this one but obviously all the vaccines that are currently being developed."