Eight new cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in Newfoundland and Labrador over the weekend—five on Saturday and three on Sunday.

That makes for a total of 18 new cases in the last week.

Of the 21 active cases in the province, 11 involve two clusters, with six linked to Blue Crest Cottages in Grand Bank and five in the Deer Lake area.

Health officials say the people who tested positive are self-isolating, contact tracing is underway and any close contacts have been advised to quarantine.

There was some good news—there are no patients in the hospital due to the virus, after two were released over the weekend.

Meanwhile, it was also announced over the weekend that Premier Andrew Furey, Health Minister Dr. John Haggie, and Chief Medical Officer of Health Dr. Janice Fitzgerald will make announcements regarding COVID-19 during a news briefing today.

The briefing will be at 11:30 and VOCM will take it live.

It comes as cases spike again across the country, including in the Atlantic Bubble, with some areas returning to lockdown.

PC Leader Ches Crosbie is hoping the government takes action on several fronts during today’s briefing.

Crosbie says the province’s participation in the Atlantic bubble should be reassessed, and he’s also calling for tighter rules on essential worker exemptions. He says there should be proof that the job in question can’t be done by local workers, thus reducing the risk of the virus spreading.

Crosbie also renewed a call for so-called point-of-entry testing as an added level of screening.