Queen Elizabeth @ 95 tests positive for COVID

Queen Elizabeth of England has tested positive for COVID, Buckingham Palace has said.

The monarch is experiencing “mild cold-like symptoms” but expects to continue “light duties” at Windsor over the coming week, BBC reports the palace as saying.

“She will continue to receive medical attention and will follow all the appropriate guidelines,” it added in a statement.

The Queen, 95, had been in contact with her eldest son and heir, the Prince of Wales, who tested positive last week.

No immediate comment has come from Prime Minister Boris Johnson but his health secretary, Sajid Javid, tweeted: “Wishing Her Majesty The Queen a quick recovery.”

Keir Starmer, leader of the main opposition Labour party, also tweeted his best wishes for “a speedy recovery”, adding: “Get well soon, Ma’am.”

Nationwide celebrations to mark the queen’s Platinum Jubilee are due to be held in June.

On the eve of the 70th anniversary of her accession on February 6, the monarch held a reception for locals at Sandringham, her estate in eastern England.

It was reportedly her largest in-person public engagement since an unexplained health issue saw her spend a night in the hospital last October.

The queen, whose husband Prince Philip died aged 99 last April, has spent much of the coronavirus pandemic at Windsor Castle, with a reduced number of household staff dubbed “HMS Bubble”.