Plans to allow families to meet over Christmas are being discussed by the leaders of all four UK nations.

The 16:00 GMT talks are examining how coronavirus restrictions can be relaxed over the festive period.

The first ministers of Wales and Scotland both said they were hopeful a "common" framework could be agreed.

BBC Scotland's chief political correspondent said three households could be allowed to meet indoors over five days between 23-27 December.

Plans to allow families to meet over Christmas are being discussed by the leaders of all four UK nationshttps://t.co/pWXr6B88Hf

— BBC Scotland News (@BBCScotlandNews) November 24, 2020

Glenn Campbell added that the four nations were close to an agreement - with the leaders also considering the lifting of travel restrictions and rules on overnight stays.

He added they are expected to urge Britons to use any new flexibility sparingly because public health officials are worried Christmas get-togethers could cause a January spike in Covid cases.

Speaking ahead of the meeting of the UK government's emergency committee Cobra, Welsh First Minister Mark Drakeford said he was "very hopeful" of progress being made - but cautioned any extra freedoms would not be an instruction to do "risky things".

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon also stressed any changes would be "temporary" and "limited" and the Scottish government would "continue to ask people to err on the side of caution".

She said that the "details" may differ "to reflect different circumstances in each nation", such as what the definition of a "household" might be.

Meanwhile, the government has recorded another 608 deaths of people in the UK who have died within 28 days of a positive Covid test. There were also a further 11,299 cases of people testing positive for coronavirus.