An inventor has called in the British Army in the battle against the killer epidemic.

And the collaboration has helped develop a powerful new anti-Covid spray which destroys the deadly virus in under sixty seconds.

Michael Pritchard, from Earls Colne, has been working with the Army to produce “military grade” disinfectant spray which destroys coronavirus in less than a minute with 99.99% efficiency.

He has developed the powerful Virusend formula which has been shown to kill the pandemic strain of the coronavirus and now more than 50,000 bottles of the disinfectant are being issued to troops across the country working alongside the NHS at coronavirus testing stations.

It is already being used at testing sites in Medway in Kent and Preston in Lancashire as the military step up their support to the communities.

Mr Pritchard developed the disinfectant during the first lockdown and it has been since undergoing rigorous testing at a research institute before getting official approval.

It was developed and part-funded by the British Army with the help of a £180,000 grant from the Government’s specialist team leading the fight against the pandemic.

Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine conducted tests at their labs and certified that Virusend destroys 99.99 per cent of coronavirus in a minute.

Dr Grant Hughes from Liverpool School of Tropical Medicine said: “We tested the formula on a strain of SARS-CoV-2 and it was highly effective – there was a significant reduction is seen within one minute of contact with the virus.”

The spray is also undergoing clinical evaluation at Leeds Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust in accident and emergency departments, intensive care and operating theatres.

Professor David Jayne, Director of National Institute for Health Research Surgical MedTech Co-operative said: “If the clinical trials are successful, we hope that the technology will be made widely available to help protect our staff and patients. 

The pioneering spray uses a patented a spray technology which Mr Pritchard successfully pitched on the BBC show Dragon’s Den in 2009, and won financial backing from Peter Jones and Theo Paphitis.

Mr Pritchard, 53, said: “The second wave is here and a third one is looming. Regional lock-downs are causing anger and anxiety. We need more fire power in the battle to defeat this disease – Virusend will change the way we combat this and all future pandemics.

“We want to give the UK the tools it needs to defeat coronavirus and get back on its feet as soon as possible.”

The spray gives protection for up to three months, costs £7.99 online at www.virusend.co.uk and in Lakeland shops.