Welcome to your early morning news briefing from The Telegraph - a round-up of the top stories we are covering on Wednesday. To receive twice-daily briefings by email, sign up to our Front Page newsletter for free.

       1. NHS Test and Trace criticised as ‘eyewatering’ waste of cash

       NHS Test and Trace has been an “eye-watering” waste of taxpayers’ money which did not achieve its objectives, despite ￡37 billion of funding, a damning report has warned.

       The funding - equal to almost a fifth of the entire health service budget - was used to hire more than 2,000 consultants who were employed on rates of more than ￡1,000 a day, the report by the public accounts committee (PAC) found. Read the full story.

       2. Rishi Sunak foresees ‘new age of optimism’ as he starts building for life after Covid

       Rishi Sunak will say on Wednesday that it is time to start building the "post-Covid" economy as better than expected growth figures gave him tens of billions of pounds extra to spend.

       The Chancellor will use his Budget speech to outline a vision for "an economy fit for a new age of optimism" as he draws a line under 18 months of costly pandemic interventions. Read the full story.

       3. Public ‘want a referendum on Boris Johnson’s net zero plans’ by next general election

       The British public are in favour of a referendum on the Government’s net zero proposals, a new poll has shown.

       Forty two per cent of adults said they supported a vote on the plan, whilst 30 per cent opposed it, and 28 per cent did not declare a preference, according to a YouGov survey conducted this month. Read the full story.

       4. The Queen pulls out of Cop26 climate summit following hospital stay

       The Queen will not travel to Glasgow to speak at the Cop26 climate summit, Buckingham Palace has confirmed.

       The Queen, who has been unwell and was hospitalised for tests, has "regretfully decided" not to make the journey in person, saying she is "disappointed" not to be able to attend. Read the full story.

       5. Prince William ‘frustrated’ at The Crown’s commercialisation of Martin Bashir interview

       The Duke of Cambridge is frustrated at the “commercialisation” of the “false narrative” around his late mother’s life, as The Crown defies his expressed wishes to air a dramatised version of her Panorama interview.

       The Duke believes the interview, in which his mother famously told Martin Bashir “there were three of us in this marriage”, holds “no legitimacy” and must not be shared with the public again. Read the full story.

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