Pat Regan: UPDATED: Government under fire as test and trace costs to taxpayers are attacked.

Late last year soldiers arrived at Pontins in Ainsdale, ahead of mass Covid testing in Liverpool.

Thousands of Armed Forces personnel were deployed to the area for the pilot of mass testing in England. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said at the time: “this has the potential to be a powerful new weapon in our fight against Covid-19”.

The cost of this operation must have been immense.

Covid-19: NHS Test and Trace 'no clear impact' despite £37bn budget

Media reports today (10/3/2021) are indicating that the chair of a committee of cross-party MPs has encouraged the Government to justify the “staggering investment of taxpayers’ money” in the Test and Trace scheme after they said there is “no clear evidence” that it contributed to a reduction in coronavirus levels.

In an extremely critical evaluation published by the Commons Public Accounts Committee (PAC), MPs called on the Government to substantiate its “unimaginable” costs. They also urged the scheme to “wean itself off” reliance on thousands of “expensive” consultants and temporary staff.

https://www.standard.co.uk/news/uk/uk-coronavirus-live-covid-latest-updates-test-trace-holiday-b923206.html?

NHS Test and Trace is a government-funded service in England, established in 2020 to track and help prevent the spread of COVID-19. It is run by the National Institute for Health Protection; the service and the institute are both headed by Baroness Dido Harding.

Serco account for around 1.5% of the overall investment in the service:

Serco are not involved in any other parts of the Test and Trace process; not involved in the design and management of the overall Test or Trace programme; not involved in modelling the capacity requirements of the system; not involved with the NHS App, the IT systems, the booking of tests, the provision of test kits, the test laboratories, or delivering test results.

https://www.serco.com/about/10-facts-about-sercos-role-and-performance-on-nhs-test-trace

Meanwhile, England’s chief medical officer Chris Whitty has said he would “strongly advise” against any move to shorten the timetable for easing lockdown. It comes as Boris Johnson faces Keir Starmer at PMQs.

https://www.otsnews.co.uk/army-personnel-arrive-at-pontins-ahead-of-liverpool-mass-testing/

Addendum

Latest claims from FULLFACT site dispute costs...