Coronavirus testing ramped up to 25k a day – with NHS staff first in line, PM announces

The Prime Minister told MPs today that Covid-19 tests will increase fivefold - and NHS frontline workers will be prioritised.

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Mr Boris Johnson also confirmed that the UK is getting "much closer" to having a generally available test to determine whether someone has had coronavirus.

This was also confirmed by the chief scientific adviser, Sir Patrick Vallance, in the government's daily press conference today.

He said that a "game-changing" test that could establish whether someone had already had the virus would be coming soon.

Currently, the NHS only has a nasal swab test that can detect the virus through laboratory analysis.

This can take at least 24 hours and only determines whether someone's illness is Covid-19.

The test has also been limited to the most vulnerable - so those in hospital, people in intensive care units and those with respiratory illness, especially pneumonia.

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Those with mild coronavirus symptoms - a dry cough, temperature and fatigue - are now expected to self-isolate at home and not call the NHS, unless their symptoms worsen.

But what the government want is to have an antibodies test which can detect whether someone has already had the illness - and likely to be immune - through a blood sample.

At the moment, no country has this test - but Mr Johnson revealed today the UK is a step closer to having one.

So far, 104 people have died in the UK, and 2,626 have been diagnosed with the new bug.

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PMQs

Speaking during Prime Minister's Question Time in the House of Commons today, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said: "NHS staff and those working in the care sector are on the front line of caring for patients suffering from coronavirus.

"However, sadly, those workers have no idea if they're actually transmitting the virus themselves.

"They may not be obviously suffering from it but they could still be transmitting it and if they're ill or not, when they return on the front line, what effect it will have.

"So can the Prime Minister please explain why the Government isn't prioritising the testing of all health care staff, both those in the NHS and those doing such a vital job in the care sector?"

Mr Johnson said: "Well in point of fact, we are prioritising testing of NHS staff for the obvious reason that we want them to be able to look after everybody else with confidence that they're not transmitting the disease and this country is actually far ahead of many other comparable countries in testing huge numbers of people.

"We're increasing our tests from 5,000 to 10,000 a day and it may be of interest to the House to know that we are getting much closer to having a generally available test which will determine whether or not you have had the disease and that will truly be of huge benefit to this country in tackling the outbreak."

We are prioritising testing of NHS staff for the obvious reason that we want them to be able to look after everybody else

Boris JohnsonPrime Minister

Mr Corbyn said: "The World Health Organisation said test, test, test and we should be testing, I believe, on an industrial scale."

He said 10,000 tests per day is "nowhere near even the number of people working in the NHS and the care sector", adding: "It is a massive undertaking and I wish there was a greater sense of urgency from the Government in getting this testing available for all staff.

"NHS staff are obviously on the front line and many are scared because the guidance has been changed to say they do not need to wear full protective equipment when caring for patients."

Mr Corbyn added: "We shouldn't be scaring doctors and nurses - is there a policy for them to have full protective equipment or not? Because I believe it should be the case."

Mr Johnson replied: "On testing, to reassure him, we're moving up to 25,000 a day."

On personal protective equipment (PPE), he added: "There is a massive effort going on, comparable to the effort to build enough ventilators, to ensure that we have adequate supplies of PPE equipment not just now, but throughout the outbreak."

Test changes

Changes to testing were introduced last week when the government declared that the UK had moved from the "contain" to the "delay" phase.

Following an emergency Cobra meeting, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced that testing of mild cases will end.

Before then, people were referred to test centres after phoning .

Those suspected of carrying the disease were advised to drive to a special testing site, or a hospital car park, where a nurse wearing protective gear would conduct the test in assessment pods.

The NHS was also testing people at home for the virus to help contain the spread.

But the government changed its stance, and widespread testing was scrapped as it was ruled "no longer necessary" to test every case.

The chief medical officer for England, Professor Chris Whitty has since defended the UK's decision after the World Health Organisation's said it had advised governments to "keep testing everyone".

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On Monday, Prof Whitty said: "We do intend to continue to scale up testing."

He said tests only show if people are currently sick or not, but not if someone had previously had the virus.

Prof Whitty said that test would be "transformational" and that Public Health England was "very rapidly" developing such a test.