Covid-19 Update

Rosie Cooper Excerpts

Thursday 10th September 2020 Commons Chamber

[Matt Hancock]

Again, there has not been a reduction in capacity in Berkshire or anywhere else in the country. There has been an increase in capacity. My hon. Friend makes a good point, though, about prioritisation. The question is how to enforce prioritisation without putting in place barriers that slow down access to tests for people who need them. We are looking at that now.

[Rosie Cooper (West Lancashire) (Lab) [V]]

Will the Secretary of State please explain the lack of availability of home testing kits, which has dropped dramatically in my area of West Lancashire? In the absence of home testing kits, very ill pensioners are being offered tests 80 or 100 miles away. The confusing message in the assurance that he is trying to give is that there are too many getting tested, but that, if in doubt, people should get tested. How does that deal with the asymptomatic carriers or spreaders? This is a huge hidden danger. In the light of the Secretary of State’s earlier comment, my constituents would genuinely love to get with the programme, get tested where necessary and stay safe—if only the Government’s words met their actual experience of the system.

[Matt Hancock]

The clarity that the hon. Lady calls for can be provided as follows. If you have symptoms, get a test. If you do not have symptoms, and you have not been asked to get a test, please do not use a test that somebody else needs because they do have symptoms—they might be elderly, for instance, and she rightly refers to her constituents—because the tests are there for them. The capacity is expanding every day, but we need to ensure that we get those tests to the people who need them.