Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, for what reason Surescreen Diagnostics has been awarded a contract for 24 months until January 2023 for the manufacture of lateral flow antigen tests for SARS-CoV-2 in the context of the potential removal of legal limits on social contact on 21 June 2021 as set out in the Government's roadmap out of lockdown.

This contract was awarded in January 2021, before the current lockdown easing measures were announced. The contract is flexible and does not contain committed volumes of purchasing of tests. We are able to alter the amount of tests bought through this contract on a monthly basis and have the necessary contract clauses to exit the contract at short notice if required.

The contract was awarded under Regulation 32 measures in procurement procedures, based on the urgent nature of the requirement for lateral flow antigen tests and the lack of sovereign capability to produce these products in the United Kingdom. Worldwide manufacturers with tests validated for use in the UK were invited to make manufacturing proposals, including licencing production and were evaluated on the basis of a range of criteria including cost, performance and location/ability to provide security of supply.