Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what support his Department has provided to local authorities to carry out surge covid-19 testing in areas where the South African variant has been detected.

Working in partnership with local authorities, we are targeting areas within specific postcodes where the variant has been found. Mobile testing units will be deployed offering polymerase chain reaction testing to people without symptoms who have to leave their home for work or essential reasons, with local authorities providing additional home test kits.