Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what advice given by the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies' Environmental and Modelling Group was used by his Department when it made the decision to fund a project led by the Universities of St Andrews and Dundee on whether ultraviolet-C light can kill viruses which cause covid-19.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies’ Environmental and Modelling Group’s (SAGE-EMG) advice highlighted the potential for far-UVC technology as promising but requiring further research.

The Universities of St Andrews and Dundee presented far-UVC technology to a workshop convened by the Innovation and Partnerships team in NHS Test and Trace. The workshop evaluation considered several technologies and based on the evidence presented and SAGE-EMG’s advice to further the research, far-UVC technology was considered suitable for funding.