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NHS Test and Trace has cut 2,000 contact tracker roles despite renewed pressure on the system due to increased infections.
The call center’s army of contact trackers has quietly dwindled from 12,000 to 10,000 in recent weeks, Whitehall sources confirmed.
It comes amid new tension on the program, which is seen as vital to the government’s response to the pandemic, as the number of people it processes increases.
Critics said the move proved the system a mess since it launched in May. The 2,000 roles eliminated add to the 6,000 lost in August.
NHS Test and Trace has cut 2,000 contact tracker functions despite renewed pressure on the system from rising infections. In the picture: the Test and Trace smartphone app
When ministers launched the system, which Boris Johnson promised would be “a global beating,” they said 25,000 contract-hunting employees had been hired.
Last night, the Health Department said the move was about assigning more roles to regional teams to work with councils after criticism that the centrally managed system was failing to address local virus outbreaks.
But MPs said there was “no evidence” that the resources were being redeployed locally. Former culture minister Ben Bradshaw, a Labor MP from Exeter, said: “It has been clear for a long time that the trace-and-trace element is collapsing.
“We had the lowest level of successful tracking on record this week.
‘If this reduction is a sign that the government is finally understanding that this work should be done by local public health officials at the local level, then I welcome it.
The call center’s army of contact trackers has quietly dwindled from 12,000 to 10,000 in recent weeks, Whitehall sources confirmed. Pictured: A couple wearing face masks download the NHS Track and Trace app on their mobile phones in London
But I have not heard evidence from my local public health staff that they are getting more resources or agencies. The system has been in disarray from the beginning. Boris Johnson and his government decided, instead of using the existing public health infrastructure, to do this job by centralizing the system and it has been a disaster. ‘
The call center contact trackers are employed by the private companies Sitel and Serco, which won contracts worth £ 108 million and £ 84 million, respectively.
They receive contact information about IT systems and should contact individuals who have tested positive for Covid-19 and any close contacts.
But workers have repeatedly reported problems like IT glitches and people not answering their phones or leaving correct contact details.
Occurs when the Test and Trace system recorded its worst week on record.
Another 12,872 people have tested positive for coronavirus in the UK, as the country’s total daily cases remains above the 10,000 mark for an entire week.
Some 65 more people have died after testing positive for Covid-19, nearly double the 33 deaths recorded last week.
Some 51,475 new people tested positive for Covid-19 in England in the week to Sept.30, according to Thursday’s figures. This was 56% more in one week and is the highest number of tests the system has ever had to process.
Only 69 percent of close contacts of those who tested positive were reached in the week ending September 30.
This is the lowest level since Test and Trace began, and is down from 73 percent from the previous week.
John Spellar, a Labor MP from Birmingham Northfield, said: “They don’t seem to understand what they should do. They are cookies.
‘If they transferred these people to local public health officials who really know what they are doing, I would not object, but is that really what they are doing? I haven’t heard that from people on the ground. ‘
A Sitel worker told the Mail that around three-quarters of his team of 55 had lost their jobs in recent weeks.
A Serco spokesperson said: “We have sufficient capacity to meet the government’s demands.” Sitel did not respond to requests for comment.
The Health Department said more than 240,000 tests were performed a day on average last week and more than half a million people were contacted to isolate themselves, helping cut transmission.
