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Britain’s largest coronavirus testing lab is hit by the Covid outbreak after a worker at the Milton Keynes site, which is meant to process 70,000 tests per day, claimed safety rules had been broken
- Milton Keynes Lighthouse Laboratory has seen a Covid-19 outbreak on staff
- Three of its four scientific teams are isolated and other personnel also have cases.
- A staff member claims that safety guidelines for coronavirus have not been followed
The UK’s largest testing lab has been hit by a coronavirus outbreak after staff members claimed it did not follow security procedures.
Three of the four scientific teams from the Milton Keynes Lighthouse Laboratory in Buckinghamshire have reported cases of Covid-19.
The lab was the first in the UK to officially register the most transmissible new coronavirus strain in September, according to Public Health England.
Warehouse and administrative staff have also reported cases and 20 of a 70-person lab team are in isolation, according to a staff member who wished to remain anonymous.
The outbreak threatens to affect the laboratory’s ability to keep up with the growing demand for tests, after it was asked to process 70,000 tests a day.
The UK’s largest testing lab, the Milton Keynes Lighthouse Laboratory (pictured from June, when Prime Minister Boris Johnson visited the facility) in Buckinghamshire, was hit by a coronavirus outbreak after members of staff stated that he did not follow security procedures.
It processed 47,000 tests on Tuesday, the staff member said.
The source told Sky News: ‘There is no chance that we will reach 70,000 a day as we are going.
The whole thing is a joke.
The Department of Health and Social Care has denied claims that coronavirus safety procedures were broken to cope with growing demand.
A bubble system for workers to separate them recommended by the Health and Safety Executive was being ignored while the lab was understaffed, the source said.
The outbreak threatens to test the laboratory’s ability (pictured) to keep up with the growing demand for tests, after it was asked to process 70,000 tests a day.
The worker claimed that staff also mingled in the building’s canteen and lobbies.
New recruits to the lab are screened when they arrive and sit in the canteen while waiting for the results, the source said.
Milton Keynes lab staff are working 12-hour shifts over Christmas to keep up with demand.
New testing labs were opened this month at two London university labs after case levels in the capital tripled in the past fortnight.
The UK announced 39,036 more coronavirus cases and 574 deaths on Christmas Eve.
People have struggled to get tested in the city, and no testing centers were shown as available on Saturday when the capital was placed under Level 4 restrictions.
The UK Biocenter became the UK’s largest testing laboratory last April and was visited by Prime Minister Boris Johnson in June.
Administration is largely handled by management consultancy Deloitte.
It dramatically increased the UK’s testing capacity, but has been criticized for not being sufficiently linked to the rest of the health service.
The Department of Health and Social Care confirmed the outbreak at the Lighthouse Laboratory, but said that all government Covid guidelines had been followed.
He added that additional resources are being put in place to ensure testing capacity is at peak levels during the Christmas period.
DHSC said: ‘NHS Test and Trace continues to test record numbers of people and people can be confident that if they have symptoms and need a test they can get one.
“We are delivering an unprecedented volume of tests, more than 450,000 yesterday alone, and during periods of high demand, our goal is to ensure that anyone with symptoms can get tested.
“All of our test sites and our home test service will be available for reservations as usual during the Christmas period.”
