The UK Government has today (Thursday 17 December) opened a new walk-through coronavirus testing centre at Mossfield Car Park in Oban (PA34 4EW). The centre is easily accessible for people without a car.

The test centre is part of the largest network of diagnostic testing facilities created in British history. In Scotland, this comprises of six drive through sites, 22 walk-through sites, 21 mobile units, plus the Glasgow Lighthouse Lab which is working round the clock to process samples.

In Scotland, the UK Government is providing all Covid testing and test processing outside of the NHS. Around two thirds of all daily tests are provided by the UK Government, in support of Scotland’s health services.

Tests must be booked in advance at NHS Inform or by calling 0800 028 2816. People should only book at test if they have coronavirus symptoms (a high temperature, a new and continuous cough, or a loss or change to their sense of smell or taste).

Health Minister Lord Bethell said:

To respond to the coronavirus, we have built a major testing and tracing system from scratch. We are constantly working to expand and improve it with new technologies and innovations so everyone with symptoms can get a test.

New walk-in sites like this one makes it even easier to get a test no matter where you live. If you have symptoms of coronavirus, I urge you to book a test today and follow the advice of NHS Test and Protect if you are contacted to protect others and stop the spread of the virus.

Baroness Dido Harding, Interim Executive Chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, said:

Walk through sites offer communities better access to coronavirus testing, so everyone with symptoms can get a test. This new site is part of our ongoing work to expand our testing network across the UK which now has the capacity to process more than 500,000 tests a day. We will continue to expand capacity to improve test turnaround times and push forward testing innovations to make sure anyone who needs a test can get one.

Please book a test if you have coronavirus symptoms: a new continuous cough, a high temperature and a loss or change in sense of smell or taste, and follow the advice of NHS Test and Protect if you are contacted.

UK Government Minister for Scotland Iain Stewart said:

The UK Government is helping all parts of the UK fight the coronavirus pandemic.

Testing is vital, helping to manage local outbreaks and protecting people’s livelihoods. The UK Government is providing the bulk of Covid testing in Scotland, and this new walk-through centre is just the latest in our extensive testing network.

We are pleased to be working with local and commercial partners. These sites are not possible without the hard work of many people. I would like to thank everyone involved for their incredible efforts for the good of the country at this difficult time.

Simon Venn, Mitie Chief Government & Strategy Officer, said:

Our priority during the pandemic is to support the nation’s efforts to fight COVID-19 and help keep the country running. Testing is a critical part of the UK’s strategy to combat coronavirus and we’re proud to support the UK Government with this vital task. A big thank you to all the NHS staff, Mitie employees and other frontline heroes in Oban, who are working tirelessly to keep us all safe.

The remit for the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) requires an exchange of open letters between the Governor of the Bank of England and the Chancellor of the Exchequer if inflation moves away from the target by more than 1 percentage point in either direction.

As set out in the remit, the open letters are published alongside the minutes of the first MPC meeting that follows the release of the CPI data, or within seven days of the publication of the data if the MPC meeting has already commenced.

NHS Test and Trace has made significant improvements to its contact tracing service and is successfully tracing 92.7% of contacts and telling them to self-isolate, up from 85.9% last week. In total, 264,960 people were reached during the week 3 to 9 December, people who otherwise would not have known there was a chance they might pass on the virus.

Changes such as improving the contact tracing website, reducing repeat calls to households, and increasing numbers of call handlers have led to a record proportion of contacts being reached, and reached faster. Contacts reached within 24 hours is now 97.3%, up from 95.2% on the previous week.

Testing capacity for those with COVID-19 symptoms has increased almost five-fold in 6 months, from 100,000 a day at the end of April to more than 550,000 a day. In this reporting week we can see that, as the demand for tests has increased, particularly in the South East, turnaround times have also increased slightly.

The government is improving turnaround times for tests. Two new London University laboratories are going live this week that will further increase capacity: HSL and UCL (Health Services Laboratories in partnership with University College London) which began testing on Tuesday 15 December and Imperial College which began testing Wednesday 16 December.

The labs form part of DHSC’s new partnership agreement with a London Testing Alliance of 4 university labs, which will increase testing capacity by tens of thousands over the winter months.

NHS Test and Trace remains focused on ensuring everyone who is eligible for a test can get one, with more than 700 test sites, including 400 local test sites, now in operation, and the median distance travelled for a test being just 2.3 miles, decreasing from 5.2 miles in September.

For this reporting period, 91.8% of in-person test results were received the next day after the test was taken, compared with 90.0% reported in the previous week. 91.9% of pillar 1 test results were made available within 24 hours, compared with 91.0% the previous week. 96,631 positive cases were transferred to contact tracers between 3 December and 9 December, 86.7% of whom were reached and told to self-isolate.

Between 3 December and 9 December, 195,449 people were identified as recent close contacts with 96.6% reached and told to self-isolate of those who had communication details.

Health Minister Lord Bethell said:

Over the past few months our teams have been working incredibly hard to make the contact tracing service as effective as possible, and these latest figures show that we are reaching yet more cases and contacts. We are also continuing to roll out mass community testing across the country to improve our response to COVID-19 still further.

Community testing programmes, with rapid, regular testing will help drive down transmission rates to help prevent areas in Tier 2 moving into the toughest restrictions. It is crucial that we are able to identify those who are asymptomatic and find positive cases at a much faster rate to help break chains of transmission.

Interim Executive Chair of the National Institute for Health Protection, Baroness Dido Harding, said:

The improvements we have made to NHS Test and Trace over the previous months are really starting to bear fruit. Our testing capability has increased to record high levels, which is a testament to the huge efforts of all involved.

As the demand for tests has increased during this busy period of the year, turnaround times have increased slightly, however we are still continuing to bolster our testing capacity. Two London University partner laboratories went live this week – HSL and UCL and Imperial College. The capacity they will collectively bring, as part of a London Testing Alliance of 4 university labs, will increase testing capacity by tens of thousands over the winter.

We have continued to strengthen our efforts across the country, with further community testing programmes aiming to drive down transmission rates in areas subject to the toughest restrictions, while over 275 local tracing partnerships are now live.

To continue the fight against COVID-19, NHS Test and Trace service will be open every day over Christmas and the New Year, providing and processing tests for those who need them and tracing contacts of positive cases. All test sites will remain open, with reduced opening hours and booking slots available only on bank holidays when demand is expected to be lower.

NHS Test and Trace contact tracers will also continue to work throughout the festive period with amended opening hours, to ensure there are no delays in contacting close contacts of positive cases and breaking chains of transmissions.

Testing

During the week of 3 to 9 December, 2,157,895 tests were processed for pillars 1 and 2.

More than 46 million tests have been processed in total, more than any other comparable European country.

Testing capacity has increased almost five-fold in 6 months, from 100,000 a day at the end of April to more than 500,000 a day by the end of October with plans to go even further by the end of the year.

For this reporting period, 91.8% of in-person test results were received the next day after the test was taken, compared with 90.0% reported in the previous week. 91.9% of pillar 1 test results were made available within 24 hours, compared with 91.0% the previous week.

The NHS Test and Trace laboratory network will also be processing samples as normal with the same level of capacity, including on bank holidays, to ensure continuity of service.

Tracing

96,631 positive cases were transferred to contact tracers between 3 December and 9 December, 86.7% of whom were reached and told to self-isolate.

Between 3 December and 9 December, 195,449 people were identified as recent close contacts with 96.6% reached and told to self-isolate of those who had communication details. Since Test and Trace launched 82.0% of close contacts for whom contact details were provided have been reached.

Over the past few months our teams have been working incredibly hard to make the contact tracing service as effective as possible and NHS Test and Trace has now reached more than 3.5 million people.

These latest enhancements have meant that 92.7% of contacts were reached last week, up from 85.9% in the previous week, and the proportion of contacts reached within 24 hours increased to 97.3%. The improvements were made following feedback from the public, our colleagues and our local tracing partners, and have been positively received.

Background information

The weekly statistics from the 28th week of NHS Test and Trace show in the most recent week of operations (3 December to 9 December):

1. A total of 2,157,895 tests were conducted for pillars 1 and 2, compared with 1,955,235 the previous week
2. The proportion of contacts reached by tracing service increases substantially to 92.7% from 85.9%
3. 86.7% (83,747) of people who tested positive and were transferred to the contact-tracing system were reached and asked to provide information about their contacts, compared with 86.6% (79,316) the previous week
4. 96.6% of contacts where communication details were given were reached and told to self-isolate, compared with 92.5% the previous week
5. 91.8% (451,416) of in-person test results were received the next day after the test was taken, compared with 90.0% (417,676) of tests the previous week (England only).
6. 91.9% of pillar 1 test results were made available within 24 hours, compared with 91.0% the previous week
7. 59.8% (294,295) of in-person test results were received within 24 hours after the test was taken, compared with 64.9% (301,304) the previous week
8. 93.5% (506,795) of satellite (care home) tests were received within 3 days, compared with 96.2% (506,347) the previous week
9. Since NHS Test and Trace launched, over 3 million contacts have been identified, and 82.0% of all contacts where communication details were given have been reached and told to self-isolate
10. NHS COVID-19 app users in England, who have been instructed to isolate via the app, will be able to claim the £500 Test and Trace Support Payment, providing they meet the eligibility criteria. This comes as Apple revealed that the NHS COVID-19 app was the second most downloaded free iPhone app on its App Store in the UK this year and has been downloaded more than 20 million times

• Government publishes 2025 UK Border Strategy setting out vision for world’s most effective border
• UK will take back control of its borders when the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December
• New technology will make our border safer and more secure, and trade and passenger journeys smoother and more efficient

The 2025 UK Border Strategy, published today, sets out the government’s ambitious plan for developing the most effective border in the world.

From 1 January 2021, the UK will take back control of its borders as a sovereign nation. The UK will lay down its own rules to make our country safer and more secure, with new tools to prevent illicit commodities crossing through our borders and preventing people who seek to cause harm reaching the UK.

This new strategy sets out how the government will work with industry to harness innovative technology to help UK businesses take full advantage of new trading relationships with the rest of the world. It will provide smoother passenger journeys through ports, strengthen the UK’s ability to target criminal activity, and help tackle illegal migration.

Plans to improve efficiency at the border include the development of a Single Trade Window to create one gateway for all data from traders into government; the increased use of eGates and biometrics to speed passenger journeys through ports; and an enhanced Trusted Trader Programme to streamline the authorisation process.

The Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove said:

As the Brexit transition period ends, the UK will seize this once in a lifetime opportunity to transform our borders, making them smarter and more secure.

This strategy lays the groundwork to realising our ambition of having the most effective border in the world by 2025.

Home Secretary Priti Patel said:

When the transition period ends, we will be free to seize the opportunities that come with being a sovereign nation once again.

We will make our border safer and more secure, and we will deliver our new firm and fair points-based immigration system.

This strategy has been published following a public consultation and workshops with more than 300 industry stakeholders and leaders from across the border industry have welcomed the government’s ambitious plans. Collaboration will continue to play a critical role in delivering the strategy going forward, and the government will work with border agencies and departments across UK nations, as well as businesses and organisations in the private sector, to implement these changes.

Elizabeth de Jong, Director of Policy at Logistics UK, said:

Logistics UK welcomes the strategic objectives of the 2025 UK Border Strategy and the changes envisaged to increase the efficiency of our borders. The concepts of upstream compliance, e-documents and single window to avoid duplication of data submission are particularly important to support international trade.

Our members want the proposed changes brought forward as soon as possible to minimise friction at the border; we also want to see a review following the end of the Brexit transition period.

Amanda Frances, CEO at Association of International Courier and Express Services (AICES), said:

The Government has listened to the express industry’s calls for simplified border processes. This strategy will smooth trade flows, reduce administrative burden and improve the UK’s position as a global trading nation.

We particularly welcome the commitment to a Single Trade Window for traders to interface with Government systems which will facilitate the movement of goods and will mean the UK leads international best practice.

Our members will continue to work with the Government to assist the implementation of these plans as swiftly as possible.