Did it ever get explained why this decision below was taken? Know surge testing was eventually done but seemed all a bit odd at the time.
Following health secretary’s statement last month, Public Health England confirms it is carrying out ‘targeted testing’ instead
www.theguardian.com
Surge testing is not being carried out in England for coronavirus variants first detected in India, despite the government claiming it would be, the Guardian has learned.
The coronavirus
variant known as B.1.617 is a “variant under investigation” in the UK, together with its close relatives B.1.617.2 and B.1.617.3. All three are worrying scientists because they contain either one or two mutations in their spike protein that may help them evade the body’s immune responses and be more transmissible.
Should such worries be borne out, they may be designated “variants of concern”. The Guardian understands Public Health England will not surge test – where people within particular postcodes are asked to take a test – until the variants are given that designation. This is despite the health secretary, Matt Hancock,
stating on 19 April that surge testing would be carried out for the India variant.