James Sunderland asks the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care what scope there is for flexing or surging covid-19 testing resources to meet increased demand at short notice.
James Sunderland (Bracknell) (Con)
It is inevitable that, with the return of our schools this week, we have seen increased demand for testing across the country, not least in my own patch of Bracknell. In true military fashion, may I ask what scope there is for flexing or surging resources at short notice. Indeed, how do we ask for it?
Matt Hancock (Secretary of State for Health and Social Care)
My hon. Friend is a former military logistics expert, and in my experience—especially my recent experience during this crisis—there are no greater logistics experts in the world than those in the British military. He knows of what he speaks. We are surging, but doing so particularly in the areas where the case rate is higher, and thankfully in his part of the world the number of cases remains relatively low.