Despite what Matt Hancock says, the government's policy is still herd immunity | Anthony Costello
Tests alone are no good. We urgently need a community surveillance programme to stop the spread of Covid-19
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When the lockdown is lifted, will the virus return? Of course it will. Matt Hancock has said we will do 100,000 tests each day by the end of April, but Britain still doesn't have a way to control the virus that goes beyond lockdown. Without a proper programme of community surveillance and contact tracing, we won't stop the spread of coronavirus. As patients pour into hospitals again, a series of national lockdowns will follow. It's a pattern that could go on for years - until we have a vaccine.
The problem with Hancock's plan is that testing alone won't break the chain of community transmission. To stop the spread of a virus, tests must be linked to community surveillance and contact tracing. This ensures that people who have the virus, and people they have come into contact with, can be identified quickly and quarantined at home to prevent the virus spreading. The government's tests will measure how many people have had the virus, and will show whether health workers are immune - but without community surveillance, tests alone won't prevent its spread.
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