£13-a-day bribe to make sure Covid carriers stay home
BRITONS ordered to self-isolate to combat coronavirus will be paid up to £182 by the State to encourage them to stay at home.
Ministers fear some people will feel obliged to turn up for work even if they or family members test positive for Covid-19.
The money will be paid to those in areas with high rates of infection, such as parts of the North West or Midlands, who receive Universal Credit or Working Tax Credit.
The scheme is targeted towards those on lower salaries, such as cleaners and factory workers, who cannot work from home – as well as the self- employed, including taxi and delivery drivers.
Officials believe one reason that Leicester infection rates were so high for so long is that factory staff continued to go to work even though they were meant to be self-isolating.
Under the new plans, workers who test positive would receive £130 for a ten- day period of quarantine. Relatives or close contacts would be given £182 for 14 days.
SAGE, the Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies, has previously warned that only about half of patients who suspected they had the virus were following on self- isolating. Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: ‘The British public have already sacrificed a great deal to help slow the spread of the virus... this new payment scheme will help people on low incomes and who are unable to work from home to continue playing their part.’ The scheme will begin next Tuesday in Blackburn and Pendle, in Lancashire, and Oldham in Greater Manchester – the three regions with the highest infection rates in the country.
If this is deemed a success, the scheme will be rolled out to other high-risk areas. Current candidates include Birmingham, Manchester, Bradford and Northampton.
Workers will receive the money within 48 hours of submitting a claim, which will need to include a positive Covid test result or proof that they are a close contact of someone with the virus. Applicants must also submit a bank statement to show they receive the relevant benefits.
The Department of Health said councils would catch fraudulent claims by cross-referencing with the NHS test and trace service as well as claimants’ employment status.
The new plan to combat coronavirus came amid fears of a fresh outbreak in Plymouth fuelled by a group of teenagers’ trip to Greece.
Up to 30 youngsters who travelled to the island of Zante – currently exempt from any quarantine requirements – are feared to have contracted Covid, with 11 having already tested positive.
Many of the teenagers showed only minor symptoms, if any. It is thought the group visited a number of bars and restaurants back home before being diagnosed, stoking fears they may have spread the virus across the city.
Officials insist Plymouth is still below the threshold for declaring a local lockdown. However, city council leader Tudor Evans said: ‘This is our wake up call. We have been fortunate so far in Plymouth that we have had a low number of cases, but coronavirus has not gone away.’