Scottish hospital workers ‘not routinely’ tested for Covid-19

Hospital workers are “not routinely” being tested for Covid-19 and there is no fixed timescale for when they will be, Health Secretary Jeane Freeman has admitted.

Ms Freeman said the testing of hospital staff was part of a plan to “slowly and safely” reopen parts of the NHS, but offered no timescale for action.

She also admitted, in an interview with the BBC, that testing of care home staff was not happening “fast enough”.

Scottish Tory leader Jackson Carlaw said: “The health secretary appears to have completely lost her grip on the Covid crisis.

“The SNP government promised to dramatically increase hospital staff testing but still, weeks later, not only is nothing in place, Ms Freeman cannot tell us when it will be.

“Ms Freeman couldn’t even give the public basic information about where patients who contracted Covid in hospital died.”

He added: “The SNP abandoned care homes to be ravaged by Covid, they appear to have done the same thing to hospitals also.

“Jeane Freeman’s excuses keep getting thinner, meanwhile thousands of tests are unused each day.”

A Scottish Government spokesman said: “The health and safety of patients and hospital staff remains our absolute priority.

“Any death resulting from Covid-19 is a tragedy which is why we are working tirelessly to reduce the infection rates and treat and support all those who have been affected by or suffered from the virus.

“Any claims that the Scottish Government has sought to mislead or hide figures are utterly unfounded,” he added.

The health secretary appears to have completely lost her grip on the Covid crisis. JACKSON CARLAW