Test and Trace still spends millions on consultants

NHS TEST and Trace is still paying nearly 2,000 consultants despite repeated promises to reduce its use of private external companies, parliamentary correspondence reveals.

Letters sent to the Commons public accounts committee reveal little change in the use of the private contractors, some of whom were paid as much as £6,600 a day at one time.

In a damning report yesterday, the committee said the £37 billion service, set up at ministers’ behest, had been a waste of taxpayers money which failed to achieve its aims. Meg Hillier MP, who chairs the committee, said the scheme had “massively over-promised” while spending “eye-watering sums”.

She also raised concerns about a

It ‘massively overpromised’ and spent ‘eye-watering sums’ in its reliance on ‘over-priced consultants’

“continued reliance on the over-priced consultants” who “delivered” this state of affairs, with 2,239 on its books this April, on average rates of £1,100 a day.

Correspondence sent to the committee reveals that as recently as August, 1,864 consultants were on their books.

In evidence to MPS, Dr Jenny Harries, chief executive of the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), now responsible for Test and Trace, said the organisation had a “very detailed ramp-down plan” to reduce the number of consultants by the end of next March.

However, a subsequent letter from Dr Harries, and Sir Chris Wormald, the Permanent Secretary at the Department of Health, had said there were still 1,864 consultants on their books.

Given the average remuneration, that could cost more than £2 million per day.

UKHSA did not respond to requests for comment. In response to the report, Dr Harries said: “NHS Test and Trace has played an essential role in combating this pandemic.”