Treasury’s former top mandarin blasts test and trace as ‘most wasteful spending of all time’

Spending watchdog found no evidence of measurable impact on pandemic from £37bn scheme

Student Leah Anderson takes a Covid test at Outwood Academy, Doncaster (PA)

The government’s test and trace system has been blasted as “the most wasteful and inept public spending programme of all time” by a former head of the Treasury civil service.

The former mandarin’s attack came after a report by a Westminster spending watchdog, which found there was no evidence that the programme has had any measurable impact on the coronavirus pandemic despite its “unimaginable” £37bn budget over two years.

Test and trace chief Dido Harding has defended its performance, insisting that it is “essential” to the UK’s fight against Covid-19.

But Lord Macpherson, who led the Treasury civil service from 2005 to 2016 under chancellors Gordon Brown, Alistair Darling and George Osborne, was scathing in his response.

“This wins the prize for the most wasteful and inept public spending programme of all time,” he said in a tweet. 

“The extraordinary thing is that nobody in the government seems surprised or shocked. 

“No matter: the Bank of England will just print more money.”

Lord Macpherson rounded off his comment with the heavily sarcastic hashtag “#soundmoney”.

Wednesday’s report by the House of Commons Public Accounts Committee found that NHS test and trace failed in its task of preventing the second and third national lockdowns.

And it said the programme must “wean itself off” its reliance on private-sector consultants, after figures showed it was still employing around 2,500 in early February on an estimated daily rate of £1,100 a head – with the highest paid individual costing taxpayers £6,624 a day.

Committee chair Meg Hillier demanded better control of costs, accusing the government of treating taxpayers “like an ATM machine”.

But Baroness Harding said test and trace had succeeded in building a test system from scratch which has now carried out more than 83 million Covid tests and is now rolling out regular asymptomatic tests to support children to go back to school and visitors to see loved ones in care homes.

Some 93.6 per cent of contacts of infected people were being successfully reached, she said.

“NHS test and trace is essential in our fight against Covid-19 and regular testing is a vital tool to stop transmission as we cautiously ease restrictions,” said Lady Harding.

“Protecting communities and saving lives is always our first priority and every pound spent is contributing towards our efforts to keep people safe – with 80 per cent of NHS test and trace’s budget spent on buying and carrying out coronavirus tests.”