Coronavirus: Only 8% of government target of 18,000 contact tracers appointed, minister admits

Army of contact tracers promised for mid-May but only a fraction recruited so far

Only 1,500 people have been hired as part of the government's aim to recruit an 18,000-strong army of contact tracers by mid-May, a senior minister has said.​

Brandon Lewis, the Northern Ireland secretary, admitted the government was lagging behind on its target to recruit thousands of people to track and trace the spread of coronavirus as the lockdown begins to ease.

The health secretary, Matt Hancock, said in April the government wanted to recruit 18,000 contact tracers by the middle of May, who would be in place for the roll out of the promised NHS tracing app.

A shortage of contact tracers could slow the delivery of the smartphone app, which Mr Hancock also promised would be available by the middle of the month. The app, which has been built by the NHS, is currently being trialled on the Isle of Wight.

Asked how many of the contact tracers have been appointed, Mr Lewis told Sky News: "I don't think we've got to 18,000 just yet, I think there's about 15,000 applications, we're looking to as you say get up to 18,000."

Pushed again on how many of the 15,000 applicants have been appointed, he added: "As of this morning I'm not sure of exactly how many of the 15,000 have been hired, earlier in the week it was about 1,500, it would have gone up since then."

Downing Street later said that Mr Lewis's figure was "a little bit behind where we are". A spokesman said more tracers have been signed up, but was unable to give a figure.

"I know we've recruited significantly more than the 1,500 he spoke about and we are on course to have the 18,000 in place next week," the No 10 spokesman said.

Adverts have gone up on recruitment website for tracers, who would form part of a team of call handlers, speaking to those with coronavirus and interviewing their contacts.

Successful applicants would receive £8.62 per hour and will be able to work from home, job listings in Preston seen by The Independent show.

Contact tracers will play a key role in managing the spread of the virus as the lockdown measures are lifted, ensuring that anyone with Covid-19 is quickly isolated to prevent to infection rate from rising.

The new NHS smartphone app, which is being tested on the Isle of Wight, uses Bluetooth technology to alert the user if the person has come within two metres of someone with coronavirus symptoms.

The app will then advise users about whether to get tested or to self isolate.

But Labour warned ministers that experts had said the army of contact tracers should be closer to 50,000 in number.

In a letter to her opposite number Michael Gove, shadow cabinet office minister Rachel Reeves asked why outsourcing giant Serco had been asked to provide 18,000 staff "despite some public health professionals suggesting as many as 50,000 staff are needed".

Ms Reeves said Labour thought it a "mistake" to have stopped contact tracing in March and said it "supported" moves to establish a "comprehensive strategy for contact tracing both through the use of a suitable mobile phone app and a manual tracing service".

Dr David Nabarro, the WHO's special envoy on coronavirus, said contact tracing apps had helped countries such as Israel and Korea but it was "not going to be the total answer".

"The total answer is going to be us, coming to terms with the fact that we're going to have to change our behaviour wherever possible," he said.

"Physical distancing, face protection, protecting those who are the most vulnerable, looking after the people who are in the front line who are getting infected all the time like bus drivers or people in food-processing plants.

"It becomes a national responsibility of every human being, throughout the UK and actually throughout the world, is to make certain that we are on our constant defence against new outbreaks building up."