Solidarity action: stop the test and trace chaos

Privatised test and trace has failed communities.

The government has suggested that councils are likely getting bigger role in contact tracing in England, but we know that local and regional public health teams should be doing all contact tracing, not failing private companies.

That's Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland have for the most part, and England needs it too. Matt Hancock isn't budging. We need you to email these key figures in government with responsibilities to scrutinise health policy (Hunt), test and trace (Clark), and outsourcing (Gove) in England TODAY!

Fighting for public health in public hands helps everyone. Thank you for taking action in solidarity today!

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster and Minister for the Cabinet Office

Chair of the Science & Technology Select Committee

Chair of the Health and Social Care Committee

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I am writing to you today because I am extremely concerned about the failure of the national test and trace operation in England.
You have an important role in directing and influencing this government, I am appealing to you to please do everything you can to make my community safe. All across the nation, local communities are seeing upsurges in cases of coronavirus.
SAGE have <a href="https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/925854/S0769_Summary_of_effectiveness_and_harms_of_NPIs.pdf">highlighted that </a>“as over 90% of the population remain susceptible not acting now to reduce cases will result in a very large epidemic with catastrophic consequences”, and that “as in the first wave, the burden of a large second wave would fall disproportionately on the frailest in our society, but also those on lower incomes and BAME communities.” Please give local and regional public health teams the power and funding to lead on track and trace, and end contracts with private companies on track and trace. This is what Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland already has for the most part.
Simply <a href="https://www.wigantoday.net/health/coronavirus/covid-19-contact-tracing-teams-run-private-firms-are-slashed-3000173">assigning remote callers</a> without in-depth local knowledge or local dial codes to local teams won’t fix the lack of trust. Councils meanwhile rely on <a href="https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/councils-to-take-greater-role-in-contact-tracing-bntj3rn7p">volunteers</a> for vital work to stop the virus, and can’t access all the data they need urgently. Local public health teams need to lead from the start, with the resources to match, if we're going to fix test and trace.
It is clear that the national test and trace system run by Serco and Sitel has not worked and is not working.  
This puts my loved ones and my community more at risk of this awful, deadly virus every day. 
I was happy to see Jeremy Hunt, the chair of the Health and Social care committee, say recently regarding the lockdown:
“This is the moment when we have got to fix contact tracing. Only to be reaching 60% of people’s known contacts is not good enough. He (Matt Hancock) knows that… This is the moment to recognise the uncomfortable truth that this would be better done locally and giving it to local authorities to take the ultimate responsibility." (3)
While there must be a certain amount of national coordination and guidance of test and trace, the evidence makes clear again and again that it is public health protection teams who are doing contact tracing work most effectively and keeping our communities safe. 
Your actions in the coming weeks and months will either save lives or put communities and families at risk of further heartbreak and grief.
Ahead of this winter, for my community and my family, please stop this atrocious waste of public money. Please give the funding and powers to regional and local public health teams to completely lead on track and trace. Serco and Sitel’s contracts must be scrapped.
This is the bold action you must take to get control of this virus. I'm counting on you.

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