Britain’s testing system seizes up just when it is needed most
The government insists things will be back on track in a couple of weeks
ON SEPTEMBER 14TH Toby’s seven-year-old son woke with a temperature—“not a huge one, but enough to keep him away from school.” As covid-19 guidance dictates, the finance worker went online to look for a test. Yet every type he asked for—at-home, drive-through or in a test centre—returned the same message: no tests available. Until a negative test result is obtained, the whole household has no choice but to isolate.
This article appeared in the Britain section of the print edition under the headline “Flunked”
Britain September 19th 2020
- How state aid became a Brexit deal-breaker
- Why women in England and Wales are having abortions earlier
- Britain’s testing system seizes up just when it is needed most
- The Troubles go from H-block to TikTok
- Why poor Britons in prosperous places are suffering
- What a huge religious monument reveals about Britain
- Britain’s armed forces get ready for a revolution
- Boris v the blue blob
From the September 19th 2020 edition
Discover stories from this section and more in the list of contents
Explore the editionMore from Britain
Britain’s brokers are diversifying and becoming less British
London’s depleted stockmarket is forcing them to change
What a buzzy startup reveals about Britain’s biotech sector
Lots of clever scientists, not enough business nous
Britain’s government lacks a clear Europe policy
It should be more ambitious over getting closer to the EU
The Rachel Reeves theory of growth
The chancellor says it’s her number-one priority. We ask her what that means for Britain