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21 May 2020updated 06 Oct 2020 9:45am

Government to trial contact tracing in ten local authorities, according to reports

By Samuel Horti

The government will trial its contact tracing system in ten local authorities around the UK before rolling the scheme out nationally, according to reports. 

The Evening Standard names Camden, Surrey, Norfolk, Tameside in Greater Manchester, Warwickshire, Leeds, Devon, Newcastle, Middlesbrough and Leicestershire as the local authorities that will take part in the trial.

The Telegraph reports that some areas could go live today, citing a BBC report. 

The trials will not involve the NHS tracking app, which security minister James Brokenshire this morning said still had “technical issues”. The app is being trialled on the Isle of Wight. Instead, they will rely on contact tracers manually tracking new infections.

The government initially committed to having the full system running by mid-May. Instead, it now expects nationwide rollout before 1 June, minus the app, which will be introduced later.

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