Reduce use of lateral flow tests, says States

The announcement comes as the UK looks to introduce charging for LFT tests from the start of April.

The States said Guernsey tests will remain free, with symptomatic islanders continuing to test.

People should also do tests if they are a household contact of a positive case, are visiting someone vulnerable or going to an event or large gathering.

PCR testing is also being scaled back to just people entering vulnerable settings.

‘As we continue moving forwards and towards a more “normal” existence of living responsibly with Covid-19, and therefore managing infections in line with how we manage other respiratory tract infections, it was always our intention to further scale back the use of PCRs,’ said director of Public Health Dr Nicola Brink.

‘We cannot maintain the testing tents forever, nor the demands on the pathology laboratory.’

She said she was grateful for the support the island had from the UK government throughout the pandemic, especially regarding the supply of LFT packs free-of-charge and Covid vaccines.

‘This has been fantastic, but it is understandable, given decisions in the UK about its own testing strategy, that we will no longer receive those LFT packs,’ she said.

‘We have healthy supplies of LFTs currently, but we need to manage them, which means no stockpiling by the community.

‘We also needed to stop providing LFTs to businesses for use by their staff as we are focusing on symptomatic testing, protecting vulnerable people and mitigations to minimise the risk of superspreading events.

‘We would therefore ask islanders to continue doing LFTs where it is appropriate to do so. This is when you’re symptomatic, visiting someone vulnerable or heading to an event. We will further review our use of LFTs in April.’

Testing for those in education remains unchanged up to the Easter break. Measures required after the Easter holiday will be considered over the coming weeks.

Some business have been asking staff to test regularly, or even daily, before attending work, which does not match the States guidance.

Until now, businesses have been able to apply for packs of LFTs for their staff.

Due to the need to preserve stocks and ensure they are used appropriately businesses will no longer be able to receive packs of LFTs from the States.

Pre-travel PCR testing will continue to be available via GP practices. Islanders are also advised to research options in UK hub airports if these more suit their travel needs.

n Positive cases are still asked to complete the online referral form at https://www.gov.gg/covidnotification or call 01481 220001/220002 to register their positive result.