What was once seen as the country’s best hope of controlling Covid-19 cases, with around 25 million downloads in England and Wales since it first launched, the NHS Covid Test and Trace app has massively fallen in popularity.
The number of alerts sent to app users telling them to isolate – also known as being ‘pinged’ – has been increasing rapidly, with 500,000 Brits being told to isolate in just one week.
Subsequently, many people who fear self-isolation have opted to disable the contact tracing feature, or uninstall the app from their smartphones completely.
Dr Jenny Harries, the head of the new UK Health Security Agency, told MPs on Thursday she was ‘aware that people are choosing not to use the app’ when asked about concerns people have been deleting it to avoid being ‘pinged’.
The government is still urging Brits to use the app – but is it actually illegal to delete the app or turn off contact tracing?
Here is all you need to know.
Will self-isolation end after ‘Freedom Day’ on July 19?
Self-isolation rules will remain in place after July 19 – but will change less than a month later.
Health Secretary Sajid Javid said that fully-vaccinated adults and anybody under the age of 18 will be exempt from Monday, August 16, unless they test positive for Covid-19.
Current self-isolation guidelines will remain in place for those who have only received one coronavirus jab, or who are yet to receive their first dose.
Mr Javid said the country ‘will soon be able to take a risk-based approach that recognises the huge benefits that the vaccine provides’.
He added: ‘This new approach means we can manage the virus in a way that is proportionate to the pandemic while maintaining the freedoms that are so important to us all.’
Until then, you can be fined up to £10,000 for breaking self-isolation rules – including when you are told to isolate by the NHS Covid-19 Test and Trace app.
Is it illegal to delete the NHS Covid Test and Trace app?
Although use of the app is encouraged by the government, it is not compulsory, so it is not illegal to delete the app from your phone.
The NHS website states: ‘The NHS COVID-19 app is entirely voluntary and you can choose whether or not to download it. You can also uninstall and delete the app whenever you like.’
However, you may be in some trouble if you delete the app after it has told you to isolate, and then proceed to not isolate.
Anyone who breaks quarantine rules after being told to isolate by the app faces fines of up to £10,000.
With people required to self-isolate, there is a support payment of £500 for those on lower incomes who cannot work from home and have lost income as a result.
How many people have deleted the NHS Covid Test and Trace app?
Although the Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) said there is no reliable figure as to how many Brits have deleted the app, because it would be based only on the people who had opted to share their data, it is estimated to be around 18 million.
A poll conducted by Savanta ComRes found that one in five people have deleted the NHS Covid-19 app to avoid being pinged and being forced to self-isolate.
People aged 18 to 34 were most likely to have deleted the app with one in three admitting they had got rid of it.
Another third have said they want to delete the app by July 19 when restrictions lift.
Is it illegal to turn off contact tracing on the NHS Covid Test and Trace app?
There are four instances where you are permitted to turn off contact tracing.
The situations are as follows:
- When storing your phone in a locker or communal area
- If you are working behind a fixed transparent screen and are fully protected from other people
- If you are a worker in health and social care wearing medical grade personal protective equipment (PPE)
- If you are a healthcare working in a healthcare building such as a hopsital or GP surgery
You should turn contact tracing back on once you leave the situation.
When contact tracing is paused, you will still be able to check into venues with an official NHS QR code poster.
Should you continue using the NHS Covid Test and Trace app?
Despite the surge of pings, the overwhelming consensus from healthcare specialists seems to be to keep using the app as intended.
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson told Metro.co.uk: ‘The NHS Covid-19 app is reducing the spread of coronavirus and prevented an estimated 600,000 Covid-19 cases and 8,000 deaths between September and December 2020.
‘The app is doing exactly what it was designed to do – informing close contacts of someone who has tested positive for COVID-19 that they are at risk and advising them to isolate.’
Using the app saves lives by alerting possibly infected people to isolate, and therefore takes them out of circulation before they can pass it on to others.
This is especially important as July 19 approaches, as many Brits will undoubtedly be exposed to more people as they celebrate their newfound freedom.
Additionally, although the QR Test and Trace system will no longer be legally enforced following Freedom Day, many businesses may not allow you to enter their premises without checking in.
Therefore, it may be worth keeping hold of the app for a little bit longer.
MORE : Tube line suspended as too many staff pinged by Covid app and told to isolate
MORE : Neighbours ‘pinged through walls’ by NHS app forcing them to self-isolate
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https://news.google.com/__i/rss/rd/articles/CBMiYWh0dHBzOi8vbWV0cm8uY28udWsvMjAyMS8wNy8xNy9zZWxmLWlzb2xhdGlvbi1pcy1pdC1pbGxlZ2FsLXRvLWRlbGV0ZS10aGUtbmhzLWNvdmlkLWFwcC0xNDk0NDkzMy_SAWVodHRwczovL21ldHJvLmNvLnVrLzIwMjEvMDcvMTcvc2VsZi1pc29sYXRpb24taXMtaXQtaWxsZWdhbC10by1kZWxldGUtdGhlLW5ocy1jb3ZpZC1hcHAtMTQ5NDQ5MzMvYW1wLw?oc=5
2021-07-17 15:22:00Z
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