Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the guidance from the Competition and Markets Authority entitled Advice to the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, published on 10 September 2021, when he plans to respond to the recommendations on covid-19 test providers.

There are currently no plans to provide a formal response. Following the Competition and Markets Authority’s (CMA) report into the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) testing for travel market, the policy for testing was amended from PCR to lateral flow device (LFD) testing. However, officials met regularly with the CMA to discuss its recommendations, many of which were incorporated into the implementation of the LFD testing regime.