Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, with reference to the Government's covid-19 testing data for every day of the last three weeks, for what reasons the efficiency of tests, calculated as an average of the number of covid-19 tests conducted per person (a) peaked on 25 and 26 April 2020 and (b) was at a low on 22 and 23 April 2020.

The Government does not recognise this as a measure of the efficacy of its testing programme. There are a range of reasons why testing numbers could fluctuate on a day to day basis, but we are confident in the testing programme as a means of controlling the virus and saving lives.