I am writing this with an update about Covid-19 testing in Redbridge.
I was absolutely furious about the closure of the Mildmay Road testing centre to walk-in appointments and the reports I’ve received from local residents about the lack of locally available testing appointments.
Redbridge has had a recent spike in Covid-19 infections. We all need to act now to avoid a local lockdown.
Testing is absolutely key to this. Despite all the promises about being ‘world-beating’ the Government is messing this up. They didn’t even tell Redbridge Council about the situation at Mildmay Road.
The Council have written to Health Secretary Matt Hancock and I myself and Sam Tarry have written as Ilford’s MPs. Our letter reads as follows:
The state of covid-19 testing in Redbridge is a shambles. Today I told the Health Secretary to get a grip.
I was horrified to read some of your experiences when I posted about this yesterday on Facebook. Today I put concerns directly to Matt Hancock, who keeps on bleating on about how great the testing capacity is. You can watch my parliamentary question here.
We heard example after example of problems across London and across England. It’s just not good enough.
I’ll keep you posted, but rest assured I am on the case!
Wes
Wes Streeting MP