Coronavirus: Michael Gove defends £7,000 day rate for some Test and Trace consultants

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Asked about the spend on Saturday on the BBC’s Andrew Marr Show, Mr Gove said: “Two things – firstly, it’s absolutely vital that we have all the expertise required from the private and public sector in order to improve testing.” He added “As I pointed out earlier, we have a higher level of testing in this country than in any other European country, we’re improving contract tracing all the time. Local health protection teams are doing particularly well in that regard.” “Separately, I've been clear as my colleague Lord Agnew in the Cabinet Office has, that we need to reduce our spend on consultants overall,” Mr Gove said, “in the meantime, we'll do whatever it takes to make sure that we protect the NHS." “The only way that we’re going to learn how to live with Covid is through a number of different interventions, of which Test and Trace is undoubtedly a very important one.” The last week saw another record low for contact tracing, with just 62.6 per cent of contacts reached. Shadow Cabinet Office minister Rachel Reeves said: “We are at a decisive moment in our efforts to tackle coronavirus, and these figures are a new low for a test and trace system on the verge of collapse.”