Government ‘wasted’ £38.4m on test and trace contract with Dubai-based multinational

Sign up for our free Health Check email to receive exclusive analysis on the week in health Get our free Health Check email Get our free Health Check email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. The government issued a letter of intent with Ecolog in September 2020, with the company due to provide “laboratory units to provide diagnostic testing for Covid-19 to meet targets for numbers of tests performed”. However, according to an award notice published on 23 April on the government’s contracts finder website, the decision was later made to cancel the arrangement – which was formally ended on 24 March – and “reimburse Ecolog for costs incurred”. Shadow health minister Justin Madders told The Independent: “This contract was signed more than six months into the pandemic, so the government has no excuse that they didn’t know what they were getting into. This contract was signed more than six months into the pandemic so the government has no excuse that they didn’t know what they were getting into Justin Madders, shadow health minister “Ministers need to urgently explain what this contract was for, who authorised it and and why it was cancelled almost straight away.” The NHS procurement source also questioned the government’s decision to engage with Ecolog via a letter of intent, which is generally seen as a high-risk mechanism within the procurement industry.