Rhondda Council leader ‘bloody furious’ at lack of Covid-19 tests made available by ‘failing’ UK system

A council leader has slammed the “failing” Covid-19 testing system in the UK over a lack of tests made available to Rhondda Cynon Taf.

Andrew Morgan said he was “bloody furious” after only 60 tests had been made available in the council area.

“A huge effort underway tonight by RCT council, NHS Wales, Public Wales and Welsh Government staff to make sure there are tests available tomorrow for RCT testing centre in Rhondda,” he said.

“I’m bloody furious that the national testing has apparently restricted the tests to just 60.

“This world-beating UK testing system that Boris was on about is failing the UK badly and we need more testing capacity.

“Cutting number back at sites across the UK is madness, people in RCT already can’t get slots. I’m thankful for the efforts underway tonight by all concerned.”

‘Seriously’

Earlier this week, Rhondda MP Chris Bryant had warned a local lockdown could be enforced in the area “by the weekend” if cases continued to rise.

“If we carry on as we are then there will be a lockdown, perhaps by the weekend, because a small minority of people are being fundamentally irresponsible,” he said.

“They are refusing to isolate when they come home from holiday, refusing to be tested when they are showing symptoms, going to caravan sites in groups of six, seven, eight families together, holding parties in houses, giving false names to pubs so they can’t be traced.

“The truth is that we are all in this together. Some people think they and the people they love are magically immune but if we don’t take this seriously there will be a major lockdown, which will affect people’s livelihoods and finances.”

On Wednesday, the coronavirus case rate in Rhondda Cynon Taff was 41.4 per 10,000 people. There were specific warnings over social distancing due to clusters around Porth, Penygraig and Tonypandy.

Visits to care homes in the county have already been stopped, while six supermarkets have been given improvement orders after checks by public health officials.

They were Tesco in Talbot Green, Aldi and Morrison’s in Porth, Lidl in Aberdare, Iceland in Taff Street, Pontypridd, and Co-op in Ynysybwl.