Rapid tests will be offered in workplaces with more than 50 employees in an effort to control the COVID-19 pandemic.
Lateral flow tests can produce results in less than 30 minutes, but previously they were only available to companies with more than 250 employees.
The authorities said the move was an effort to “normalize” testing in the workplace and ensure the safety of those who cannot work at home.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock said: “Employers must regularly test their employees, and this effort across the government to raise awareness and encourage more companies to introduce rapid employee tests is extremely important.
“When you consider that about one in three people have the virus without symptoms and can infect people without even knowing it, it’s clear why focusing tests on those without symptoms is so essential.
“We are already working with many employers to expand testing of the workforce, covering the food industry, the retail sector, the transportation network and also the public sector.
“I strongly recommend companies and employees across the country to accept this rapid test offer to help prevent the virus from spreading further.”
Some 112 organizations have signed up to participate in mass testing so far, with employees being tested at 500 sites, according to government data.
But unions warned that rapid tests “are not the magic solution” and asked to be accompanied with “confirmatory tests”, citing that Public Health England found examples of asymptomatic positive cases lost during the mass pilot test in Liverpool last year. past.
Dan Shears, director of health, safety and environment at the GMB union, said: “Everyone wants to ensure that infectious workers stay away from the workplace, but that means getting the right tests in place – with confirmation tests to avoid false ones and, mainly, to ensure that all protection measures to reduce transmission are implemented to the maximum. “
Shadow Labor Secretary Jonathan Ashworth welcomed the extra tests, but said workplaces also need to improve ventilation and the standard of personal protective equipment for employees.
The Sunday Telegraph went a step further in saying that workers can also be vaccinated in the workplace, once those on the nine priority lists have received their vaccines.
On Saturday, it was reported that 11,465,210 people received the first dose of vaccine.
Government figures also showed that another 828 people died in 28 days after testing positive for the virus, compared with 1,014 reported on Friday.
Another 18,262 cases were reported on Saturday.
British GPs will receive an additional £ 10 for each inpatient who vaccinates against COVID-19, in recognition of the extra time and complexity involved in vaccinating people confined to their homes.
The funding will also apply to vaccines already delivered to those at home.
More than 1,000 GP services are part of the NHS vaccination program, alongside more than 250 hospital centers and nearly 200 services administered by street pharmacies.
Meanwhile, AstraZeneca said it believed its COVID-19 vaccine developed with the University of Oxford could protect against serious illnesses caused by the South African variant of the virus.
The company confirmed that the first data from a small trial, reported by the Financial Times, showed that
effectiveness of the vaccine against mild illnesses mainly due to this variant.
“We believe that our vaccine can protect against serious diseases, as the activity of neutralizing antibodies is equivalent to that of other COVID-19 vaccines that have shown activity against more serious diseases, particularly when the dosage interval is optimized for 8-12 weeks”, spokesman said in a statement.
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It was also reported that the government plans to tax retailers and technology companies that performed well during the pandemic.
The Sunday Times quoted leaked emails saying the companies were called on by the government to discuss the plans, which could have a one-time “excessive profit tax”.
Plans are unlikely to be ready in time for next month’s budget announcement and are expected in the second half of the year instead.
Over three nights, Sky News will host a series of special programs examining the UK’s response to the pandemic.
Watch COVID Crisis: Learning the Lessons at 8 pm on February 9, 10 and 11.