Assembly Question 6466/17-22

Question: To ask the Minister of Health why people were allocated COVID-19 test appointments at Carrickfergus Rugby Club for Saturday 5 September 2020 and Sunday 6 September 2020, despite testing facilities not being operational on these dates.

Answer: Testing at the Carrickfergus Rugby Club was administered as part of a National Testing Programme managed by the Department of Health and Social Care, London (DHSC). A mobile testing unit previously located at Carrickfergus Rugby Club was moved to a new location in Antrim on Saturday 5th September. Unfortunately, the DHSC portal for booking tests did not update the new location and incorrectly booked people for Carrickfergus after the Mobile testing unit had moved. When the Public Health Agency was made aware of the situation they worked with DHSC London to ensure changes were made to the booking portal.

DHSC London has given assurances that every effort will be made to ensure that similar errors do not occur in future.