THE government has been called on to provide financial support for people required by law to quarantine themselves for 14 days under the “Test and Trace programme” it launched today.

Many workers could be pushed into financial hardship under the new programme, which requires anyone contacted by the government’s contact tracers to quarantine themselves whether they have coronavirus symptoms or not, the Trade Union Congress (TUC) warned.

Tracers will get in touch with people who have been in “close contact” – within two metres for upwards of 15 minutes – with anyone who has tested positive for Covid-19. An army of 50,000 tracers have been recruited by firms including disgraced privateers Serco and G4S to work with Public Health England.