"I want to be upfront about the challenges we and other countries are facing", says the Health Secretay Matt Hancock - just hours after the contact tracing app being trialled on the Isle of Wight has been scrapped.
Speaking at the daily news conference, Health Secretary Matt Hancock said they have experienced a "technical barrier" in developing the technology and insists other countries are also facing similar issues.
Matt Hancock said Apple software "prevents iPhones from effectively using contact tracing" which is why the Government will join forces with the technology giant Apple and Google - to use an alternative system.
Mr Hancock said combining their knowledge will "bring the best bits of both systems together", he said:
"Our app won't work because Apple won't change their system but it can measure distance but their app can't measure distance well enough to a standard we are satisfied with. For me what matters is what works because what works will save lives."
He added that the test and trace system is "constantly improving".
The Health Secretary also praised the efforts of Isle of Wight residents, the Isle of Wight Council, the NHS Trust and the Island's MP Bob Seely who he said had "played a real leadership role".
In a joint statement from Baroness Dido Harding, Executive Chair of NHS Test and Trace and Matthew Gould, CEO, NHSX said:
“Three weeks ago we launched NHS Test and Trace as a brand new, end-to end service, to help control the spread of Covid-19 and we are hugely grateful for the way the public have responded to protect those around them.
“Our ambition is to develop an app which will enable anyone with a smartphone to engage with every aspect of the NHS Test and Trace service, from ordering a test through to accessing the right guidance and advice. This will support our vision of helping more people get back to the most normal life possible at the lowest risk.
“Our response to this virus has and will continue to be as part of an international effort. That is why as part of a collaborative approach we have agreed to share our own innovative work on estimating distance between app users with Google and Apple, work that we hope will benefit others, while using their solution to address some of the specific technical challenges identified through our rigorous testing.
“We will also draw on the invaluable insight from all of those who trialled the app on the Isle of Wight – and the brilliant teams who have worked on it to date – to build an app that can form part of the end-to-end NHS Test and Trace service and this insight will be integral to the next phase of development.
“Crucially, NHS Test and Trace is already playing a vital role in helping us stop the spread of the virus. We will keep learning, improving and refining to build a high-quality service on which all of us can depend and to have the right technology in place.”
Meanwhile, you can read the reaction following the news that the coronavirus app has been abandoned here.
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