TEST and trace coronavirus protections won't work without a hike in statutory sick pay to help workers survive continued self-isolation, Westminster has been warned.

New schemes to protect public health after lockdown began running in Scotland and England today.

Under the test and trace systems, those who have been in contact with anyone diagnosed with Covid-19 will be asked to self-isolate for a fortnight.

The request could be made to the same people multiple times, if they come into repeated contact with those found to have the virus.

Most of those self-isolating will be eligible for statutory sick pay of less than £100 per week.

But there are a number of exceptions based on employment status, earnings and other factors.

And there are fears that the level of financial support will not be enough for many workers to manage on – and the cash problems could keep driving them out to work, despite the health fears.

Frances O'Grady, general secretary of the Trades Union Congress, said: "We need a testing and tracing programme up and running as soon as possible.

"But it will not be effective if workers are pushed into hardship when they are required to self-isolate.

"Statutory sick pay is just £95 per week – and two million workers aren't even eligible for that.

"If workers can't afford to self-isolate, then they will be forced to keep working.

"That will put them, their workmates and their local community at risk, and undermine the entire Test and Trace programme.

"The government must extend statutory sick pay to everyone, no matter what they're paid, and raise it to the level of the real Living Wage, £260 per week.

"And the self-employed income support scheme must remain in place as a source of financial support for those forced to self-isolate. That's how to show that we really are all in this together."

READ MORE: Scotland's lockdown eased: Six things you can and can't do as 'phase 1' begins

Dame Gillian Guy, chief executive of Citizens Advice, said the UK Government must ensure people do not face a "sudden drop in income" if they have to self-isolate under the Test and Trace system.

She commented: "Problems with our system for sick pay are long-standing. Even for those eligible for statutory sick pay, it may not be enough to cover essential living costs.

"The government must look to extend statutory sick pay to those who aren't currently eligible.

"People need enough to live on so they can self-isolate if asked to without fear of being pushed into hardship."

Speaking on BBC Radio 4's Today programme, Labour's shadow health secretary Jonathan Ashworth called for "enhanced" sick pay, saying: "There will be people whose work conditions and employment conditions make that difficult for them so they need that security, they need enhanced sick pay where necessary to make sure they stay at home.

"But, of course, it is perfectly possible that you could isolate for 14 days, come out, meet somebody else again whose got the virus and have to go back in. So this could be a huge burden for people."

Asked about the level of enhanced sick pay, Ashworth called on ministers to look at the living wage and levels paid in other European countries.

Ashworth called for work to "iron out" what he said is an "anomaly in the regulations", stating: "Sick pay is only triggered, as I understand it, when somebody has tested positive."

Meanwhile, the Independent Workers Union of Great Britain said: "Once again low-paid workers are being asked to follow public health advice, for the good of all of us, without being provided the means to do so.

"Statutory sick pay, at around £95 per week, simply does not pay enough for survival, even temporarily."