CORONAVIRUS testing availability differs massively across the UK, an investigation has found.
Journalists Ryan Watts and Katie Gibbons checked 2000 postcodes every hour for 24 hours to find out how many drive-in and walk-in appointments were available in each area.
The pair found that in Scotland the percentage of successful searches between September 16 and 17 was 97% - meanwhile south of the Border the figure stood at 43%.
Those in south-east England were also more likely to be able to access testing, with those in the north and west of the country least likely to succeed in getting booked for a swab.
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On the west coast of Scotland 100% of attempts to access testing were successful, while in parts of the north of England this figure stood at less than 20%.
The journalists did not book a test at any point in the study.
In England there is huge pressure on the Government to fix problems in the Test and Trace system. As cases and hospital admissions increase, Matt Hancock has admitted there is a “challenge” in the system.
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Access to community testing in England is being rationed because labs are not able to keep up with the demand, and just a third of tests carried out in community testing centres are returned to people within 24 hours.
Community testing centres consist of drive-throughs, walk-in centres and mobile units in hotspot areas.
There have also been reports of people in England booking Covid-19 tests in their local area by using forged Scottish postcodes.
The Scottish Government has urged people not to do this but would not say what impact that cheating the system could have on the Test and Protect scheme in Scotland.
Shadow health secretary Jon Ashworth has urged the UK Government to urgently fix Test and Trace to "avoid further restrictions", adding: "It's become not so much test and trace, more like trace a test."
Experts warn testing problems are going to limit the UK’s ability to contain the spread of coronavirus.
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