The comments come after fears that users’ data could be compromised arose, during the app’s recent trial in the Isle of Wight.
But will contact tracing ultimately help the UK reduce its Coronavirus infection rate?
And should Westminster have introduced the technology earlier?
UKIP Founder Alan Sked gave his views on the matter.
Sputnik: Will the decision to implement track and tracing apps in the UK help reduce Coronavirus reproduction rates?
Alan Sked: It should do. The theory is that if it works; then they should be able to quickly get to people who have the virus, and so they should manage to isolate them very quickly and keep them away from other people.
I think that measures have been taken to make sure that privacy isn’t being invaded, but I think that most people are pragmatic about it, and feel that if it saves lives; then it is fine to give up a little bit of privacy.
Sputnik: What more could Westminster have done to prevent the spread of the Coronavirus within the UK?
Alan Sked: I think that they started off in a very bad position because the previous government; particularly under Jeremy Hunt who was health secretary for ten years, had done absolutely nothing to prepare the country for an epidemic.
The previous government hadn’t drawn any lessons from the SARS outbreak and other scares, and they had run down stocks of Personal Protective Equipment, had got no testing facilities ready at all.
At the beginning of February; according to SAGE records, Public Health England, which seems to be a disaster, could only cope with around five tests a day, it really was very bad, and then there were scientists who were split on what advice to give the government.
They absolutely panicked, and then Professor Ferguson came out with this ludicrous report saying that half a million people would probably die, which was nonsense; especially given his record in forecasting, which was dismal.
Nonetheless; the Government were panicked into bringing in a lockdown very quickly, and ever since then it’s been kind of scrambling from hand to mouth to try and catch up with the spread of the virus.
Sputnik: Could a perceived failure to deal with the Coronavirus Pandemic damage Boris Johnson’s standing as Prime Minister?
Alan Sked: It hasn’t helped, but on the other hand; the Tories lead the polls by ten percent and he has got huge support inside the country, there is no evidence that he has lost the support that he won at the election.
So far I think that he has got the benefit of the doubt of most people, who realise that the government was overwhelmed by this unpredicted and catastrophic situation, and I think that people know that they are trying to do their best.
The evidence from the opinion polls suggests that the Tory lead has stabilised, and that they still bring back high figures, comparable to what it was like under Mrs Thatcher.
