Calendar An icon of a desk calendar. Cancel An icon of a circle with a diagonal line across. Caret An icon of a block arrow pointing to the right. Email An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of the Facebook "f" mark. Google An icon of the Google "G" mark. Linked In An icon of the Linked In "in" mark. Logout An icon representing logout. Profile An icon that resembles human head and shoulders. Telephone An icon of a traditional telephone receiver. Tick An icon of a tick mark. Is Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes. Is Not Public An icon of a human eye and eyelashes with a diagonal line through it. Pause Icon A two-lined pause icon for stopping interactions. Quote Mark A opening quote mark. Quote Mark A closing quote mark. Arrow An icon of an arrow. Folder An icon of a paper folder. Breaking An icon of an exclamation mark on a circular background. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Caret An icon of a caret arrow. Clock An icon of a clock face. Close An icon of the an X shape. Close Icon An icon used to represent where to interact to collapse or dismiss a component Comment An icon of a speech bubble. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Comments An icon of a speech bubble, denoting user comments. Ellipsis An icon of 3 horizontal dots. Envelope An icon of a paper envelope. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Camera An icon of a digital camera. Home An icon of a house. Instagram An icon of the Instagram logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. Magnifying Glass An icon of a magnifying glass. Search Icon A magnifying glass icon that is used to represent the function of searching. Menu An icon of 3 horizontal lines. Hamburger Menu Icon An icon used to represent a collapsed menu. Next An icon of an arrow pointing to the right. Notice An explanation mark centred inside a circle. Previous An icon of an arrow pointing to the left. Rating An icon of a star. Tag An icon of a tag. Twitter An icon of the Twitter logo. Video Camera An icon of a video camera shape. Speech Bubble Icon A icon displaying a speech bubble WhatsApp An icon of the WhatsApp logo. Information An icon of an information logo. Plus A mathematical 'plus' symbol. Duration An icon indicating Time. Success Tick An icon of a green tick. Success Tick Timeout An icon of a greyed out success tick. Loading Spinner An icon of a loading spinner. Facebook Messenger An icon of the facebook messenger app logo. Facebook An icon of a facebook f logo. Facebook Messenger An icon of the Twitter app logo. LinkedIn An icon of the LinkedIn logo. WhatsApp Messenger An icon of the Whatsapp messenger app logo. Email An icon of an mail envelope. Copy link A decentered black square over a white square.

Covid: Calls for military personnel to be tested on return to base

Vanguard-class submarine HMS Vigilant at HM Naval Base Clyde, also known as Faslane.
Vanguard-class submarine HMS Vigilant at HM Naval Base Clyde, also known as Faslane.

Armed Forces personnel are not being tested for coronavirus “regularly” on their return to base from leave.

Airmen, seamen and soldiers who have not been overseas during their time off are not required to take a test for the virus before reintegrating.

We understand some officers on bases like HMNB Clyde have asked personnel to take tests provided by the local health board or council — being told to say they had been asked to do so by their “employer” if asked to give a reason for being swabbed.

Regular testing of men and women re-entering bases is not standard on any UK mainland operating centre, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed.

The military has been involved in providing people capable of carrying out tests at centres across the UK, including drive-in labs in Perth and Glasgow.

Military tested
An Army-operated Covid-testing facility in Pitlochry.

But those returning to stations and bases, like Faslane and Lossiemouth in the North East, will not be given tests on site regardless of whether they have come from a “Covid hotspot”.

The Lib Dems have called for a “comprehensive” testing system to be put in place on UK armed forces bases, to try to stem the spread of the virus.

In December it was confirmed a number of positive cases had been identified at Faslane, but the Royal Navy would not confirm how many.

The outbreak was considered to be the explanation why Argyll and Bute had recorded a sharp increase in cases at the end of 2020.

Military tested
Willie Rennie.

‘We should be ramping up testing’

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Willie Rennie said: “With a new and virulent Covid strain spreading, we should be ramping up testing across the country to prevent outbreaks.

“Many armed forces personnel will not live on base. If people are having to journey across the country, there should be a comprehensive system in place to ensure that they don’t have the virus before they mix with colleagues.

“The Scottish Government need to work with the Ministry of Defence to ensure that the system for testing those returning from overseas is expanded and the resources necessary to make this happen are made available.”

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Defence said: “All Armed Forces personnel, including those at HMNB Clyde, adhere to the same health guidelines as the rest of the population.

“This includes obtaining a test through NHS Scotland if required and quarantining when they return from overseas leave.”