Jason Leitch 'sorry' to Scots who have been forced to wait a 'little bit longer' for PCR results

Professor Jason Leitch has apologised to Scots who have been forced to wait a "little bit longer" to receive coronavirus PCR test results.

Thousands of Scots were forced to get PCR tests in the lead up to Christmas after returning a positive test on a lateral flow device or after they were pinged by the Protect Scotland app.

Due to the high number of tests the lab network has struggled to keep up which meant people had to wait more than the regular 24 hours for their results.

It has been reported that some Scots have waited more than 36 hours for results and forced to miss Christmas Day due to the backlog.

National Clinical Director Prof Leitch said the pre-Christmas backlog has now been cleared and results should be back between "24 to 36 hours".

He also apologised to many Scots who have had to wait longer than expected for results, while the Scottish Government said people should phone a helpline if results have not been returned within 72 hours.

Prof Leitch said: "It's just been big because quite a lot of people went for testing before Christmas in order to try and get Christmas celebrations.

"I apologise for that, I'm sorry people had to wait a little bit longer."

Host Gary Robertson asked if there would be delays again in the future if more cases emerge.

Prof Leith replied: "We think the acute problem, so the immediate problem is resolved. My understanding was yesterday speaking to Test and Protect leaders is that the backlog was cleared.

"So we're back to somewhere between 24 and 36 hours for pretty much all the tests.

"Postal ones take a bit longer just because it takes a while to get through the mail and back in the mail, all of those things.

"If there is a massive increase in PCR testing then you do have to make some choices about prioritisation about high risk individuals and locations.

"We're not at that stage yet.

"We just need to see how these data smooth out over the next few days and into the New Year."

A Scottish Government spokesperson said: "Some tests - such as postal tests - can take longer than others to get to labs for processing, but we aim to communicate test results from physical test sites within 48 hours.

"If you have not received your result within 72 hours, please phone the helpline on 119 for assistance.”

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