Actuate UK supports the industry call for bringing forward relaxation of COVID19 self-isolation

We acknowledge the Government efforts to put in place an interim process for companies to request an exception for employees needed to support critical elements of national infrastructure. Engineering services are essential for supporting national infrastructure and, in principle, can apply, and in recent weeks they have been experiencing difficulties with personnel availability due to self-isolation requirements, even after negative tests. Moreover, they are part of the emergency services - for example lift engineers attending breakdowns to release trapped passengers.

However, there is no guarantee that the exception will apply to building services or that the responses will be delivered in a timely manner. Bringing forward the changes to requirements for self-isolation will allow businesses to safely deliver essential services to healthcare, transport, energy, construction and utilities.  

Engineering services deliver inspection and routine maintenance to ensure continued safe use of equipment such as lifts and escalators, refrigeration, air condition, electrical cabling, appliances in public and domestic settings. They need to be kept running safely and reliably.