The government made an apparent u-turn this afternoon, insisting it is "crucial" for people to self-isolate after getting "pinged" by the NHS app, despite a minister saying people could make an "informed decision" about quarantine instead earlier today.
No 10 moved to combat the confusion on Tuesday, hours after business minister Paul Scully said it was a decision for individuals and employers whether they should isolate after a "ping" from the app.
Although it has never been a legal requirement to obey the app's instructions, the official NHS guidance has been that people should "self-isolate immediately" when told to.
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But following Mr Scully's comments a No 10 spokeswoman said: "Isolation remains the most important action people can take to stop the spread of the virus.
"Given the risk of having and spreading the virus when people have been in contact with someone with Covid, it is crucial people isolate when they are told to do so, either by NHS Test and Trace or by the NHS Covid app.
"Businesses should be supporting employees to isolate, they should not be encouraging them to break isolation."
Earlier, Mr Scully had reiterated on Times Radio that people are only legally required to isolate if they are contacted by NHS Test and Trace.
Asked whether this meant people should or should not self-isolate if "pinged", he said: "We want to encourage people to still use the app to be able to do the right thing, because we estimate it saves around 8,000 lives."
However, he added that it was "up to individuals and employers".
