London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Wednesday, Sep 03, 2025

Scientist donates £1,000,000 to massively increase UK coronavirus testing

A British entrepreneur has donated £1,000,000 of his own money to establish a network of labs that could dramatically increase coronavirus testing.
Mike Fischer CBE has launched the Covid-19 Volunteer Testing Network, which aims to use common pieces of equipment found in thousands of labs across the UK to test for the illness.

The Oxford University physics graduate currently runs a small non-profit medical research lab in Abingdon, Oxford called Systems Biology Laboratory (SBL) which tests more than 200 NHS workers at 18 surgeries in Oxfordshire twice a week.

Mr Fischer says his next landmark is to recruit 200 laboratories to each conduct an average of 100 tests a day – but this can be ramped up to 500 each every 24 hours when staff have perfected the testing process.

His ultimate goal is to get 1,000 labs doing 800 tests within a few months – which would mean 800,000 people a day would be checked for the virus.

The labs would use equipment like the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) machine, which is found in most university science departments, to test if people currently have the virus.

It is estimated there could be as many as 14,000 PCR machines in operation in private and institutional labs in the UK.

Mr Fischer has appealed for laboratories that have PCR machines to join his project in order to conquer the pandemic.

He told BBC Radio 5 Live: ‘Our aspirational goal… is that if we can get to 1,000 labs doing 800 tests per day within a few months, that will provide 800,000 tests per day. That capacity will help enormously in mass population testing.

‘So this is a call to arms – if you have the equipment and experience then you can do this. You are worth your weight in gold.

‘We need everyone who has got the experience and equipment and the facilities to start doing it.’

Another doctor has suggested that everyone in Britain could be tested once a week if every PCR machine in the country was used.

Professor Julian Peto, a cancer epidemiologist at the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and a supporter of the project, told Sky News: ‘These PCR machines are in every university and commercial lab in Britain so I’m sure you’ve got 14,000 of them.

‘If the people who are already operating those machines turned over to testing to the virus, you’d be able to test everyone in Britain once a week, and you’d be able to test every other day people who come into contact with patients – nurses, doctors, the NHS in particular.’

Mr Fischer added: ‘These machines, which typically cost less than £1,000, are common across testing labs. Every biology department in a university will have dozens.

‘All you need is a PCR machine, a level two or higher containment facility and two or three people who know what they are doing.’
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Google Avoids Break-Up in U.S. Antitrust Case as Stocks Rise
Couple celebrates 80th wedding anniversary at assisted living facility in Lancaster
Information Warfare in the Age of AI: How Language Models Become Targets and Tools
The White House on LinkedIn Has Changed Their Profile Picture to Donald Trump
"Insulted the Prophet Muhammad": Woman Burned Alive by Angry Mob in Niger State, Nigeria
Trump Responds to Death Rumors – Announces 'Missile City'
Court of Appeal Allows Asylum Seekers to Remain at Essex Hotel Amid Local Tax Boycott Threats
Germany in Turmoil: Ukrainian Teenage Girl Pushed to Death by Illegal Iraqi Migrant
United Krack down on human rights: Graham Linehan Arrested at Heathrow Over Three X Posts, Hospitalised, Released on Bail with Posting Ban
Asian and Middle Eastern Investors Avoid US Markets
Ray Dalio Warns of US Shift to Autocracy
Eurozone Inflation Rises to 2.1% in August
Russia and China Sign New Gas Pipeline Deal
China's Robotics Industry Fuels Export Surge
Suntory Chairman Resigns After Police Probe
Gold Price Hits New All-Time Record
Von der Leyen's Plane Hit by Suspected Russian GPS Interference in an Incident Believed to Be Caused by Russia or by Pro-Peace or by Anti-Corruption European Activists
UK Fintechs Explore Buying US Banks
Greece Suspends 5% of Schools as Birth Rate Drops
Apollo to Launch $5 Billion Sports Investment Vehicle
Bolsonaro Trial Nears Close Amid US-Brazil Tension
European Banks Push for Lower Cross-Border Barriers
Poland's Offshore Wind Sector Attracts Investors
Nvidia Reveals: Two Mystery Customers Account for About 40% of Revenue
Woody Allen: "I Would Be Happy to Direct Trump Again in a Film"
Pickles are the latest craze among Generation Z in the United States.
Deadline Day Delivers Record £125m Isak Move and Donnarumma to City
Nestlé Removes CEO Laurent Freixe Following Undisclosed Relationship with Subordinate
Giuliani Seriously Injured in Accident – Trump to Award Him the Presidential Medal of Freedom
EU is getting aggressive: Four AfD Candidates Die Unexpectedly Ahead of North Rhine-Westphalia Local Elections
Lula and Putin Hold Strategic BRICS Discussions Ahead of Trump–Putin Summit
WhatsApp is rolling out a feature that looks a lot like Telegram.
Investigations Reveal Rise in ‘Sex-for-Rent’ Listings Across Canada Exploiting Vulnerable Tenants
Chinese and Indian Leaders Pursue Amity Amid Global Shifts
European Union Plans for Ukraine Deployment
ECB Warns Against Inflation Complacency
Concerns Over North Cyprus Casino Development
Shipping Companies Look Beyond Chinese Finance
Rural Exodus Fueling European Wildfires
China Hosts Major Security Meeting
Chinese Police Successfully Recover Family's Savings from Livestream Purchases
Germany Marks a Decade Since Migrant Wave with Divisions, Success Stories, and Political Shifts
Liverpool Defeat Arsenal 1–0 with Szoboszlai Free-Kick to Stay Top of Premier League
Prince Harry and King Charles to Meet in First Reunion After 20 Months
Chinese Stock Market Rally Fueled by Domestic Investors
Israeli Airstrike in Yemen Kills Houthi Prime Minister
Ukrainian Nationalist Politician Andriy Parubiy Assassinated in Lviv
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
×