Contracts for the Coronavirus (COVID-19) Infection Survey

You asked

The Office for National Statistics was awarded £750m to set up a Covid-19 infection survey earlier in 2020, understood to be the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS) as launched by the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC) on 23rd April 2020 and referred to the in following article, IQVIA's website and on your website:

https://pharmafield.co.uk/pharma_news/iqvia-collaborates-to-launch-accelerated-covid-19-infection-survey/\ https://www.ons.gov.uk/surveys/informationforhouseholdsandindividuals/householdandindividualsurveys/covid19infectionsurveycis

https://www.iqvia.com/en/locations/united-kingdom/newsroom/2020/04/iqvia-collaborates-with-industry-to-launch-accelerated-covid19-infection-survey

Please list the counterparties, value, signing date and main deliverables (services contracted out to those parties) for all contracts awarded to deliver the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS). Specifically, please detail the monies already paid and scheduled to be paid to the following partners in the project: the Office for National Statistics (ONS), Oxford University, UK Biocentre and IQVIA (and all its relevant subsidiaries for the purpose of delivering on its contractual obligations).

Please also provide copies of those contracts, redacted if necessary.

We said

Thank you for your request.

Please find the attached contract documents for parties supporting the delivery of the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS).

These include:

IQVIA Ltd

Date of Signature: 14 August 2020

Service Provided: Delivery of all aspects of the field data collection operation for the COVID-19 Infection Survey (CIS).

Sodexo Motivation Solutions UK Ltd

Date of Signature: 9 August 2016

Service Provided: Providing participants with digital (primary) and physical incentive vouchers following each completed survey.

HH Associates Ltd

Date of Signature: 30 June 2020

Service Provided: Print and dispatch of letters and information leaflets, inviting members of the public to take part in CIS; print and despatch of medical consent forms with corresponding information leaflets sent to the medical teams.

Personal names and contact details have been redacted in line with Section 40 of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 (FOIA), as these constitute personal data.

Some of the requested information has also been redacted under Section 43 of the FOIA, as this would prejudice the commercial interests of a third party and ONS' interests in a future re-procurement exercises.

This exemption is subject to a public interest test. Whilst we recognise the desirability of information being freely available, we also acknowledge the importance of maintaining the trust the companies we work with. The release of this data may compromise our relationship with the companies in question, which would likely render them to be unwilling to work with us in the future. In turn, this would impact our ability to produce statistics, which are in the public good and are essential in the formulation of government policy. As a result, the protection of the company's commercial interests outweighs the public interest in the release of this information, in this case.