Common cold and PCR?

[Rainbow0821]

If you have cold virus, do you need a PCR? I know it's not one of the main classic symptoms but I read it can be for the Delta variant. I have done lateral flow test and it's negative.

@Shakirasma except if his first bout of covid was 90 days or less ago, he probably didn't have it twice. You can test positive for three months after on a PCR and it's advised not to get another one in that time frame.

He probably had a cold the second time. Which is why it didn't show up on a LFT

‘ despite a much lower test positivity rate than the other European countries which don't do as much testing ’

If you look at this map you will see that the UK does not have a much lower positive rate than say France, Italy or Spain:

ourworldindata.org/grapher/positive-rate-daily-smoothed

People want to believe that the only reason for our high infection numbers is all the testing. It’s not.

It is a cold - why test (expensively for the tax payer)
Enough is enough - no wonder 'cases' are rising when PCRs are being advised for 'cold symptoms'
Use your common sense.
Cases are rising because people are testing positive for Covid.
A common cold won't cause a covid positive result.

Unless what you're actually saying is no wonder cases rise when people take tests. Enough is enough. Everyone stop testing because that way the numbers won't be as high, and everyone knows that if we don't test then that means covid has gone away.

@YukoandHiro

He definitely had it twice, just over 6 months apart. As per guidelines no LFTs or PCRs were done within 90 days of his first positive test.