I don't think you understand the technology or the privacy architecture.
The location permission you refer to is related to Bluetooth and is standard.
Just because the collected data is stored centrally it does not mean that it is not anonymised.
And finally I would suggest the Guardian is not the best place to get a balanced view of privacy implications!
I think it's an odd situation to be in where a foreign company is able to hold an elected government to ransom over its healthcare provider's technology choice.
The location permission you refer to is related to Bluetooth and is standard.
Just because the collected data is stored centrally it does not mean that it is not anonymised.
And finally I would suggest the Guardian is not the best place to get a balanced view of privacy implications!
I think it's an odd situation to be in where a foreign company is able to hold an elected government to ransom over its healthcare provider's technology choice.