The UK Covid-19 Inquiry is set to publish its findings into decisions made by former prime minister Boris Johnson and his senior advisers.
Key players, including Mr Johnson and former health secretary Matt Hancock, gave evidence to the inquiry into what they were thinking in 2020, including before the first lockdown was announced in March.
During a series of hearings, they were questioned over government measures introduced during the pandemic, such as Covid testing, social distancing and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme designed to support businesses.
Chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett, a former Court of Appeal judge, heard wide-ranging criticisms of Mr Johnson and his team, with WhatsApp messages and emails detailing disagreements disclosed to the inquiry.
When giving his own testimony, Mr Johnson said it was “very unlikely” the first Covid lockdown could have been avoided by earlier action.
In a statement, the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK group blamed “failures by those in power” for the deaths of “more than 230,000 of our loved ones” as they called for accountability.
The full report from the inquiry will be published at 4pm on Thursday.
I regret the suffering Covid inflicted, says Swinney ahead of inquiry report
Scotland’s First Minister has spoken about his “regret” for the “suffering” experienced by many during the coronavirus pandemic.
Speaking ahead of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry publishing its report into how governments across the country responded to the virus, John Swinney said it had caused “enormous damage”.
Mr Swinney was deputy first minister in Scotland at the time of the pandemic, and when pressed to apologise for his actions on Thursday, including the deletion of messages related to decision-making, he said: “I have been very clear that I regret the suffering individuals experienced during the period of Covid.
“It did enormous damage to people. People lost loved ones, it did enormous damage to our society and we are still dealing with the consequences of Covid.”
Comment: How Boris Johnson failed a generation of children
My charity supported families throughout the pandemic and has been a core participant at the official UK Covid-19 Inquiry. The evidence that we and other children’s rights charities have presented shows clearly that children from low-income families endured the greatest losses, in education, wellbeing, and opportunity. The youngest in our communities were left to bear the long-term costs.
Dan Paskins writes:
How Boris Johnson failed a generation of children
What evidence on Boris Johnson and his team did the inquiry hear
In October 2023, the inquiry heard from the diary entries of Lord Patrick Vallance, who was chief scientific adviser during the pandemic, where he criticised Boris Johnson’s “impossible flip-flopping” and “bipolar decision-making”.
In one note on social distancing, Lord Vallance wrote: “Number 10 chaos as usual.
“On Friday, the two-metre rule meeting made it abundantly clear that no-one in Number 10 or the Cabinet Office had really read or taken time to understand the science advice on two metres. Quite extraordinary.”
In other entries, he described how he felt scientists were “used as human shields” by ministers.
And on September 19 2020, around the time a possible “circuit-breaker” lockdown was being discussed, he wrote: “(Johnson) is all over the place and so completely inconsistent. You can see why it was so difficult to get agreement to lock down first time.”
WhatsApp messages from 2020 also released to the Covid inquiry revealed senior civil servant Simon Case complaining about the influence of Carrie Symonds, who is now the wife of Mr Johnson.
In exchanges with Dominic Cummings, who was Downing Street adviser at the time, Mr Case joked that she was “the real person in charge”.
In other messages, Mr Case said the Government looked like a “tragic joke” and told others Mr Johnson “cannot lead and we cannot support him”.
Meanwhile, Mr Cummings told the inquiry the Government had no plan for dealing with Covid and was in “complete chaos”.
‘We were between rock and hard place’: Boris Johnson defending his actions
When giving his own evidence, Boris Johnson insisted it was “very unlikely” the first Covid lockdown could have been avoided by earlier action.
He said he had “reflected” many times on whether the lockdown did more harm than good, but argued: “We were between a rock and a hard place, the devil and the deep blue sea”.
Covid bereaved families blame ‘failures by those in power’ for deaths of 230,000 loved ones
In a statement, the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK group said: “More than 230,000 of our loved ones were killed because of failures by those in power.
“Every single one of them deserves accountability, and so does the whole of society that suffered from the mishandling of the pandemic.
“We fought for this inquiry because decisions made by political leaders sowed chaos and led to avoidable deaths.
“For five years, we have waited for this moment. The inquiry has already exposed misconduct and unforgivable ineptitude from the Prime Minister down.
“On Thursday, it will finally deliver its verdict on the political leadership of Boris Johnson and others during the pandemic. The inquiry must not flinch.
“This cannot be a whitewash. Justice means holding those in power to account, however senior or well-connected, and that is what we expect the inquiry to do.”
Covid inquiry to publish findings into decisions made by Boris Johnson
The UK Covid-19 Inquiry will publish its findings on Thursday into decisions made by former prime minister Boris Johnson and his senior advisers.
Key players, including Mr Johnson and former health secretary Matt Hancock, gave evidence to the inquiry into what they were thinking in 2020, including before the first lockdown was announced in March.
During a series of hearings, they were questioned over government measures introduced during the pandemic, such as Covid testing, social distancing and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme designed to support businesses.
Chairwoman Baroness Heather Hallett, a former Court of Appeal judge, heard wide-ranging criticisms of Mr Johnson and his team, with WhatsApp messages and emails detailing disagreements disclosed to the inquiry.
The full report from the inquiry will be published at 4pm on Thursday.
