UK

Independent readers have been sharing emotional reactions as former prime minister Boris Johnson faces the prospect of legal action over his government’s pandemic response.Readers recalled rule-breaking in Downing Street, mixed messaging, and delays that allowed the virus to spread – and many felt those responsible should face consequences, with some calling for Johnson to be barred from future office.Several said early warnings from other countries were clear to anyone paying attention. One recalled choosing to limit social contact long before the first UK lockdown. Many felt the inquiry’s findings simply confirmed what they already believed – that chaotic decision-making in No 10, ideological austerity, and years of Tory underfunding left the UK dangerously exposed.Others argued it is too easy to judge with hindsight. They pointed to conflicting scientific advice, the pressure on ministers, and the impossible balance of competing harms. But the dominant view was that leadership was lacking when it mattered most. Here’s what you had to say:Early caution before lockdownMy partner and I are not epidemiologists, but sat in a beer garden in the north of England on an unusually warm early spring day in 2020, we both decided to minimise our socialising and contact with other people a full two weeks before the first lockdown was announced. She was supporting elderly parents, one of whom was particularly vulnerable, and neither of us wanted to be the one that helped finish him off.That being said, we didn’t have one of the world’s foremost economies to consider when we decided it would be a good idea to have contact with fewer people.It’s comforting to have someone to blame, but nobody can say that they weren’t warned about what sort of person Johnson was before 2019.RickCHindsight is easyIt doesn’t feel to me that this enquiry has looked deeply enough at all aspects. It is too easy to look back with hindsight and find what you want to find. Easy now to judge what was the right advice, but at the time there was very conflicting advice – nobody could be 100 per cent sure what would work best, even the scientific advisers didn’t agree. Politicians were trying to balance lots of different issues and I certainly didn’t envy them the impossible decisions they had to make. I felt at the time that they would later be damned whatever they chose.DoesitmatterTo focus on Johnson is a misdirectionHindsight is a wonderful thing. Governments come and go but the Civil Service underpins them all – so where was their preparation and systems planning? To focus on Johnson – who himself, remember, was in intensive care with Covid – is misdirection and unfair. If the medics and scientists were not in agreement, politicians were even less likely to get it right.ronyag12Lockdown enforcement Lockdowns were not enforced very much at all. Pubs were open and serving through a hatch. Roads were busy with people going all over the place to see their friends and family. Some people followed the rules but Boris and his mates didn’t. The apps should have been left to Google and Apple, not Tory IT chums who took forever. Boris took too much credit for a British vaccine and thought it would save us so he could be lax, but it didn’t.Hi5We need leaders to leadWhen tragedies like Covid hit a country, we need leaders who will actually lead. Unfortunately, Boris Johnson was being led by events and showed by his actions he wasn’t up to the job. Throwing parties at Downing Street while others were in lockdown wasn’t exactly leading by example. SharpfocusIncomprehensibleI remember in January 2020, the Chinese first warned the world about this. Johnson ignored it. Then at some point in February, when Italy was ‘hit’, they also warned the world. Again, Johnson ignored it; in fact, he couldn’t even be bothered to attend meetings. He did nothing until well into March.Even when Johnson did act, it wasn’t simply chaotic, it was incomprehensible. To try to keep up with the rules, I would phone my sister; as a nurse, she was up to date, although there were times when the rules changed more than once in a single day.TomSnoutHindsight is disingenuous Anyone not blinded by Johnson’s charisma could see what was unfolding in Italy weeks ahead of the UK, yet we were one of the last to close our airports. Any claims that this review is hindsight is being disingenuous at best. Italy was overwhelmed and four weeks ahead of us. Even then, the second lockdown was too late and too little.Slightly Tipsy MaxWhat can be gained from this inquiry?I do not see what can possibly be gained from this inquiry. Its remit does not extend to banning those responsible for decisions that led to the loss of lives from holding any public office in the future. Their positions and lives will remain unaffected by the findings. In terms of lessons learned, the response to any national crisis has to be tailored to the circumstances at the time, not based on hindsight.The glaring errors – failing to stop large-scale events, not banning international travel, relaxing procurement procedures to give those with connections to MPs unfettered access to a multibillion VIP PPE lane funding pot that resulted in the NHS being supplied with PPE that was unfit for purpose, and the ridiculous Eat Out To Help Out scheme – are already well documented and widely known. The IFS estimates this inquiry is likely to cost around £200 million. Surely that funding would be better used to create a national memorial garden, similar to the Arboretum in Staffordshire, for the benefit of all those bereaved.VickiGNo slack to cope with a crisisThis was pretty much already known, but it is good to see it set out definitively. Johnson was a disaster as PM, but the seeds were sown in the Cameron years. All spare capacity in public services had already been cut, leaving no slack to cope with a crisis. Much of the worst could have been avoided if action had been taken sooner and if resources had been given to people with existing expertise, e.g., local public health officials, rather than ploughed into outsourced national white elephants such as track and trace and Nightingale hospitals, which couldn’t be staffed.Tanaquil2Failure to planSuccessive Conservative administrations bear a significant share of the blame for what happened as Covid hit. Quite apart from the failure to plan for what was known as a real threat, that failure was compounded by an utterly pointless and ideologically driven austerity programme that reduced resources to facilitate provision of PPE etc.However, the most grievous failing was the Conservative Party’s election of Johnson as its leader. Johnson was well known as a teller of untruths; he should never have been allowed near the levers of power. This was done simply for party political gain and never about the best thing for the country. Everything that followed could have been foreseen, including the thousands of deaths, the fraud and corruption, the lies, and the parties. If this inquiry does anything at all, it will have reminded everyone just what can happen when a party that has lost its moral compass allows incompetence and hubris to lead it.kermit68He should be barredThe oaf Johnson caught Covid and was treated by an NHS he and his friends despise, and then, after recovering, he had parties at Downing Street. With leaders like that, he should be barred from holding any future political position.rishirichWhat did it cost?Another inquiry publishes its findings. How long has it taken, and what did it cost? On the upside, Johnson and the rest won’t be able to redact it or sink it to save themselves, but what consequences will it lead to?Will those whose incompetence and negligence undoubtedly led to the high number of deaths face justice? Will lessons be learnt, and will the country be prepared if anything like this occurs again?AmbigirlsPopulist self-interestThe outcome of the Covid inquiry brought no surprises. The Johnson government was self-serving and failed to take note of what was happening in other parts of Europe, particularly Italy, where deaths were already very high.Johnson ran the government in his own self-interest. People should learn that populists like Johnson or Farage, and a few others, will run the country for self-promotion rather than in the best interests of the people. Take serious note.rEUjoinPolitical opportunismOne of the main problems was that half the government, their donors, and the great and good spent more of their time trying to figure out how to cash in on the crisis than solve it.Rather than coming together to solve the crisis, politicians used it to enrich themselves and play petty party politics, which they continue to do today.ChicheeSome of the comments have been edited for this article for brevity and clarity.Want to share your views? Simply register your details below. Once registered, you can comment on the day’s top stories for a chance to be featured. Alternatively, click ‘log in’ or ‘register’ in the top right corner to sign in or sign up.Make sure you adhere to our community guidelines, which can be found here. For a full guide on how to comment click here. More