Families of Covid-19 victims have condemned Downing Street’s “inexcusable” decision not to send messages about the virus to Boris Johnson or hold emergency Cobra meetings for 10 days coinciding with the school holidays.
The former Prime Minister’s actions in the early days of the pandemic have come under further questioning following testimony from a senior Covid-19 inquiry officer.
Martin Reynolds, the former private secretary nicknamed “Party-Marty” for his role in the Partygate scandal, was a key witness on Monday as he faced questions about WhatsApp communications, lack of training and culture in Downing Street.
Mr Reynolds was asked about a 10-day period in February 2020 during which there was “no communication via email, from Cobra, through notes in boxes, with the Prime Minister… about coronavirus”.
The senior official initially said he could not remember whether there were any “urgent matters” during this period, but Hugo Keith CC, chief adviser to the UK Covid-19 inquiry, then told him it was a period of trading during six months.
Asked if he was wondering why there had been a Covid disruption in those ten days, Mr Reynolds said: “I probably should have, but I also think there were others who would normally have said: “ We must continue this.” “Prime Minister”. Updated.”
Given that Italy was in isolation during this period, Mr Keith asked Mr Reynolds: “You said: ‘We have a big problem here, we need to contact the Prime Minister, we need to raise the question of whether we are taking action’ urgent steps.” or not”. “Should we accept this immediately?” Mr Reynolds replied: “No.”
Fiona Kirton, from Glastonbury, Somerset, lost her father Bernard Kirton to Covid in April 2020. Former Whitnash mayor Kirton has died in hospital aged 84.
His daughter told him I: “[Boris] Johnson was not allowed to “prevent” the viewing of important information during the term holidays, resulting in at least 34,000,000 unnecessary deaths and doubling the length of lockdown from 35 to 69 days.
“This has been proven in [April 2022 Plos One] A study that looked at the effect of introducing measures a week or two earlier.
“People die from pandemics, but his loved ones will never forgive Johnson for the deaths that resulted from his careless handling of the pandemic and his failure to communicate details.”
Johnson is also said to have wondered why the economy in the days leading up to the country’s lockdown was being “ruined by people who were going to die anyway.” The inquest was read from a diary entry by the prime minister’s former private secretary for public services, Imran Shafi, about a meeting between Johnson and then chancellor Rishi Sunak in March 2020.
Asked by Mr Keith who said the words, Mr Shafi replied: “I can’t say for sure, I think it was the former prime minister.”
Charlie Williams, spokesman for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK, said: “It has been difficult to keep track of the number of horrific revelations coming out of the Covid investigation today.
Johnson called older people “bed blockers” and asked: “Why are we ruining the economy for people who are going to die soon anyway?” and missed Cobra meetings due to recess.
“As Number 10 fought for power, they accepted a staggering number of deaths across the country… Like so many others, we will have to live with the devastation caused by their failure and chaos for the rest of our lives.”
Mr Reynolds was repeatedly asked whether Downing Street and the Cabinet Office had been slow to respond to the looming crisis as scenes and reports of overwhelmed Italian hospitals were broadcast in Britain. “The fact that we got into this situation is the result of a systemic failure and the failure of the people who are really in control of the situation,” he said.
He admitted the government’s protocols were “inadequate” and “seriously flawed” but also pointed to the “unusual dynamics” in Downing Street at the time and the influence of Dominic Cummings.
Mr Reynolds cited a “systematic failure” in pandemic preparedness as he appeared to admit the scale of the disaster had been “belatedly” recognised. He also spoke of “discontent” with the so-called “blacklist” allegedly created for civil servants, and described Mr Cummings as “the most powerful chief of staff Downing Street has ever seen and the man whose subpoena decides “
Mr Cummings will appear at the inquest on Tuesday along with former No 10 communications director Lee Cain, whose evidence has been adjourned for 24 hours.
Elsewhere, Sir Patrick Vallance said senior No 10 officials were trying to “arm” themselves and Professor Sir Chris Whitty appear at a press conference around the time it emerged Mr Cummings had died during the castle’s first lockdown Barnard.
Sir Patrick described Cummings’ Rose Garden statement to the Downing Street media as a “car crash” and “chatter” and said neither he nor Sir Chris wanted to hold a press conference with Mr Johnson afterward.
Mr Reynolds denied any involvement in the attack on leading health experts, but also suggested that on April 15, 2021, he activated a “disappearing message feature” on a WhatsApp group called “PM Updates” because he was concerned about possible leaks.
“It could be, for example, because I was afraid that someone would take screenshots or use some exchanges and leak them,” he said.
Downing Street said on Monday that the use of disappearing WhatsApp messages would be allowed as civil servants and departments are required to record and enter official decisions into an official file.
Mr Reynolds made headlines when it was revealed he had organized a rally in No 10 Gardens on May 20, 2020, where it was illegal to leave the house without a reasonable excuse.
He then had to leave due to outrage over the Partygate scandal. Mr Reynolds told the hearing he wanted to “unreservedly apologize to all the families of everyone affected during Covid for all the suffering caused”.
Source: I News
I’m Raymond Molina, a professional writer and journalist with over 5 years of experience in the media industry. I currently work for 24 News Reporters, where I write for the health section of their news website. In my role, I am responsible for researching and writing stories on current health trends and issues. My articles are often seen as thought-provoking pieces that provide valuable insight into the state of society’s wellbeing.