16 bombshells from day of nightmare revelations at Covid Inquiry on Halloween

01 November 2023 , 07:00

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Dominic Cummings was called up to the Covid Inquiry for a bombshell Halloween evidence session (Image: AFP via Getty Images)

In a shocking day of revelations at the Covid Inquiry, it was revealed Boris Johnson thought Covid was just "Nature's way of dealing with old people".

A jam-packed evidence session on Halloween saw the former PM's adviser Dominic Cummings grilled for more than five hours. At the height of the pandemic, the senior aide sent WhatsApp messages to others in No10 criticising the "feral" and "useless f***ing pigs in charge" in the "terrifyingly s***" Cabinet.

Mr Cummings also savaged Matt Hancock, who he called a "proven liar". He said the former Health Secretary had no "f***ing serious testing in care homes" and said his "uselessness if still killing god knows how many". He questioned how the Tory was at the head of the Department of Health as he pressed for him to be sacked from the role in a reshuffle.

The messages revealed the chaos in No10 in the lead up to the first lockdown, with Mr Cummings' fears the NHS would implode "like a zombie apocalypse film" if action was not taken. The former adviser said Mr Johnson did not think Covid was a "big deal" and thought it'd "be like swine flu".

Dominic Cummings was grilled for more than five hours at the Covid Inquiry  (UK Covid-19 Inquiry Live Stream)

The Covid Inquiry also saw Boris Johnson's former Director of Communications Lee Cain give evidence. In one WhatsApp, he said he was "exhausted" with the ex-PM's leadership. He also accused other senior Cabinet ministers, including Matt Hancock and Liz Truss, of being "problem leakers" with the media.

Hospitals run out of oxygen and mortuaries full amid NHS chaos

The Mirror has rounded up some of the shocking WhatsApp messages, diary entries and email extracts from the day the Covid Inquiry sat for evidence on Halloween.

1. ‘He doesn’t think it’s a big deal… he thinks it’ll be like swine flu’

WhatsApp chat between Lee Cain and Dominic Cummings (March 3, 2020 - 20 days before the first lockdown was called)

Dominic Cummings: He doesn’t think it’s a big deal and he doesn’t think anything can be done and his focus is elsewhere, he thinks it’ll be like swine flu and he thinks his main danger is talking economy into a slump

Dominic Cummings said Boris Johnson thought the 'main danger is talking economy into a slump'

2. Delaying action could mean 'NHS implodes like a zombie apocalypse film'

WhatsApp chat between Dominic Cummings and Boris Johnson (March 12, 2020 - 11 days before the first lockdown was called)

Dominic Cummings: The overwhelming danger here is being late and the nhs implodes like a zombie apocalypse film - not being a week early

WhatsApp chat between Dominic Cummings , No10 officials and government scientists (March 11, 2020 - 12 days before the first lockdown was called)

Dominic Cummings: I think it is really important that senior people understand, and are able to discuss with the PM this fundamental question: all sensible people can see the trajectory and how social distancing will be needed to flatten curve. very sensible people, including former CDC officials etc and doctors are saying *'the risks of delay are MUCH higher than the risks of going too soon'*. If we are NOT going to say tmrw 'we are starting social distancing TODAY, we are waiting until next week' -- and effectively just keep washing your hands -- there will be MASSIVE pushback on these lines -- *'WHY WAIT 5 DAYS WHY NOT MOVE NOW AND FLATTEN CURVE EARLIER??'*

Days before first lockdown was called, Dominic Cummings say there will be 'MASSIVE pushback' if they don't take action

3. Cabinet Office 'is terrifyingly s***, no plans, totally behind pace'

WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings (March, 12 2020 - 11 days before the first lockdown was called)

Dominic Cummings : We got big problems coming. CABOFF [Cabinet Office] is terrifyingly s***, no plans, totally behind pace, me and Warnes and lee/slacky are having to drive and direct. Mark is out to lunch – hasn’t a scooby whats going on and his own officials know he doesnt. We must announce TODAY – not next week – ‘if feel ill with cold/fly stay home’. Some CABOFF want delay cos havent done the work and dont work weekends. We must force the pace today. We are looking at 100-500 thousand deaths between optimistic / pessimistic scenarios. 1918 was 250k for comparison

Dominic Cummings: You need to chair daily meetings in the Cabinet room – not COBRA – on this from tomorrow. Im going to tell the system this. NOT with DAs on the f***ing phone all the time either so people cant tell you the truth

Mystic Mag's 2023 predictions include strikes, sleaze, self pity and separation

Dominic Cummings, 11 days before the first lockdown, said: 'We got big problems coming' (Covid Enquiry)

4. ‘He's melting down... I’ve literally said same thing ten f***ing times and he still won’t absorb it’

WhatsApp chat between Lee Cain and Dominic Cummings while Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak had a meeting together (March 19, 2020 - four days before the first lockdown was called)

Dominic Cummings: Sonic just been to… his shielding package, says clusterf***, everyone babbling GDPR, arguing over who in charge of website etc, chaos. Hes bringing em into no10 sounds like ill have to read riot act 215 ish

Dominic Cummings: Get in here he’s melting down

Dominic Cummings: Rishi saying bond markets may not fund out debt etc. He’s back to Jaws mode w**k

Dominic Cummings: I’ve literally said same thing ten f***ing times and he still won’t absorb it. I’m exhausted just talking to him and stopping the trolley

Dominic Cummings: I’ve had to sit here for 2 hours just to stop him saying stupid s***

Lee Cain: I'm exhausted with him

Lee Cain: No words… *Link to tweet on March 19, 2020 from Times journalist reading: “Slightly confusing message from Boris Johnson. At the beginning of his press conference 'we can turn the tide within the next 12 weeks'. He subsequently said: 'I cannot tell you by the end of June we will be on a downward slope. It's possible'”*

Dominic Cummings: what did I say - - it’s only a matter of time before his babbling exposes fact he doesn’t know what to say

Dominic Cummings on Boris Johnson: 'It’s only a matter of time before his babbling exposes fact he doesn’t know what to say'

5. Boris Johnson accuses Dominic Cummings of making 'demented claims about Carrie' in a 'totally disgusting orgy of narcissism'

WhatsApp messages between Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings (November 15, 2020 - two days after Mr Cumming's resignation is announced)

Boris Johnson: You speak of briefings from team Carrie [Mr Johnson's wife]. She hasn't briefed anyone and my instructions to all were to shut the f*** up. How is any of us supposed to know where these briefings come from ? Look at the claims made on behalf of allies of Lee and Dom. That I am out in 6 months. That I can't take decisions. That Carrie is secretly forging lockdown policy !! And about a billion equally demented claims. Are you responsible for all that crap ? No ? Then look at it from my point of view. This is a totally disgusting orgy of narcissism by a government that should be solving a national crisis. We must end this. That's why I wanted to talk and see what we could jointly do to sterilise the whole thing. But if you really refuse then that's up to you.

(March 1, 2021) *Boris Johnson blocks Dominic Cummings on WhatsApp*

Dominic Cummings lays into Matt Hancock as he says 'still no f***ing serious testing in care homes'

6. ‘Useless f***pigs in charge’ and Cabinet ‘are feral’

WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson, Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain (August 23, 2020)

Dominic Cummings: Don’t think sustainable for GW [Gavin Williamson] to stay Dfe [Department for Education]. Think lee need to brief reshuffle after SR [Spending Review] ASAP. Will get people in line. Focus minds intensely for next 16 weeks, and you spell out explicitly to Cabinet when next week - I’ve had enough of the leaks and briefing. There’ll be a reshuffle between SR and Xmas, I’m looking for quiet competence, not interviews and briefing and the usual gimmicks…

Dominic Cummings: Yes there’ll be turbulence but next four months are going to be turbulent and tough as hell in all scenarios. We need a path through til April by which we shd be through covid and economy recovering noticeable and building happening everywhere

Boris Johnson: Agree but fatal to brief cab about upcoming reshuffle. Stick to line that nothing till next year as far as whips know etc

Dominic Cummings: I think this is a big big mistake and not sustainable – if you dont get the CAB back into line you will have months more of the mayhem briefing and leaking – this has seriously damaged your authority – you need to get this back. You need to read riot act to CAB and SW1 shd know theres a reshuffle coming between SR [Spending Review] and Xmas. At the moment the bubble thinks youve taken your eye off ball. Youre happy to have useless f***pigs in charge, and they think that a vast amount of the chaotic news on the front pages is coming from no10 when in fact it’s coming from the Cabinet who are ferral [sic]– if you maintain your approach of the last few months, your authority will be severely weakened and you will lose good people cos they don’t want to be part of something that looks like mayhem. I urge you to ponder on this this week. If we dont grip things over the next month. Things cd easily snowball out of control amid the disastrous econ [economy] news – and there cd be talk of leadership challenges.

Dominic Cummings presses Boris Johnson to reshuffle his Cabinet to stop 'mayhem briefing'

7. 'Hancock in post is a big mistake - he is a proven liar’

Messages between Dominic Cummings and Boris Johnson (February, 2 2020 - over a month before the first lockdown)

Dominic Cummings: Hancock is a know nothing on comms and he's totally failed viz the Corona comms team such that I am having to convene mtngs to sort s*** out this afternoon

Dominic Cummings: We're already doing cobra Monday with you plus the science and comms people

Boris Johnson: Ok at the latest I want to have conference call at 5. We need to go over the plan w Matt and the scientists and I need to understand where we are

Boris Johnson: This is very likely to be the defining event of the year

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WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson, Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain (August 23, 2020)

Dominic Cummings: I also must stress I think leaving Hancock in post is a big mistake - he is a proven liar who nobody believes or shd believe on anything, and we face going into autumn crisis with the c*** in charge of NHS still - therefore we be back around that cabinet table with him and stevens bullsh****ing again in Sep. Hideous prospect

Boris Johnson: Not sure when you think reshuffle should happen. Before sept to move Hancock ? or November ?

8. Matt Hancock is 'killing god knows how many' in care homes

WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings (May 7, 2020)

Dominic Cummings: Hancock is unfit for this job. The incompetence, the constant lies, the obsession with media bulls*** over doing his job. Still no f***ing serious testing in care homes his uselessness is still killing god knows how many. This morning you must ask him when we will get to 500k per day and where is your plan for testing all care home workers weekly

Dominic Cummings lays into Matt Hancock as he says 'still no f***ing serious testing in care homes'

WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson and Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain (May 9, 2020)

Dominic Cummings: You need to think through timing of binning Hancock. There's no way this guy can stay. He's lied his way through this and killed people and dozens and dozens of people have seen it. He will have to go the question is when and who replaces.

9. Boris Johnson accuses Dominic Cummings a 'total and utter liar' after Barnard Castle scandal

WhatsApps between Boris Johnson and his former Director of Communications Jack Doyle (July 19, 2021)

Boris Johnson: Cummings a total and utter liar. He never told me he had gone to Durham during lockdown. I only discovered when the stories started to come out about Barnard castle etc

Boris Johnson: I believed Mary Wakefield [Dominic Cummings' wife] when she wrote a piece in spec [The Spectator] giving the impression they had been in London the whole time. he later claimed that he had told me but that my brain was so fogged by COVID that i didn't register. It's not true. I would have noted it. He never told me. I then tried my best to defend him.

Boris Johnson fumes over Barnard Castle scandal as he says he 'tried his best to defend' Dominic Cummings

10. Matt Hancock, Grant Shapps, Ben Wallace and Liz Truss labelled ‘problem leakers’

WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson, Dominic Cummings and Lee Cain (August 23, 2020)

Lee Cain: Problem leakers - Hancock, Grant [Shapps], [Ben] Wallace, Truss. There are other second order ones but these four have caused real problems this year

Lee Cain: Agree with domestic policy agenda. We do need to up the fire power in key areas both inside No10 and in the cabinet. Whenever we do a reshuffle it should be bold and filled with those you are convinced will deliver for you - we don’t want to have to do another for a long time

Matt Hancock and Liz Truss were labelled 'problem leakers'

11. Boris Johnson says he ‘no longer buys NHS [is] overwhelmed stuff’

WhatsApp chat between Boris Johnson and Lee Cain (October 15, 2020)

Boris Johnson: Jeeez.

Boris Johnson: I must say I have been slightly rocked by some of the data on covid fatalities.The median age is 82 - 81 for men 85 for women. That is above life expectancy. So get COVID and live longer

Boris Johnson: Hardly anyone under 60 goes into hospital (4 per cent) and of those virtually all survive. And I no longer buy all this nhs overwhelmed stuff. Folks I think we may need to recalibrate.

Boris Johnson: There are max 3m in this country aged over 80

Lee Cain: All understood - but how does this change the policy? Still not politically viable yet to change course - but maybe once mass testing up and running

Boris Johnson: It shows we don’t go for nation wide lockdown

Boris Johnson said: 'I no longer buy all this nhs overwhelmed stuff'

12. Boris Johnson ‘obsessed with older people accepting their fate’

Notebook entry written by chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance (August 26, 2020)

Sir Patrick Vallance: PM WhatsApp group kicks off because PM has read in FT that IFR [infection-fatality ratio] is 0.04%. Age-related IFR explained and that overall looks more like 0.4 to 1%. He is obsessed with older people accepting their fate and letting the young get on with life and the economy going. Quite a bonkers set of exchanges.

Sir Patrick Vallance described a 'bonkers set of exchanges' he witnessed Boris Johnson take part in

13. Tories think Covid was 'Nature’s way of dealing with old people' and Boris Johnson 'not entirely sure' he disagreed

Notebook entry written by chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance (December 14, 2020)

Sir Patrick Vallance: PM pre-meet/Dashboard [...] Numbers are going up & up [...] PM told he has been acting early and the public are with him (but his party are not). He says his party ‘thinks the whole thing is pathetic and Covid is just Nature’s way of dealing with old people - and I am not entirely sure I disagree with them. A lot of moderate people think it is a bit too much.’ Wants to rely on polling. Then he says, ‘We should move things to Tier 3 now’.

Notebook entry written by chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance (December 15, 2020)

Sir Patrick Vallance: Cabinet… Agreed that things need to be scaled back. Christmas must be smaller, shorter & local… Chief whip says ‘I think we should let the old people get it and protect others’. PM says ‘a lot of my backbenchers think that & I must say I agree with them’ … he says ‘let’s put Berkshire into Tier 3 & then I can just travel there’. Before Cabinet I said to Gove ‘you did well not to say I told you so re putting London into Tier 3.’ He grins.

Sir Patrick Vallance wrote that Boris Johnson has reported the Conservatives thought 'the whole thing is pathetic'

14. ‘We are still a low performing entity while dealing with next phase of covid and economic horror’

Extract from email from Dominic Cummings to No10 officials and advisers to the PM (Copied to PM on October 6, 2020)

We are still a low performing entity while dealing with next phase of covid and economic horror. We CANNOT sit around having lots of meetings, studies, reviews etc. We need to hire some core people get them in a room and start building this now so that by last week of August this room exists and the bare bones at least are working. We cannot start creating some ‘board’ and write powerpoint slides for months then have listening exercises and discuss diversity training etc.

So we need a timetable for key actions and crack on. If we don’t then the shambles will continue with disastrous consequences - including collapse of confidence that Whitehall can fix itself.

15. 'Cobras are hopeless... and actively cause trouble'

Extract from email from Dominic Cummings to Former Whitehall ethics chief Helen McNamara (March 13, 2020)

Yep, a CABSEC (Cabinet Secretary) pm meeting makes sense. The PM view (and mine- on these COBRAS is they are hopeless as decision making entities and actively cause trouble for comms given they just brief immediately.

Serious meetings for the PM to investigate issues and take decisions cannot be on TV in front of the DAs (devolved administrations) or with loads of ministers.

Dominic Cummings said: Cobras are 'hopeless as decision making entities'

16. ‘No papers go to PM on anything related to C19… I will hire who I want to sort this nightmare out’

Email from Dominic Cummings to No10 officials and advisers to the PM (May 3, 2020)

We’re wasting far too much time in crap meetings. We are not using the PM’s time well. Changes from tomorrow.

Dominic Cummings said: 'We’re wasting far too much time in crap meeting'

1. No papers go to PM on anything related to C19 including from CABOFF [Cabinet Office] and HMT [HM’s Treasury] unless they are cleared by [No10 official Tom] Shinner or me - NOBODY ELSE.

2. Any Chair brief on anything related to C19 including CABOFF and HMT must be cleared by Shinner or me - NOBODY ELSE. They must be much more rigorous in setting out key decisions and probing the problems in plans. No more vague ‘how confident are you…’ more: What % chance is there you will have done X by date Y. They must set out why alternatives were rejected. They must justify why plan X if not the same as what more successful countries are doing. *Inform the Secretariat today that they are welcome to feed in ideas but from now on these Chair briefs are written by No10, NOT THEM.*

3. Papers for PM meetings must arrive the night before the meeting unless I say it’s OK

4. Shinner - hire whoever else you think you need, don’t write ‘business cases’ for or to anybody, just get them ASAP, ignore PET, Clare [Brunton] will deal with PET. CABOFF does not control No20 hiring, I will hire who I want to sort this nightmare out.

5. We must start cancelling meetings and tell the PM - this is cancelled because X cannot produce a document for us to consider.

6. I will chair a very short discussion each day on what meetings are happening with PM when - Clare/Stuart [Glassborow]/Shinner/Imran [Shafi] as a rule. E.g. tomorrow morning must have 3-6 month testing plan in as per PM demand. And we must review test-track-trace with PM and CHX on Tuesday after we’ve proved tomorrow. Clare pls re-send the forward look to this group of 5. All review this afternoon.

7. These changes connect to some physical shifts of people around the building that Clare will update on.

Please copy Alex B. If anybody disagrees with any of this do not reply on this text, text me and I’ll talk to you this afternoon. Otherwise I expect these changes to be made immediately. I am also going to recommend personnel and other structural changes to the PM across No10/CABOFF. Without radical changes further disasters are guaranteed.

Sophie Huskisson