06 December 2023 , 17:23
1299
0
Boris Johnson has admitted he "underestimated" the threat posed by Covid in the early days of the pandemic in early 2020.
The former PM conceded he should have "twigged much sooner" the danger the country faced as he was grilled over his failure to take action as the virus hit. It came as Mr Johnson faced his first full-day interrogation at the Covid Inquiry over the late decision to lockdown the country.
The ex-Tory leader was briefly disrupted as he said sorry for mistakes in the pandemic as four women who lost loved ones in the crisis warned him "the dead can't hear your apologies". When he restarted giving evidence after they were kicked out of the hearing, Mr Johnson said: “I understand the feelings of these victims and their families and I am deeply sorry for the pain and the loss and suffering of those victims and their families.”
Here are the key moments from Mr Johnson's gruelling day of evidence.
Boris Johnson has been hauled before the Covid Inquiry to account for his pandemic failings (POOL/AFP via Getty Images)Boris Johnson missed key meeting when top medic warned about pandemic risk
Boris Johnson failed to attend a crucial meeting when the country’s top medic warned coronavirus could become a pandemic. The former PM skipped five meetings of the COBRA emergency committee in January and February 2020 as the virus spread.
Michelle Mone's husband gifted Tories 'over £171k' as Covid PPE row rumbles on
Mr Johnson told the inquiry it was not clear if it was “going to turn into a typhoon or not” as he defended his decision not to chair a COBRA meeting until March 2020. Chief Medical Officer Professor Sir Chris Whitty raised concerns the virus could spread to the UK at a meeting on January 29, 2020 that Mr Johnson did not attend.
The minutes recorded: “The CMO said that the UK planning assumptions were based on the reasonable worst case scenario. There were two scenarios to be considered. The first was that the spread was confined within China, the second was that the spread was not limited to China and there would be a pandemic like scenario, with the UK impacted. The second scenario was plausible but it may take weeks to months.”
Hugo Keith KC, lead counsel, asked Mr Johnson: “The question is why were you the Prime Minister not being told directly this is a virus, which if it escapes China will result in a pandemic. “There is information already that it has a very serious fatality rate and a very serious hospitalisation rate. Why was that? Basic light bulb information not brought to your attention so that you can see the true nature of this emerging crisis.”
Mr Johnson said: “I can't give you the exact reason why the detail of the Cobra was not brought to my attention.”
WhatsApp warning Covid would ‘sweep world’ days before his holiday
A bombshell WhatsApp shows Boris Johnson was warned that Covid would “sweep world” days before he went on holiday. The former PM took a 10-day break during the February half term in 2020 when he received no briefings on the virus.
On February 6, Dominic Cummings posted a stark warning in a WhatsApp group including Mr Johnson. "Need briefing on corona tmrw. Chief scientist told me today it's prob out of control now and will sweep world. Will be major comms exercise,” he wrote.
Lord Lister, the No10 chief-of-staff, the next morning on February 7, added: "The COBRA meeting was I think clear that China is probably loosing (sic) it." Mr Johnson replied: "Yes please. Need to talk about coronavirus comms at 9". Despite the warnings, Mr Johnson went on holiday a week later on February 14.
The inquiry has heard that he received no emails, Cobra briefings or written papers about Covid for 10 days during the February 2020 half term - even though the first cases of the virus had already been found in Britain. The PM spent the break at Chevening, the grace-and-favour mansion in Kent.
Dominic Cummings has claimed he wanted to work on a book he is writing about Shakespeare, although he has denied this. Appearing at the inquiry, Mr Johnson insisted it “wasn’t a long holiday that I took” and said he returned to Downing Street three times during the break including for telephone calls with President Xi of China and US President Donald Trump.
Protesters and bereaved family members holding pictures of the victims of coronavirus outside the Covid-19 Inquiry (Vuk Valcic/ZUMA Press Wire/REX/Shutterstock)Shaking hands and Cheltenham Festival were mistakes
Shaking hands with patients at the Royal Free Hospital at the beginning of the pandemic was a mistake, the former PM finally admitted. At a press conference in early March 2020 Mr Johnson had boasted: "I was at a hospital the other night where I think there were actually a few coronavirus patients. And I shook hands with everybody you'll be pleased to know".
500 deaths is criminal and you can't blame it on strikers - Voice of the Mirror
But he told the Covid Inquiry on Wednesday: "I shouldn't have done that, in retrospect, and I should have been more precautionary - but I wanted to be encouraging to people."
The former Tory leader also acknowledged mass gatherings should have been stopped earlier. Racing's Cheltenham Festival took place with spectators from March 10, while Liverpool hosted Atletico Madrid on March 11.
The former PM said the advice against cancelling mass gatherings - that it would result in more people crowding into pubs to watch sport rather than being outside at a stadium - " sounded reasonable at the time". But, he told the Inquiry: "With hindsight, as a symbol of government earnestness rather than just being guided by the science, we should perhaps have done that."
Not enough women in blokey Downing Street
Evidence previously provided to the Inquiry by the former Deputy Cabinet Secretary Helen MacNamara has previously criticised the "macho" culture in No10. In her witness statement the most senior female civil servant at the time said this led "significant negative consequences" including a lack of thought given to school closures or childcare and guidance for pregnant women.
"There was a disproportionate amount of attention given to more male pursuits in terms of the impact of restrictions and then the lessening of the same (footbally, hunting, shooting and fishing)," she added.
Speaking at the Inquiry Mr Johnson admitted: "I think that the gender balance of my team should have been better. I think sometimes during the meeting too many meetings were too male-dominated, if I'm absolutely honest with you".
Last month it also emerged Mr Cummings had called the senior official a "c***" and said "that woman must be out of our hair" in a horrific WhatsApp message.
Mr Johnson told the Inquiry he called Ms MacNamara to apologise for not calling it out at the time. He said: "I don't remember seeing it at the time, but I must have seen it because I was on the group. I have rang Helen MacNamara to apologise to her for not having called it out."
Matt Hancock wasn't sacked over fears replacement might be worse
Boris Johnson said he thought about sacking Matt Hancock but decided he was doing a "good job" and there was no guarantee he would be "trading up". A number of senior aides and scientists have complained to the Inquiry about his competence as Health Secretary - saying he often overpromised or lied to people about the reality of the situation.
But Mr Johnson said Mr Hancock was "doing a good job" in very difficult circumstances and he felt it wouldn't be worth the disruption to remove him. "I was aware that the DHSC was under fire from loads of people, but that was hardly surprising, because the country was going through a horrific pandemic," he said.
He added: "You've got a lot of very talented sometimes super-confident, sometimes egotistical, people who are crushed with anxiety about what is happening to their country, who are wracked secretly with self-doubt and self-criticism and who externalise that by criticising others. And it's human nature.
Boris Johnson supported Matt Hancock, who has come under criticism from all sides for his performance as Health Secretary (PA)"When you're the leader in those circumstances, your job is to work out what is justified and what is people sounding off and what is political nonsense. And my judgment was that Matt was, on the whole, doing a good job in very difficult circumstances and there was no advantage in moving him as I was being urged to do, that was my judgment."
He denied Dominic Cummings's claim that he kept Mr Hancock on as a sacrificial lamb who could take the fall for the Government's failings in a future Inquiry. But Mr Johnson also failed to back Mr Hancock's claim that he urged Mr Johnson in a private call to impose a lockdown on March 13 2020 - 10 days earlier than the PM eventually did.
The former Health Secretary was unable to provide any written evidence of his claim. Asked if he remembered the call, Mr Johnson said: "I'm afraid I don't, but it's been a long time". He said by the weekend of March 15 he was in "virus fighting mode".
Regrets over calling long Covid 'b*****ks' and 'Gulf War syndrome stuff
The Inquiry has already seen evidence that Boris Johnson repeatedly compared long Covid to Gulf War syndrome, a term referring to unexplained illnesses among veterans of the 1991 war.
One document from October 2020 was highlighted by Hugo Keith KC, where he had scrawled in the margins that long Covid was "b*****ks" and "Gulf War syndrome stuff". Mr Keith said: "You were I think less sympathetic to the needs of those persons suffering from long-term sequela, that is to say, suffering from the condition (known) as long Covid. You questioned for quite some time whether or not that condition truly existed and you equated it to Gulf War syndrome repeatedly, is that fair?"
Mr Johnson replied: "Not really, no. The words I scribbled in the margins of submissions about Long Covid have obviously been publicised and I'm sure they have caused hurt and offence to a huge number of people who do indeed suffer from that syndrome."
"I regret very much using that language," he adds, and suggests he should have thought that the papers would be published. The Inquiry heard that he continued to make disparaging references about whether long Covid was "Gulf War syndrome stuff" in February 2021 and in June 2021.
Mystery of 5,000 WhatsApps missing from old mobile phone
A staggering 5,000 WhatsApp messages from Mr Johnson's phone from a critical phase of the pandemic were unavailable to the Inquiry. The former PM was advised to stop using his old phone in May 2021 after it emerged his mobile number had been freely available online for 15 years.
Earlier this year the device was sent off to experts to retrieve its contents but Hugo Keith KC said "5,000-odd WhatsApps" were missing. The exchanges dated between January and June 2020 - covering the critical period the ex-PM imposed the first nationwide lockdown.
Boris Johnson faced the Covid Inquiry for the first time on Wednesday (UK Covid-19 Inquiry/AFP via Gett)Attempting to explain the situation Mr Johnson told the Inquiry: "I don't know the exact reason, but it looks as though it's something to do with the app going down and then coming up again, but somehow automatically erasing all the things between that date when it went down and the moment when it was last backed up."
Mr Keith said a technical report provided by Mr Johnson's solicitors suggested there may have been a factory reset at the end of January 2020 followed by an attempt to reinstate the contents in June 2020, but the former PM denied knowledge of that.
"I don't remember any such thing," he said. "Can I, for the avoidance of doubt, make it absolutely clear I haven't removed any WhatsApps from my phone and I've given you everything that I think you need."