Prime minister Rishi Sunak giving evidence at the Covid inquiry
Rishi Sunak jumped at the first opportunity to throw his former boss, Boris Johnson, under the bus, describing him as the ‘ultimate, sole decision maker’ during the pandemic.
It is finally his turn to be questioned at the Covid inquiry over his actions during the pandemic amid claims that government scientists had labelled him ‘Dr Death’.
The prime minister, who was a chancellor at the time, is facing allegations his Eat Out to Help Out scheme fuelled the spread of coronavirus, resulting in a spike in both cases and deaths.
Some boos were heard as the Tory politician – who is also facing a rebellion over his controversial Rwanda migrant bill – got out of his car and walked up the steps into Dorland House.
One person was heard shouting, ‘Lives are more important than money’, but the PM did not seem to blink an eye.
Hugo Keith KC kicked off Sunak’s evidence with ‘some forensic building blocks’, putting forward his previous statements that he does not have WhatsApp texts from the period.
The politician, who described himself as ‘not a prolific WhatsApp user’, repeated: ‘I have changed my phone multiple times over the past few years.’
Eat Out to Help Out formed part of his summer economic update on July 8, 2020, but it is claimed that the consequences vastly outstripped its short-term economic benefits.
It provided 50% off the cost of food and/or non-alcoholic drinks in a bid to boost the struggling hospitality sector.
Sunak will also be probed on allegations that scientists were not consulted before it was launched.
Former deputy chief medical officer Professor Sir Jonathan Van-Tam stressed that Eat Out to Help Out ‘didn’t feel sensible’ because it was encouraging exactly what officials had been trying to stop in previous months.
Giving evidence, Sir Patrick Vallance, who was chief scientific adviser, said the plan was ‘highly likely’ to have fuelled deaths.
He added that he and Sir Chris Whitty, England’s chief medical officer, could not recall being consulted in advance about it in advance.
One of Sir Patrick’s diary entries also recorded Dominic Cummings, who was Boris Johnson’s chief adviser in Downing Street at the time, saying Mr Sunak ‘thinks just let people die and that’s OK’.
The PM is the final witness to take the stand in the current phase of the inquiry – following on from Boris Johnson and Matt Hancock.
MORE : Paper Talk: Rishi fighting for survival ahead of potential Tory rebellion
MORE : Dry weather to provide some respite as Storm Fergus heads away from UK
MORE : UK earmarks £700m for small boat arrivals until 2030
MORE : Hamas threatens hostages as Netanyahu says group’s end is near