Families' Heartbreak Contrasts With Government Parties
The official Covid inquiry has laid bare what families describe as the "unforgivable failures" of Boris Johnson's government during the pandemic. The report confirms systematic failures that led to thousands of unnecessary deaths while government officials flouted their own rules.
Professor Andrew Moran from Saffron Walden shared his devastating personal story, revealing how his family lost an aunt and uncle to Covid within one hour of each other in different Manchester hospitals. Their son fought for his life in a third hospital but survived. Six months later, Professor Moran's father was rushed out of hospital during nighttime hours due to Covid fears on the ward and died from the virus two weeks later.
"I could not hug my mother at the funeral because we were not in the same bubble," Professor Moran recalled, describing how they followed strict attendance rules while Boris Johnson and his government were "raising a glass to each other and partying in Whitehall."
Systemic Failures in Early Pandemic Response
The inquiry reveals multiple critical failures in the government's early response. Bryan Pready from Ormskirk described arriving at Gatwick on March 19, 2020, after spending time in Mexico where Covid precautions were already well established. "We expected to see and hear advice about avoiding Covid as soon as we arrived, but there was nothing – not even a poster," he reported, noting the stark contrast with safety measures already implemented in Tulum.
Meanwhile, the Prime Minister was absent from crucial meetings. The report confirms Johnson took four days off as the NHS warned Covid could overwhelm the system. This stands in sharp contrast to former Prime Minister Gordon Brown's handling of the 2007 foot-and-mouth outbreak, where he immediately returned from holiday to chair Cobra meetings and studied hundreds of pages of previous outbreak reports.
Dr Paul Jackson from Charlbury noted that "fewer people would no doubt have died if a similar politician had been in charge during Covid."
Warnings Ignored and Opportunities Missed
Lynne Caddick from Corscombe emphasized that ordinary citizens saw the danger coming long before the government acted. "We watched the warnings from Italy amid the decision to cut off part of the country to stop the spread," she recalled. Despite clear warnings from the World Health Organization and distressing scenes from Italian hospitals, the UK government allowed major events like the Cheltenham races and Champions League football in Liverpool to proceed.
John Robinson from Lichfield expressed the view shared by many that Johnson, along with key figures including Matt Hancock, Dominic Cummings and Rishi Sunak, have "lost the right to play any part in public life in this country." He called for Johnson's taxpayer-funded allowance to be withdrawn along with any public honours.
The inquiry confirms what was evident to many during the pandemic: that delayed decisions, chaotic leadership and rule-breaking at the highest levels contributed significantly to the UK's devastating death toll. As Dr John Beer, vice-president of Hourglass, noted, while the report identifies clear failures, there appears to be little meaningful sanction that will protect the public from similar failures in future crises.
