Explosive leaked documents have revealed that former Prime Minister Boris Johnson took a four-day break from official duties during a critical period in February 2020 when the NHS warned it could be overwhelmed by Covid-19.
The 'Lost Month' in Britain's Pandemic Response
According to official disclosure logs from the Boris Files - a cache of leaked government documents - Johnson enjoyed an extended break during the half-term holidays at Chevening, the governmental estate in Kent. The Covid inquiry has described February 2020 as a 'lost month' in Britain's pandemic response, with planning essentially halting during this period.
The documents show Johnson conducted no official government business on 15, 16, 17 and 21 February 2020, instead spending time walking his jack russell dog Dilyn, riding a motorbike gifted by his now wife Carrie, and hosting friends and family for meals and overnight stays.
Contradictory Evidence Under Oath
When questioned at the Covid inquiry in December 2023 about his activities between 14-24 February 2020, Johnson stated: 'There wasn't a long holiday that I took. I was working throughout the period and the tempo did increase.'
However, the official activity logs appear to directly contradict this evidence given under oath. Entries from 14-24 February make no reference to Johnson working on the Covid response, despite his claims of discussing the virus during scheduled calls with world leaders.
The inquiry's damning report concluded that the UK's response was 'too little, too late' and found that implementing lockdown just one week earlier on 16 March could have saved more than 20,000 lives.
Critical Warnings Ignored During Leisure Activities
On 21 February, as Johnson enjoyed motorcycle rides and walks around Chevening's 3,500-acre grounds, the British government received a crucial briefing about a new cluster of 16 cases in northern Italy. Officials learned that seven patients were in intensive care and none had travelled to China, indicating the virus could no longer be contained.
The same day, NHS England warned that even with mitigation work, the health service could become 'overwhelmed' unless the government made significant interventions to flatten the curve. Despite this urgent warning, lockdown measures wouldn't be implemented in England for more than four weeks.
While Johnson hosted a four-hour dinner with his wife's friend Catherine Humphrey, the inquiry noted the Italian outbreak 'should have prompted urgent planning' in the UK. Instead, the response stalled during what the report called a 'toxic and chaotic' period in Downing Street.
The files indicate Johnson completed just two full days of work during his Chevening break, on 19-20 February. He held a 20-minute call with US President Donald Trump on 20 February, discussing the virus, followed by a three-hour dinner with friends.
On 18 February, Johnson worked for only 40 minutes during a call with Chinese President Xi Jinping, while missing a crucial Cobra emergency committee meeting chaired by then Health Secretary Matt Hancock.
As Johnson entertained his late mother Charlotte Johnson and mother-in-law Josephine McAfee over lunch, Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty told the Cobra meeting that the Covid outbreak could escalate to a global pandemic.
Joe Hurst, spokesperson for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK, described the revelations as 'horrific' and evidence that Johnson 'wasn't taking Covid seriously' and 'putting himself ahead of the country'.
The government eventually announced England's first lockdown on 23 March 2020, by which time confirmed cases had reached 6,726 with 336 deaths. Covid would ultimately be listed on the death certificates of approximately 227,000 people between March 2020 and May 2023.
