Rishi Sunak presented patently obviously absurd explanation as to why he had, mysteriously, lost his WhatsApp messages after raising a legal challenge to the demand that they be submitted to the inquiry. His suggestion was that when swapping phones data had not been transferred, which transfer is an issue so basic it is impossible to believe that his claim was true. And yet, despite the powers that the inquiry has available to it, it is apparent that this matter is going to be dropped.
Sunak's inability to recall more than twenty critical events, many of which he must have been intimately involved with, was also left effectively uncommented upon. He was allowed to say that he did not recall, and the inquiry moved on, however implausible such a string of answers obviously was.
Most tellingly, when one barrister was slightly aggressive in his tone of questioning, he was ruled out of order. At that moment, you knew why the chair of the enquiry had been chosen. This now looks horribly like an immensely expensive and deliberate time-delaying whitewash.
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This public inquiry desperately needs to become a police inquiry in the future then we might get some real answers a maybe a prosecution or three..
I thought the one that slipped under the radar was that that for a “micro policy” the government would not normally consult experts on the non-financial consequences of the scheme. A bit like “mini budgets”
Surely there should also be some medics questioning whether people with this level of amnesia are suitable to be in charge of a whelk stall let alone running the country.
Disagree, the repeated I can’t remember is the closest that we get to an admission in any setting. The official report may cover over this, but it is definitely out there. That the Tory press are question the process suggests that it is hitting home. If I picked up any lessons from these sessions is that the civil service were to a certain extent sidelined. There are questions to be had about the diversity of the civil service but this whole shitshow could have been a lot worse if we had totally political civil service.
In essence not a credible witness. Waiting for the montage of I can’t recall.
I’ve been following the covid inquiry in the what now seems vain hope that we still have a semblance of democracy and accountability in this, our blighted country.
But, it would seem the inquiry has mutely accepted that the two most powerful people in the land, Boris Johnson and Rishi Sunak, have hidden their correspondence during the most critical phase of the covid pandemic; and doing so brazenly and deliberately, without even attempting to provide a coherent and reasonable explanation.
Somewhere, someone, has decided not to pursue this avenue of investigation. Someone, somewhere, is choosing to ignore the obvious fact that there are technical and forensic methods of retrieving the missing messages, and that even without technical intervention, the recipients of all those messages, and the members of the WhatsApp groups will still have copies of all the exchanges.
I’m afraid yesterday’s pathetic acceptance of Sunak’s gaslighting has robbed me of any hope that this inquiry will hold those accountable.
I noticed the same cues. The Inquiry Counsel, who is a courteous, silky, velvet voiced Boerboel, with specially serrated incisors; when off the leash, has as we have moved up the food chain, from Spads and civil servants to senior politicians, seemed gradually to be held on a shorter lead (subjectively at least to this observer): and when in sharp pursuit, occasionally and firmly – swiftly called off.
I have to say I have not drawn your conclusion that it now looks like a ‘whitewash’.
Exactly
Thank you, Richard.
My father, a doctor and more, served in the RAF for nearly 30 years and headed one of their medical services towards the end of his career, early 1990s. One of his predecessors was a member of the Balfour family, so well connected. From time to time my dad and this particular CO investigated air accidents and assisted the civil authorities. Dad often recalls what Balfour said about public inquiries. The choice of chair and terms of reference have already baked in the conclusions. The CO added that it was neither their job, nor the time and place to comment on leading questions, comments. Some time later, the Stalker affair erupted. It was asked if Stalker did not know what his job was. We have always felt that this inquiry would be a whitewash.
To be honest I’m not sure about the outcome of the enquiry at all. Public opinion has done enough damage to the Tories already and much of it self inflicted by the Tories themselves.
What is worse is that the outcome is not just about the Tories who are nothing but a state demolition team and should have been rumbled by the British public ages ago.
It’s about our unfit-for-purpose democracy:-
How the Tories have been funded and outspend other democratic challengers;
How the Labour party itself undermined a populist leader who came close to turning the Tory tide but essentially kept the Tories in power.
The true symbiotic reality of the relationship between the Tory party and Labour – they have more in common than they both portray. So much for choice and change.
Capture of democracy by money-power.
Nevermind how stupid Hancock, Sunak or Johnson are made to look – these are some of the real issues that tragically will not be unearthed by this ‘enquiry’.
I think he was playing to the elderly Tory voter base many of whom will believe his ridiculous WhatsApp explanation because they can just about text.
His testimony was laughable in so many places. I don’t have a great memory, but can vividly remember the times around key lockdown decisions. And you would expect him to gone over these times in his preparation.
I really hope Hugo Keith did not push further because he knew he was not going to get any sense and his supposed memory lapses looked so ridiculous, they spoke for themselves.
I had a low opinion of Rishi Sunak and it’s sunk even lower. He is charmless, unpleasant and dangerous, with an extremely overinflated view of his abilities.
“He wasn’t told.”
Every Civil Servant should know and understand the State’s “Retention and Disposal” policy. Anyone who can search the [gov dot uk] website can find out what the policy means in practice. (Disposal does *not* mean “destruction”.)
“He wasn’t told”.
The UK’s PM apparently has no personal agency to enable him to find out. He has no sense of history (and he’s a Conservative) or knowledge of The National Archives that might have made him wonder how the archive material actually ends up in Kew.
“He wasn’t told.”
His personal fiefdom and he can’t even ensure his legacy is recorded for history.
“He wasn’t told.”
So he claims being unable to retrieve his WhatsApp messages. Surely then he would have no objection handing his phone over to GCHQ or a professional who can.
Quite so….
Or having a formal request made to WhatsApp
I remarked when Cummings was giving evidence that – with the focus on style (Cummings swearing etc), the enquiry was basically “performative”.
The non-examination of Sunak falls into “going through the motions”/performative. The end result of the enquiry will be anodyne because anything else would be to condemn the English establishment & civil service, and we cna’t have that, can we!!
Dr Devi Sridhar gives her take on the Inquiry in The Guardian and largely shares the views of this forum, but seen from the scientist’s perspective, so a more balanced summary than you’ll find in most of the media: https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2023/dec/12/political-blame-game-covid-inquiry-pandemic
Thanks Ken
If I won the lottery I’d privately prosecute the lot for the unnecessary deaths of 120k people.
You don’t need to win the lottery. Everyone on here, and friends, can donate to covidaction.
https://covidaction.uk/event/covid-inquiry-module-2-with-elkan-abrahamson/
I watched this last night. It should be on their youtube channel tomorrow or the next day. It’s worth watching to see how Abrahamson intends to speak for covid bereaved families.
https://www.jacksonlees.co.uk/BroudieJacksonCanter/services/covid-inquiry
David Byrne says..
Straight out of Yes Minister/Prime Minister. It is difficult to decide whether or not the COVID Enquiry is more entertaining.
Are you watching or listening to it? The covid inquiry is certainly nothing like Yes, Minister.
The submissions today are all about what Johnson and Sunak did wrong according to the groups affected, like the Scottish, Welsh and Irish devolved administrations, who were not considered important enough to be asked to join Cobra groups.
You might change your mind if you did listen to it.
It’s not up to the Inquiry whether Johnson and Hancock are taken to court. That will come afterwards. Unfortunately this inquiry goes on until 2016.
Heather Hallett has just returned and told everyone that Drakeford has resigned.
I thought the purpose of the enquiry was to “learn the lessons” from the pandemic. One of the lessons must surely be that keeping accurate records of the decision process is vital — and yet nobody thought to ask Sunak what procedures have been put in place to ensure that Ministerial messages never go missing again. Whitewash indeed.
This module is about what happened in the past. Another module is about what should happen in the future.