The Chair of the UK Covid Inquiry, Baroness Heather Hallett, has published her second report which concludes that the response to the pandemic by the United Kingdom’s four governments was often a case of ‘too little, too late’.
The report, ‘Core UK decision-making and political governance’ (Module 2), also concludes that while the various lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 undoubtedly saved lives, they only became inevitable because of the acts and omissions of all governments. The devolved administrations were too reliant on the UK government to lead the response.
Baroness Hallett is calling for the prompt and thorough implementation of 19 key recommendations. The recommendations must be considered during the development of all future pandemic preparedness strategies.
They include the need for urgent reform and clarification of the structures for decision-making during emergencies within each of the four governments.
Other key recommendations include ensuring that decisions and their implications are clearly communicated to the public – laws and guidance must be easy to understand. There should be greater Parliamentary scrutiny of the use of emergency powers as well as improved consideration in an emergency of the impact that decisions might have on those most at risk.
"In early 2020, Covid-19 was a novel and deadly virus spreading rapidly around the country. All four governments failed to appreciate the scale of the threat or the urgency of response it demanded.
"When they did realise the scale of the threat, politicians and administrators in the UK government and the devolved administrations were presented with unenviable choices as to how to respond. Whatever decision they took there was often no right answer or good outcome. They also had to make decisions in conditions of extreme pressure. Nonetheless, I can summarise my findings of the response as ‘too little, too late’.
"The Inquiry has therefore identified a number of key lessons learned to inform the response to a future pandemic. In all, I make 19 key recommendations that I believe will better protect the UK in any future pandemic and improve decision-making in a crisis," commented Baroness Hallett.
A eight page brief summary of the report can be found on the Inquiry’s website and is available in a variety of languages and accessible formats.
