“An insult to working people” – TUC slams government for failing to fully cooperate on Covid public inquiry
- Conservative government has “serious questions to answer” on missing Covid public inquiry evidence – TUC
The TUC has today (Wednesday) slammed the Conservative government for dragging its heels on the Covid public inquiry and failing to properly cooperate, after the Cabinet Office was granted a last-minute extension to provide evidence.
Chair of the inquiry, Baroness Hallet, criticised the Cabinet Office for refusing to hand over unredacted WhatsApp messages from Boris Johnson and his advisers.
But now the Cabinet Office is claiming to not have the full evidence – including the unredacted WhatsApp messages.
The TUC says the government’s failure to properly cooperate with the inquiry is an “insult to working people up and down the country”.
The union body adds that the Cabinet Office and government have “serious questions to answer” about the status and whereabouts of the missing documents.
TUC Assistant General Secretary, Kate Bell said:
“The Conservative government is refusing to properly cooperate on the Covid public inquiry.
“It’s an insult to working people up and down the country – including the millions of key workers that put their lives on the line during the pandemic.
“The government’s failure to hand over key documents in a timely manner is either a deliberate attempt to delay the inquiry or sheer incompetence.
“Ministers now have serious questions to answer on the status and whereabouts of missing evidence.
“They owe it to every single person in the UK to ensure openness and transparency from those who took the decisions.
“It’s time to learn the lessons of the pandemic. This inquiry is too important for the government delay and obstruct. It must cooperate fully and provide all of the evidence.”
The TUC has core participant status in the inquiry. It will be giving evidence on the UK’s pandemic preparedness when the inquiry’s first module begins on June 13.
