A lockdown was given “very little thought” ahead of the pandemic and there was a failure to consider the “potentially massive impact” it might have, the Covid-19 Inquiry has heard.
There was also a lack of forethought around some of the major areas of life affected by the outbreak of a coronavirus pandemic, the inquiry’s lead counsel, Hugo Keith KC, said as the probe opened on Tuesday.
He told the inquiry’s first public hearing that, while it might now seem “extraordinary” given the experience the UK has had, there had been “very little debate pre-pandemic” around whether a lockdown might be necessary and how it could be avoided.
Meanwhile Pete Weatherby KC, representing Covid Bereaved Families for Justice UK, said evidence that will be presented to the inquiry is likely to show “a lack of responsibility in Government...with little or no ministerial leadership”.
He said the families he represents believe this led to a slow reaction to a pandemic where “lost time is measured in lost lives”.
Their comments came as key participants in the inquiry made opening statements.Presided over by Baroness Heather Hallett, the probe is set to last years and cost more than £100million, as it examines the nation’s response to the pandemic.
