Sunak and Johnson pushed repeatedly against autumn lockdown, inquiry told

The then chancellor, Rishi Sunak, on 7 August 2020 placing an ‘eat out to help out’ sticker in the window of a business during a visit to the Isle of Bute, Scotland. Photograph: Jeff J Mitchell/PA

Rishi Sunak and Boris Johnson pushed repeatedly against lockdown measures during the second wave of Covid in autumn 2020, with the government’s chief scientist accusing the then chancellor of using “spurious” arguments against new rules, the inquiry into the pandemic has heard.

In a day of evidence that placed increasing focus on Sunak’s role, the inquiry also heard that his flagship “eat out to help out” hospitality scheme was imposed without consulting the government’s Covid taskforce, leaving officials “blindsided” by the Treasury.