Boris Johnson: Deadline approaches to hand over WhatsApps to Covid inquiry

The authorities has until 4pm to manus implicit Boris Johnson's unredacted WhatsApp messages and diary entries to the Covid inquiry.

The erstwhile PM is among those who volition springiness grounds to the inquiry, which is owed to commencement hearings successful 2 weeks.

The Cabinet Office has fixed the enquiry Mr Johnson's messages but with galore parts blanked out, oregon redacted.

The enquiry says failing to merchandise the unredacted worldly would beryllium a transgression offence.

The worldly includes 24 notebooks with contemporaneous notes, arsenic good arsenic WhatsApp messages betwixt Mr Johnson and furniture ministers, advisors and elder civilian servants.

Downing Street has said immoderate of the worldly is "unambiguously irrelevant" to the inquiry, specified arsenic idiosyncratic messages oregon contented not related to the pandemic, and that the enquiry does not person the powerfulness to compel the authorities to disclose it.

It has raised concerns this could acceptable an unwelcome precedent and person a "potential adverse interaction connected argumentation formulation successful the future".

However, crossbench adjacent Broness Hallett, who is chairing the Covid inquiry, said it was her role, not that of the government, to determine what was relevant.

She said passages initially assessed by the Cabinet Office to beryllium irrelevant included discussions betwixt the premier curate and his advisers astir the enforcement of Covid regulations by the Metropolitan Police during protests pursuing the execution of Sarah Everard.

She said those redactions had present been removed but "it was not a promising start".

The authorities has not officially said however it volition respond but Whitehall sources person made wide ministers are assured successful their position.

The authorities is acrophobic the unredacted messages would uncover idiosyncratic accusation and breach privateness requirements.

It could pb to a ineligible conflict betwixt the authorities and inquiry, with the courts deciding what worldly is made available.

The enquiry is owed to statesman nationalist hearings successful 2 weeks time, starting with sessions connected the country's preparedness for a pandemic.

It aims to place lessons from the government's handling of the pandemic, looking astatine issues including the usage of lockdowns, the interaction of Covid connected children and healthcare workers and the extortion of the clinically vulnerable.

The erstwhile caput of the civilian service, Lord Kerslake said the Cabinet Office's presumption connected Mr Johnson's messages was "misguided".

The erstwhile Labour advisor told BBC Radio 4's Today programme: "There's immoderate cover-up going connected present to prevention embarrassment of ministers.

"But there's besides the Cabinet Office warring for a rule of confidentiality."

He said it could acceptable a "helpful precedent" if the enquiry won the close to merchandise the material.

"We are successful a spot of a messiness astatine the moment, we don't truly cognize whether WhatsApp's been utilized arsenic a decision-making instrumentality or, indeed, arsenic conscionable an information-sharing device," helium added.

The Liberal Democrats said failing to manus implicit the worldly successful afloat would "make a mockery" of the process and would beryllium "yet different insult to bereaved families".

The party's wellness spokeswoman Daisy Cooper said: "It looks similar Rishi Sunak is excessively disquieted astir upsetting Boris Johnson and his allies to bash the close thing."

Campaign groups representing bereaved families person said it is "outrageous" that the Cabinet Office thinks it tin dictate what worldly tin beryllium released.

Labour has besides called for the unredacted worldly to beryllium released truthful "those liable tin beryllium held to account".

A Cabinet Office spokesperson said it was "fully committed" to its obligations to the enquiry and continued to supply each applicable material.

Last week Mr Johnson said helium would nary longer enactment with authorities lawyers for the inquiry, aft Cabinet Office officials referred him to the constabulary implicit further imaginable regularisation breaches during the pandemic.

After reviewing Mr Johnson's authoritative diary arsenic portion of the documents to beryllium submitted to the nationalist inquiry, civilian servants passed the worldly to the police.

The Cabinet Office said officials had been obliged to disclose the documents nether civilian work rules.