Matt Hancock: Leaked texts show clashes between ministers

Former wellness caput Matt Hancock tried to bypass the acquisition caput to person schools closed successful December 2020, The Daily Telegraph has reported.

In leaked WhatsApp messages, Mr Hancock described Sir Gavin Williamson battling "tooth and nail" to support schools open, a argumentation helium disagreed with.

Primary schools returned connected 4 January 2021, lone for the closure of each schools to beryllium announced that evening.

It comes amid a slew of stories related to acquisition resulting from the leaks.

The Telegraph was passed much than 100,000 messages sent betwixt ministers and officials during the pandemic by writer Isabel Oakeshott.

A vocal professional of lockdowns, Ms Oakeshott obtained them portion helping Mr Hancock constitute his book, Pandemic Diaries. The writer has said she broke a non-disclosure statement to merchandise the messages due to the fact that they are "in the nationalist interest".

The BBC has not seen oregon independently verified the WhatsApp messages nor the discourse successful which they were sent.

A spokesperson for Mr Hancock said the leaks connection "partial accounts, evidently spun with an agenda".

One speech connected 28 December 2020 appears to amusement Mr Hancock messaging an adjutant during a video gathering with then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson to sermon rising Covid cases.

At that point, the program was for each superior schools to instrumentality arsenic mean successful January, and for the opening of secondary schools to beryllium delayed by 2 weeks to let clip for wide investigating to beryllium acceptable up.

Mr Hancock describes Sir Gavin arsenic battling "tooth and nail" to support schools unfastened and "going perfectly gangbusters" implicit the issue.

"He's freaking out. You tin archer helium isn't being wholly rational... conscionable by his assemblage language", Mr Hancock's aide, Emma Dean, wrote.

"I'm having to crook the measurement down", Mr Hancock responded.

Later, having seemingly failed to transportation the premier curate that schools should enactment shut, Mr Hancock wrote: "The adjacent U-turn is born."

He past adds: "I privation to find a way, Gavin having won the day, of really preventing a argumentation car clang erstwhile the kids dispersed the illness successful January. And for that we indispensable present combat a rearguard action."

Mr Hancock past contacted Dan Rosenfield, Mr Johnson's main of staff, to sermon however to "avoid the car clang we person conscionable acceptable up for January".

In an speech connected 1 January, arsenic Covid cases continued to rise, Mr Hancock described Sir Gavin arsenic having had to devour "a batch of humble pie".

On 3 January, the premier curate repeatedly insisted that "schools are safe" connected BBC One's Andrew Marr Show.

But the adjacent day, hours aft pupils returned to the classrooms, helium announced the closure of each schools and colleges, arsenic they "may enactment arsenic vectors for transmission".

Messages betwixt Mr Hancock and Sir Gavin successful May 2020 besides amusement them discussing a shortage of idiosyncratic protective instrumentality (PPE) for schools.

Sir Gavin said helium wanted to marque definite the PPE was provided truthful that schools "can't usage [the shortfall] arsenic a crushed not to open" and that immoderate would privation to usage it arsenic "an excuse to debar having to teach".

That October, Sir Gavin announced that A-level exams would beryllium delayed by respective weeks, a shorter play than immoderate teaching unions had called for.

"Cracking announcement today," wrote Mr Hancock to Sir Gavin. "What a clump of implicit arses the teaching unions are."

Sir Gavin replied: "I cognize they truly really bash conscionable hatred work."

Mr Hancock responded with immoderate emojis of a idiosyncratic laughing and different of a dart hitting a bullseye.

In a statement, the Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) said the "sneering exchange" showed "an appalling deficiency of respect for teachers".

"We perpetually had to sense-check and disentangle the reams of confused guidance they issued, and were often wrong-footed by bizarre argumentation decisions which were past followed by an inevitable U-turn."

Writing on Twitter pursuing the work of the texts, Sir Gavin said helium wanted to "clarify that these messages were astir immoderate Unions and not teachers".

"I person the utmost respect for teachers who enactment tirelessly to enactment students," helium wrote. "During the pandemic, teachers went supra and beyond during precise challenging times."

Other leaked messages purportedly showed that children who tested affirmative for Covid-19, but whitethorn not person really had the disease, were sent location anyhow due to the fact that officials did not privation to "unpick" a argumentation that had already been written.

When schools returned aft the 3rd lockdown successful March 2021, authorities argumentation said that a kid who tested affirmative with a lateral travel trial should isolate for 10 days, adjacent if they aboriginal tested antagonistic with a PCR, a much reliable test.

Mr Hancock asked advisers to look into the contented but was told that the argumentation had been "written and distributed and schools prepared" and that it would beryllium "difficult to unpick now".

Only 3 weeks later, connected 30 March, the argumentation was so "unpicked", and schools were told that a affirmative lateral travel trial should beryllium confirmed by a PCR.

A spokesperson for Matt Hancock said: "These are partial accounts, evidently spun with an agenda. They amusement Matt was focussed passim connected redeeming lives. The close spot for a afloat appraisal is the Inquiry".

The leaks besides look to amusement that an August 2020 alteration successful authorities argumentation requiring secondary pupils successful England to deterioration look masks was introduced chiefly to debar a enactment with the Scottish government.

England's main aesculapian officer, Sir Chris Whitty, had reportedly been ambivalent astir the request for the measure. Following its introduction successful Scotland, Mr Johnson posted successful a WhatsApp radical asking whether UK authorities would request to alteration its stance.

Downing Street's manager of communications, Lee Cain, warned that "nervous parents would freak out" if Scotland's illustration was not followed, portion Sir Chris said determination were nary beardown reasons for oregon against the policy, and that the contented was "not worthy an argument".