UK's pandemic strategy was completely wrong, says Hancock

Ex-health caput Matt Hancock has criticised the UK's pandemic readying earlier Covid hit, saying it was "completely wrong".

He told the Covid Inquiry that readying was focused connected the proviso of assemblage bags and however to hide the dead, alternatively than stopping the microorganism taking hold.

He said helium was "profoundly sorry" for each death.

After giving grounds helium approached immoderate of the bereaved families, but they turned their backs connected him arsenic helium left.

The erstwhile wellness secretary, who answered questions from the enquiry connected Tuesday, said helium understood his apology mightiness beryllium hard for families to accept, adjacent though it was "honest and heartfelt".

He added it was a "colossal" nonaccomplishment to presume the microorganism spreading could not beryllium stopped.

Under questioning from Covid Inquiry counsel subordinate KC Hugo Keith, Mr Hancock stressed that the "attitude, the doctrine of the UK was to program for the consequences of a disaster".

He said the authorities was focused connected antithetic questions, specified arsenic "can we bargain capable assemblage bags?" and "where are we going to hide the dead?"

"That was wholly wrong," helium added.

Mr Keith asked Mr Hancock why, if helium was truthful captious of the UK's attack to pandemic planning, it was not changed portion helium was wellness secretary.

Mr Hancock said: "The lone reply I tin springiness is due to the fact that I was assured that we had the champion strategy successful spot successful the world.

"In hindsight, I privation I'd spent that abbreviated play of clip [before the pandemic] changing the full cognition to however we respond to a pandemic."

When Mr Hancock praised workers crossed wellness and societal attraction during the pandemic, Hugo Keith made the analogy: "Lions led by structural donkeys, Mr Hancock. Personally, everyone gave their each but the strategy was not acceptable for purpose, was it?"

Mr Hancock replied: "That's perfectly right."

The erstwhile wellness caput added: "I carnivore work for each the things that happened, not lone successful my department, but besides the agencies that reported to maine arsenic caput of state."

The enquiry besides heard from the erstwhile wellness caput that medicines for intensive attraction were "within hours" of moving retired astatine the highest of the pandemic.

He said helium had to overrule archetypal proposal not to quarantine radical being brought backmost from Wuhan aboriginal successful the pandemic, and that everybody successful the Western satellite missed that lockdowns would beryllium necessary.

He besides criticised the World Health Organization (WHO) for giving proposal which "stated that we should not person lockdowns".

He said it was "madness" but helium had to "overrule" archetypal proposal not to quarantine radical coming successful from China.

He besides blamed WHO for having "written into the planetary wellness regulations that you shouldn't adjacent borders".

Because determination was "no specified thing" arsenic wide interaction tracing systems arsenic the pandemic took hold, Mr Hancock said the inability to trial radical successful ample numbers was "terrible".

He besides utilized the connection unspeakable to picture the authorities having nary thought whether attraction homes had the close protections successful place.

He said the authorities didn't adjacent cognize however galore attraction location residents determination were astatine the commencement of the pandemic.

However, helium said the work for ensuring the societal attraction assemblage was prepared for a pandemic fell to section authorities, and helium "didn't person the levers to act".

The erstwhile wellness caput was besides repeatedly asked astir the recommendations from Exercise Cygnus, a three-day trial tally successful October 2016 to find retired however prepared the UK was for a influenza pandemic.

It concluded that the UK's program was not capable to "cope with the utmost demands of a terrible pandemic".

The enquiry has seen grounds that lone 8 of the 22 recommendations made aft that workout had been afloat addressed by the clip Covid hit, with enactment connected the different 14, including preparing the societal attraction sector, inactive ongoing.

He described Exercise Cygnus arsenic "flawed successful its cardinal assumption" that a pandemic was a catastrophe that needed to beryllium "cleaned up" alternatively than thing that needed to beryllium stopped oregon contained successful the archetypal place.

He said: "The doctrinal flaw was the biggest by a agelong mode due to the fact that if we'd had a flu pandemic, we inactive would person had the occupation of nary program successful spot for lockdown, nary prep for however to bash one, nary enactment connected what, however champion to fastener down with the slightest damage.

"I recognize profoundly the consequences of lockdown and the antagonistic consequences for many, galore radical - galore of which persist to this day."

Mr Hancock said that immoderate of that enactment connected the Exercise Cygnus had been paused due to the fact that of the request to hole the state for a no-deal Brexit.

But helium said that helium was "not convinced" that, adjacent if each those recommendations had been addressed, the state would person been successful a amended spot to woody with Covid.

As a result, the UK was "better prepared successful presumption of proviso chains," but the "overall impact" was hard to judge.

"I'm acrophobic it's intolerable to know," helium added.

When Mr Hancock archetypal arrived astatine the inquiry, a widow showed him images of her husband, who died from Covid.

Lorelei King, 69, was holding 2 A4 posters, which she showed to the erstwhile wellness caput arsenic helium stepped retired of a achromatic Jaguar.

One poster displayed an representation of Mr Hancock with Mrs King's husband, Vincent Marzello, who died successful a attraction location successful March 2020, aged 72.

"You shook my husband's manus for your photograph op," the photograph was captioned. The different representation showed Mr Marzello's coffin.

Mr Hancock didn't respond arsenic helium walked successful to the building.

Mrs King told journalists: "Care homes became charnel houses due to the fact that determination was nary testing, determination was insufficient PPE, but, astir disastrously, it's due to the fact that they discharged radical from hospitals without investigating them."

She called connected Mr Hancock to "tell the truth" to the inquiry, adding: "The bereaved families merit that much."