Coronavirus: how the UK’s response to expert advice compares with other EU countries

Germany and Sweden followed their scientists to the letter - with very different outcomes

Boris Johnson and Chief Medical Officer Chris Whitty leave a Downing Street press briefing
Germany and Sweden have followed their scientists to the letter - with very different outcomes
(Image credit: Toby Melville/Pool/AFP via Getty Images)

With the UK topping the EU table that no country wants to lead, Downing Street is facing growing pressure to curb the nation’s rising Covid-19 death toll.

After coming under fire for failing to act quickly during the early weeks of the coronavirus pandemic, No. 10 is facing further flak following the publication of documents that show the government has ignored advice from its senior scientific advisers.

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Joe Evans is the world news editor at TheWeek.co.uk. He joined the team in 2019 and held roles including deputy news editor and acting news editor before moving into his current position in early 2021. He is a regular panellist on The Week Unwrapped podcast, discussing politics and foreign affairs. 

Before joining The Week, he worked as a freelance journalist covering the UK and Ireland for German newspapers and magazines. A series of features on Brexit and the Irish border got him nominated for the Hostwriter Prize in 2019. Prior to settling down in London, he lived and worked in Cambodia, where he ran communications for a non-governmental organisation and worked as a journalist covering Southeast Asia. He has a master’s degree in journalism from City, University of London, and before that studied English Literature at the University of Manchester.