Covid inquiry: chaos at No.10 from the very top down
'Hair-raising' testimony shows the Covid response was 'a terrible, tragic joke'

“Even given all that is already known about poor decision-making, avoidable deaths, lockdown-breaking parties and atrocious procurement” during the pandemic, the evidence being heard at the Covid Inquiry still has the power to shock, said The Guardian.
This week, Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, testified, and his testimony was as damning as expected. Cummings said that the Government’s initial plan for dealing with Covid was a “joke”. He described the Cabinet Office, at the heart of No. 10, as a “dumpster fire”. Official data, he said, was inconsistent and communication failures were rife; he called Johnson’s absence on holiday in February 2020, as Covid loomed, “insane”.
'A toxic culture'
Cummings’ evidence was certainly hair-raising, said The Times. In his WhatsApp messages, he described the then health secretary Matt Hancock as “slippery”, “useless” and a “c***”. He suggested that the cabinet were “useless fuckpigs”. When asked by the Inquiry’s KC, Hugo Keith, whether his language was too “trenchant”, he said no: if anything, he had “understated” the issue.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Certainly, Johnson has come off badly in the Inquiry, said Tim Stanley in The Daily Telegraph. There was a sharp intake of breath when it was reported that the PM said his party believed “Covid is nature’s way of dealing with old people – and I am not entirely sure I disagree with them”. But listening to Cummings’ ravings, one did begin to wonder if perhaps “Dom was himself part of the problem”. He helped install a man he called the “shopping trolley” – because he veered around so much – in office. He created a toxic culture, sending foul messages calling ministers and civil servants “c***s”.
'Wrong crisis for this PM's skill set'
Besides, all the back-stabbing rather distracts from the real issues, said an editorial in The Daily Telegraph. Such as: “Were the lockdowns the right way to handle the pandemic or not?” Cummings criticised Johnson for not locking down decisively. “But Johnson was doing what most of us faced with such a crisis would do, which is to ask questions and show a healthy scepticism.” Locking down was, to put it mildly, a big decision. With hindsight, his doubts were well-founded.
But it wasn’t just Cummings who had it in for Johnson, said Sean O’Grady in The Independent. “Everyone” in No. 10, it seems, called him “the trolley”. Simon Case, Britain’s top civil servant, said the Covid response was “a terrible, tragic joke” because Johnson “cannot lead”. “The team captain cannot change the call on the big plays every day... IT HAS TO STOP.” Patrick Vallance, the chief scientific adviser, noted that Johnson was “weak and indecisive”. Lee Cain, the PM’s spokesman, gave his gently devastating verdict when he testified this week: “It was the wrong crisis for this prime minister’s skill set.” Whatever the Inquiry concludes, it looks likely to be fatal to Johnson’s reputation, which now resembles “one of those neglected statues of forgotten statespeople covered in guano”.
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
Bad Bunny: Why MAGA is incensed
Feature The NFL announced Latino artist Bad Bunny as the Super Bowl halftime headliner, sparking MAGA outrage
-
Supreme Court: Judging 20 years of Roberts
Feature Two decades after promising to “call balls and strikes,” Chief Justice John Roberts faces scrutiny for reshaping American democracy
-
Venezuela: Does Trump want war?
Feature Donald Trump has accused Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro of leading a drug cartel and waging a narco-terrorism campaign against the United States
-
Shutdown: Are Democrats fighting the right battle?
Feature Democrats are holding firm on health insurance subsidies as Trump ramps up the pain by freezing funding and vowing to cut more jobs
-
Two years on, a Gaza truce may be in sight
Feature Israel and Hamas consider the U.S.’ 20-point peace plan exchanging hostages for prisoners
-
Taking the low road: why the SNP is still standing strong
Talking Point Party is on track for a fifth consecutive victory in May’s Holyrood election, despite controversies and plummeting support
-
The GOP: Merging flag and cross
Feature Donald Trump has launched a task force to pursue “anti-Christian policies”
-
Taking aim at Venezuela’s autocrat
Feature The Trump administration is ramping up military pressure on Nicolás Maduro. Is he a threat to the U.S.?