The president of the investigation, Heather Hallett, and her team of 12 QCs, have begun working under the terms of the Inquiries Act, which criminalizes the destruction or falsification of evidence. She will be joined by two MPs who will be appointed by Johnson, although she had claimed that she would chair on her own. The start of one of the largest public inquiries in the UK comes just days after activists for the mourners threatened legal action against the government for delaying the prime minister’s commitment to launch an inquiry in the spring of 2022. “Today is a special day for thousands of bereaved families from all over the country,” said Hannah Brady, spokeswoman for the Covid-19 Beeaved Families for Justice campaign. “We can finally start the learning process from the horrible hardships we have suffered, so that we can move forward in our lives and protect others in the future.” The investigation will “examine, examine and report on pandemic preparations and response in England, Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland” and begins as the number of deaths in the UK with Covid on their death certificate approaches 200,000 . In a clear warning to individuals and organizations to provide evidence and witnesses, including Johnson, ministers and senior civil servants, Lady Hallet said: “I will not tolerate any attempt to mislead the investigation, undermine its integrity or of its independence. . » The terms of reference, released by the Cabinet Office on Tuesday, cover 37 issues divided into three areas: public health response across the UK. the health and care sector response throughout the United Kingdom; and the economic response to the pandemic and its impact, including government intervention. Issues that may prove more controversial include the use of lockdowns, which could address the impact of Downing Street rule violations. the testing and detection system; infection control in nursing homes, which the Supreme Court has already ruled to be illegal and “irrational”. the supply and distribution of PPE; and the use of non-refresh notifications. In a letter to Hallett, Johnson described the terms of reference as “undoubtedly broad and provocative.” Subscribe to the First Edition, our free daily newsletter – every morning at 7 p.m. BST The investigation will travel across the UK for evidence and Hallett said he would listen to people who suffered during the pandemic and felt ignored. It will produce a series of interim reports “to reduce or prevent suffering in any future pandemic,” he said. Evidence hearings are expected to begin in 2023 and Hallett has asked for patience as she and the team try to stick to what is described as an ambitious timetable. Downing Street agreed that the investigation should look at the differences that are evident in the impact of the pandemic on different categories of people, including those related to legally “protected characteristics” under equality laws, which means that it could be addressed. the impact of poverty, as well as race, religion and gender. . It will not scrutinize individual cases of injury or death, but will launch a “hearing project” to collect accounts from mourners to “update its understanding” of the pandemic impact, response and lessons to be learned.
