Should There Be An Inquiry Into The Government's Covid Response?

[Untitled]

The Resolution Foundation has estimated in its report on the first year of the pandemic in the UK that the delay in introducing the winter lockdown caused 27,000 extra deaths and that delays to introducing lockdowns meant that when they were introduced that had to go on for longer:

https://www.resolutionfoundation.org/publications/the-12-month-stretch/

It is obvious that the government wasted precious time in March 2020 when the threat was visible... then there is the travesty of Tory allies being given contracts without competition despite being inexperienced and unqualified to meet them.

I personally think an inquiry is an excellent idea and well justified.

[davebro]

I should think there's bound to be an enquiry - maybe more than one. As if we haven't spent enough money already!

[DTCwordfan]

Hindsight is wonderful....!

[Sqad]

There will be an enquiry by public demand.
What purpose will it serve?
None.
It would take at least 4 years to come to a conclusion and by then there will have been a General Election.
We know errors of judgement have been made without an enquiry highlighting them.
No, a waste of time and money.

[Zacs-Master]

Oh gawd, not this time-wasting retrospective crap already. The situation was unprecedented and business leaders were pressuring the Govt not to shut down.

[bobbinwales]

Yes. But not until things have reached the stage where things are pretty much back to normal, the vaccinne rollout is complete and we can deal with variants. Those handling it, goverment, SAGE, scientists, health officials, NHS ect need to be focussing there time on the covid effort not having to spend much of there time explaining everything, having to go back through diaries. It wont achieve much as we probly already know with hindsight most of the findings for next time- we needed more stocks of PPE or guaranteed supplys at short notice, close borders early from Italy especially, more doctors and nurses, earlyer lockdown, stricter enforcement,

[bobbinwales]

Those saying now we should of done the lockdown earlyer are sometimes the same ones who last Feb/March were saying what crisis, its just flue, its overkill , only a handful of deaths, leave the pubs open.

[Old_Geezer]

In my opinion they were trying their best and if they didn't hit upon the ideal response it's unlikely to benefit from the cost of an inquiry. It's clear they aren't getting it perfect even now but no one can be guaranteed to have done better. Managing such a thing ain't easy.

[Sunk]

Yes there should.

When we encounter something new, that is the time to learn. This time we have had to make it up as we go along, and undoubtedly mistakes were made. If we have to face something similar again in the near future, then there can be no excuse for repeating the same mistakes.
We should analyse our response, check different outcomes of acting sooner or later, and make sure there is a clear blueprint for the correct response.

[Sqad]

Sunk

/// undoubtedly mistakes were made. //

We already know that.

///If we have to face something similar again in the near future, then there can be no excuse for repeating the same mistakes.////

We already know that too.

/////We should analyse our response, check different outcomes of acting sooner or later,/////

Bit late for that.

However Sunk, there will be the inevitable enquiry.

[Zacs-Master]

'check different outcomes of acting sooner or later'

That would take some serious computer modelling akin to the Met Office predicting the weather, which they rarely get right.

[jno]

not a bad idea. The likes of Taiwan and South Korea did well because they'd been through Sars and knew what to do. Britain still hasn't worked it out, beyond "pay people to come up with a vaccine as quickly as possible." If politicians were to sit down tomorrow and acknowledge what the problems were, that would be a huge step; but they won't, so best someone independent do it for them.

[MWG14]

Just a total waste of money.

[Untitled]

"Oh gawd, not this time-wasting retrospective crap already. The situation was unprecedented and business leaders were pressuring the Govt not to shut down. "

it is the job of the government to deal with emergencies and the fact of the matter is decisions made by the government made our situation worse. I don't care if it's inconvenient or expensive. I believe in accountability.

[Zacs-Master]

Yes, I've read some of your polarised opinions previously, untitled. I generally file them under B.

[roopower]

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, the government was damned if they did or damned if they didn't.

[Khandro]

untitled, //It is obvious that the government wasted precious time in March 2020 when the threat was visible...//

The British government acted earlier, with more alacrity, decisiveness & to greater effect that any other government in the EU (& most of the rest of the world), it was able to do this because it has extricated itself from the EU & should be applauded for its actions.

Will you never stop whining?

[david small]

Should have, could have, didn’t. So what’s new?

[Untitled]

126,000 British people are dead Khandro.... the government had a month of warning and did not do very much with it... your assertion that "acted earlier, with more alacrity, decisiveness & to greater effect that any other government in the EU (& most of the rest of the world)" is a lie.

and no I will not stop "whining" if it means letting the crooks responsible for damaging my country get away with it. I care deeply about the UK - far more than I care about serving the interests of Johnson and his cronies.

[jno]

///The British government acted earlier, with more alacrity, decisiveness & to greater effect that any other government in the EU (& most of the rest of the world), it was able to do this because it has extricated itself from the EU & should be applauded for its actions. ///

and yet a year later Britain still has the seventh highest death rate per million in the whole world. Now if that isn't British ingenuity, what is?

[Untitled]

Goodness! The sentence "I believe in accountability" is 'polarising'!

A new one on me :)