Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson walks outside his home in London, Britain, March 22, 2023. Portal/Peter Nicholls/File Photo ACKNOWLEDGE RIGHTS
LONDON, Oct 30 (Portal) – Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s approach to dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic is “crazy and dangerous” and his constant indecision makes it “impossible” to tackle the virus, the top man said Government officials versus civil servants.
The exchange between Simon Case, the government’s most senior official, and civil servants, in which he also described Britain’s response in 2020 as a “terrible, tragic joke”, was shown on Monday as part of the inquiry into how the government dealt with the worst Health crisis has been dealt with almost every year for almost a century.
In the fall of 2020, as the government discussed how to suppress the virus, Case said of Johnson: “He cannot lead and we cannot support him in these circumstances. The team captain can’t change the decision about the big games every day.” He then wrote in capital letters: “IT MUST STOP.”
Months earlier, as the government reopened after the first lockdown, Case said Johnson wanted to “voluntarily let go” of the virus and compared Johnson’s approach to the way U.S. President Donald Trump and Brazilian President Jair Bolsonaro were known for doing so those who were able to dismiss the threat of COVID have managed the crisis.
“There is a risk that it will become crazy and dangerous to the level of Trump/Bolsonaro,” Case told other colleagues.
A spokesman for Johnson, who will be a future witness in the investigation, declined to comment.
The messages were released earlier in the week, with a number of senior Johnson officials testifying that shed light on how his government has operated during the pandemic.
Appearing before the inquiry on Monday, Martin Reynolds, Johnson’s former chief private secretary, said there had been a culture of dysfunction and misogyny at the heart of the government during the crisis.
Reynolds revealed that he and another colleague had written a report in May 2020 recommending reform of the way Johnson’s team worked to address the government’s “suboptimal” handling of the first phase of COVID.
Asked whether the report showed “dysfunctionality, lack of discipline, chaos and significant levels of misogyny,” Reynolds said he agreed.
Reynolds said there is a “superhero culture” among some officers.
“When it comes to diversity in decision-making and the treatment of women, I agree. I think this remains an ongoing cultural issue that I think we could have done more to address,” Reynolds said.
Reporting by Andrew MacAskill, additional reporting by Elizabeth Piper, editing by Ed Osmond
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