- Johnson apologizes for mistakes made during the pandemic
- Former PM gives two-day testimony
- Activists claim Johnson treated people like toxic waste
- Johnson arrives early to avoid those left behind
LONDON, Dec 6 (Portal) – Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson apologized profusely on Wednesday for his handling of the coronavirus crisis, saying his government had been too complacent and initially underestimated the risks posed by the virus.
Appearing before an official inquiry into the UK’s handling of the pandemic, Johnson said he took responsibility for all decisions made and understood the public’s anger following the inquiry into the government’s incompetence, underhandedness and misogyny in tackling the biggest health crisis have experienced for decades.
Johnson said COVID-19 initially appeared as a “cloud on the horizon” rather than a “typhoon” that killed more than 230,000 people in Britain and infected many millions more.
At first, Johnson said he didn’t believe the death toll predictions and had only read the minutes of the government’s main scientific advisory group a few times, even though its conclusions led to the biggest crackdown on civil liberties since World War II.
“I can say that I understand the feelings of the victims and their families and that I am deeply sorry for their pain, loss and suffering,” he said at the start of a two-day hearing.
Johnson, who served as prime minister for three years between 2019 and 2022, resigned in disgrace after a series of scandals, including reports that he and other officials were present at drunken meetings in Downing Street in 2020 and 2021 , when most people in Britain were forced to stay at home.
The inquiry has already heard damaging statements about his resistance to the lockdown and his confusion about the science.
Johnson reportedly once asked whether blowing a hairdryer up his nose could kill the virus and suggested injecting him with COVID-19 on live television to calm the public’s fears.
“DEADLY CULTURE”
[1/8]Former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson gives evidence at the COVID-19 inquiry on December 6, 2023 in London, Britain, in this screenshot from a handout video. UK Covid-19 inquiry/handout via Portal acquires license rights
The former prime minister was repeatedly asked whether he waited too long to impose a lockdown at the start of 2020 and whether this led to the UK ending up with one of the world’s highest death tolls from the pandemic.
Johnson said there were constant conflicts between ministers and officials over how to respond, and his cabinet of senior ministers was more cautious than himself in imposing restrictions on the public’s movement.
He arrived at the inquest in the dark, more than three hours before the hearing was to begin, avoiding the families of some of those who died from COVID-19, who wanted to confront Johnson over claims he would rather his colleagues see people die in large numbers Number than ordering a second lockdown.
The start of the meeting was disrupted by protesters who were warned and, in some cases, asked to leave by the investigator.
Aamer Anwar, the lawyer representing some grieving COVID families, said Johnson was overseeing “a deadly culture of impunity and incompetence” and treating people like “toxic waste.”
The inquiry found evidence from former government chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance, who wrote in his diary in October 2020 that Johnson would rather allow the virus to spread than order another lockdown.
Other senior advisers, including Dominic Cummings and Eddie Lister, claim Johnson also said: “Let the bodies pile up.”
Johnson said offensive messages sent between officials under investigation did not mean his leadership was dysfunctional. But he admitted that his team would have performed better during the pandemic if there had been more women on it.
In one message submitted to the inquiry, Cummings, then Johnson’s most senior official, complained in an expletive-laden message that he wanted to “dodge stilettos” and “handcuff her and escort her out of Downing Street” to a colleague.
Reporting by Andrew MacAskill, Sarah Young and Michael Holden; Editing by Angus MacSwan and Christina Fincher
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