Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson recently testified before the COVID-19 Inquiry, a body established to assess the UK’s response to the coronavirus pandemic. Johnson, during his testimony, conceded that there may have been errors in his administration’s approach to managing the crisis and expressed remorse for the “pain and suffering” inflicted by the virus. His apology was met with the dissent of four protestors in the courtroom who flashed placards inscribed with “The dead can’t hear your apologies.”
Further testimony can be reviewed and is accessible via documents posted on the COVID-19 Inquiry’s website and videos available on its YouTube channel.
The questions posed during the inquiry were primarily centered around Johnson’s crisis handling role. Criticism continually emerged urging the former Prime Minister to accept responsibility for these actions. However, Johnson maintained a diplomatic position.
“Inevitably in the course of trying to handle a very, very difficult pandemic in which we had to balance appalling harms on either side of the decision we may have made mistakes. Inevitably we got some things wrong. I think we were doing our best at the time, given what we knew. Given the information I had available to me at the time, I think we did our level best. Were there things that should have been done differently? Unquestionably.”
Johnson notably blamed a dissonance in the government messaging for adding to the confusion during the crisis, and admitted that the challenges of the pandemic were underestimated by almost all, including him and the scientific community.
Another key moment came when the former Prime Minister was questioned about the “Partygate” events, controversial gatherings at government properties during the pandemic’s peak. The matter has led to the accusation that Johnson’s government breached lockdown restrictions. Johnson defended himself by blaming the media for allegedly misinterpreting the scandal, arguing that the public’s perceived understanding of the events were far from reality.
The inquiry continues to question Johnson’s conduct and decisions during the pandemic, as well as exploring wider issues, such as alleged disparaging comments about the elderly and their susceptibility to COVID-19. The investigation remains ongoing and is not expected to conclude until 2027.
For more detailed information, the full proceedings can be accessed directly from the official inquiry report.