A scathing new report has found that the Government’s initial response to the Covid pandemic was “too little, too late”, contributing to thousands of deaths.
Between March 2020 and May 2023, just under 227,000 people in the UK died with Covid listed as one of the causes on their death certificate.
Evidence was taken from more than 160 witnesses, including Johnson himself, his adviser Dominic Cummings, and former Health Secretary Matt Hancock. They were questioned on key measures such as public testing, social distancing, and the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
The inquiry concludes that by late January 2020, it “should have been clear that the virus posed a serious and immediate threat,” yet the Government remained paralysed as February slipped by, as what the report labels “a lost month”.
Health Secretary Matt Hancock gained a reputation for overpromising and underdelivering, while his then-adviser Dominic Cummings said the Department of Health and Social Care was effectively downplaying the scale of the crisis — “far from banging alarm bells […] they were going skiing.”
The report also condemns a “toxic and chaotic culture” at the heart of government, driven by turbulence and indecision.
By failing to address this culture — “and, at times, actively encouraging it” — Prime Minister Boris Johnson allowed decision-making to be dominated by the loudest and most aggressive voices, while the views of others, especially women, were sidelined or ignored to detrimental effect.
Ms Hallett argues that had more stringent measures been introduced even a week earlier in March, the first national mandatory lockdown might have been significantly shorter — or avoided altogether.
The Standard has compiled the 10 most shocking revelations from Baroness Hallett’s Covid-19 inquiry report.
Clear global warning signs were ignored until it was ‘too late’ at cost of 23,000 lives
Despite crises escalating in China and across Europe, UK ministers carried on with business as usual.
The inquiry found “clear warning signs” in January 2020, yet the UK Government “did not take the virus seriously enough until it was too late.”
Lady Hallett emphasised that by the end of January, it “should have been clear that the virus posed a serious and immediate threat.”
She accused then Prime Minister Boris Johnson of being “too optimistic” in his outlook in the early months of 2020.
Baroness Heather Hallett found Boris Johnson failed to exercise ‘proper leadership’ during the pandemic
PA Wire
A UK-wide lockdown was imposed on 23 March 2020, coming 10 days after the government’s scientific advisory group, Sage, recognised that the virus was spreading far faster than previously thought.
On March 16, the government advised the public to take voluntary measures, such as practising social distancing and self-isolating if they showed symptoms.
But the report cites modelling which suggests that if a full lockdown had been introduced at that point, it could have reduced the first wave death toll in England — up to the start of July — by as many as 23,000. That equates to nearly half the deaths seen in that initial period.
Missed early detection and delayed modelling meant the UK essentially sleepwalked into disaster.
Early restrictions could have prevented or shortened lockdowns
The report says lockdown could have been avoided if steps such as social distancing and isolating those with symptoms along with members of their household had been introduced earlier than mid-March 2020.
But by the time ministers took action it was already too late and a lockdown was inevitable, it says.
The government repeatedly waited until crisis levels were reached before acting.
Lady Hallett observed that had ministers introduced stronger measures before March 16, 2020 “the mandatory lockdown that was imposed might have been shorter — or conceivably might not have been necessary at all.”
Delays directly increased deaths, hospitalisations, and the length of national shutdowns.
February 2020 was a catastrophic ‘lost month’
Vital weeks were wasted when decisive action could have limited the virus’s spread.
Lady Hallett called February “a lost month” and notes there was “a lack of urgency overall in government” that was “inexcusable.”
Government scientists also underestimated how quickly the virus was spreading.
Matt Hancock overpromised and underdelivered at critical moments
Health Secretary Matt Hancock became a liability at the centre of government, according to the report, and “gained a reputation among senior officials and advisers… for overpromising and underdelivering.”
Repeated “misleading reassurances” from the Department for Health, headed by Hancock, contributed to a lack of urgency.
Dominic Cummings reported that No.10 was ‘going skiing’ instead of sounding alarms
Cummings’ testimony revealed a distracted and dysfunctional government.
In February, he believed the Cabinet Office and Department of Health “weren’t banging alarm bells… Far from it, they were going skiing.” This highlights that key departments were out of step with the scale of the emergency.
A toxic, chaotic culture crippled decision-making
The inquiry found a “toxic and chaotic culture” at the heart of Downing Street.
Cummings’ behaviour was described as “destabilising,” “offensive, sexualised and misogynistic”.
Boris Johnson’s chief adviser Dominic Cummings contributed to a ‘toxic and sexist workplace culture’ in Downing Street
PA Archive
Lady Hallett noted that by failing to tackle this — “and, at times, actively encouraging it” — Prime Minister Boris Johnson reinforced a culture in which the loudest voices prevailed while other colleagues, particularly women, were ignored, damaging decision-making.
Early public messaging was dangerously weak and misleading
Guidance in early March 2020 sent the wrong signals to the public.
Advice was “weak,” focusing largely on handwashing, while “face masks were positively discouraged” and mass gatherings continued, implying normal behaviour was safe.
Former health secretary Matt Hancock arrives to give evidence for the care sector module of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry
PA Wire
Johnson’s “optimistic nature frequently undermined the serious message he was meant to convey,” helping fuel the early spread.
Repeating the same mistakes in late 2020 was ‘inexcusable’
Lessons were not learned from the first wave of the pandemic.
As autumn approached, ministers again delayed action, which Lady Hallett describes as “inexcusable.”
The resulting second lockdown could have been avoided or mitigated had lessons been applied, showing that the UK twice walked into a preventable surge.
Lockdowns saved lives but inflicted deep, lasting social harm
While necessary, lockdowns came at immense social and financial cost.
They “left lasting scars on society and the economy,” brought “ordinary childhood to a halt,” worsened health inequalities, and delayed vital diagnoses.
Children were “not always prioritised” and suffered from school closures, while the government was “not prepared for the sudden and enormous task of educating children in their homes — and failed sufficiently,” the Baroness said.
Scandals and rule-breaking undermined public trust
Downing Street parties “undermined public confidence in decision-making,” hitting hardest those who obeyed restrictions, including people “unable to be with their loved ones when they died.”
Frequent law changes also created confusion: “The public — and even the police — struggled to distinguish between government advice and binding legal restrictions.”
Policies such as Eat Out to Help Out were “inconsistent with public health objectives” and devised “in the absence of any scientific advice,” while at the highest level there was a fundamental “lack of trust” between Johnson and devolved leaders.
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