Daily Mail

Michael Gove suggests Covid was man-made but is slapped down by inquiry chief who says: 'We're not going to go there'

Breitbart

UK’s Covid Inquiry Hears Virus May Have Been ‘Man Made’

A 217-page report from the COVID inquiry into the UK government's response to the pandemic has said that they were "ill prepared" for the pandemic, and that "radical reforms" are needed to prevent future pandemics from being similarly destructive.

The Telegraph

The inquiry, chaired by Baroness Hallett, faulted the UK government for preparing for the "wrong kind of pandemic" by focusing on influenza scenarios that would be mild, leading to the government ultimately turning to the "untested" policy of lockdowns.

BBC News

The inquiry also claimed that the government "failed their citizens," and that "groupthink" was detrimental to the response. Pandemic preparations were delayed because of resource issues and a healthcare system that was running at or near capacity, the report says.

BNN Bloomberg

After the onset of the pandemic, the absence of a track-and-trace system was cited as a policy failure, as well as "labyrinthine" emergency planning structures. Better planning could have mitigated "some of the financial and human cost," Hallett concludes.

Independent

The UK lost more than 225K lives to COVID and had one of the highest per-capita death rates in Europe. The inquiry was established in 2021 by then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and collected over 200 witness statements.

New York Times

Recommendations from the report include holding a pandemic drill every three years and reforming civil emergency capabilities. This is the first report the inquiry has issued, while another nine are forthcoming on other dynamics of the UK's COVID response.

UK COVID Inquiry Finds Flaws in Pandemic Preparedness

UK COVID Inquiry Finds Flaws in Pandemic Preparedness

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UK COVID Inquiry Finds Flaws in Pandemic Preparedness

UK COVID Inquiry Finds Flaws in Pandemic Preparedness

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