Isabel Hardman Isabel Hardman

Has Matt Hancock just had a good idea?

(Covid Inquiry)

Matt Hancock’s evidence to the Covid inquiry was some of the most explosive we’ve seen so far. It was largely damaging to anyone who wasn’t Matt Hancock, naturally, but the former health secretary did induce some rather big cringes from all present when his voice cracked as he said ‘I’m not very good at talking about my emotions’. He also apologised to all those who had lost loved ones. Hancock did offer some important insights into the mistakes made at crucial moments in the run-up to the pandemic.

He also backed the idea of a resilience minister who can work on planning rather than being distracted by the many other priorities in government

He told the inquiry that it was an ‘absolute tragedy’ that the planning had focused more on how to deal with large numbers of dead people, rather than on how to prevent so many dying in the first place.

Get Britain's best politics newsletters

Register to get The Spectator's insight and opinion straight to your inbox. You can then read two free articles each week.

Already a subscriber? Log in

Comments

Join the debate for just $5 for 3 months

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first three months for $5.

Already a subscriber? Log in