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SNP government didn’t prepare well for pandemic, report says

(Photo by Andy Buchanan - Pool/Getty Images)

Uh oh. The Covid inquiry has been ticking along in the background for the last two years, and finally its first report has been published. A shock to no one, it transpires that neither the UK nor Scottish governments come out of it particularly well. It appears both were rather unprepared for a pandemic – and the damning review suggests they proceeded to respond to the ‘wrong’ one. How very interesting…

The findings reveal that former Dear Leader Nicola Sturgeon’s government ‘did not act with sufficient urgency’ – and when it did, it seems it responded ineffectually. The report noted that the officials tasked with planning for a pandemic did not meet for seven months in the year before to the outbreak. And furthermore, ‘there was no separate analysis for Scotland that adequately took into account specific factors that might particularly affect the population of Scotland.’ Good heavens.

The report also added that both the Scottish and UK governments had ‘prepared for the wrong pandemic’ – in treating it like a flu outbreak rather than the disease it was.

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Steerpike
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Steerpike

Steerpike is The Spectator's gossip columnist, serving up the latest tittle tattle from Westminster and beyond. Email tips to steerpike@spectator.co.uk or message @MrSteerpike

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