The appearance at the Covid inquiry of Martin Reynolds has been a real eye-opener in some rather unexpected ways. Reynolds was one of the most senior civil servants in Downing Street in the lead-up to the 2020 pandemic, effectively acting as the prime minister’s eyes and ears. The former principal private secretary to Boris Johnson came to public attention for issuing invitations to a lockdown-breaking party in the garden of No. 10 during the first lockdown.
Reynolds’ cross examination by Hugo Keith KC, counsel for the inquiry, turned into a brutal affair. Keith referred to a message on 23 January 2020, saying two people were admitted to hospital with Covid in January. A Cobra meeting was proposed, but Boris Johnson did not chair it. Could Reynolds remember why Johnson did not chair it? No, he replied.
What appeared to be missing was even a scintilla of self-awareness of Reynolds’ own responsibilities
Keith pressed on.
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