Boris Johnson needed to be injected with Covid on TV in early days of disaster
Boris Johnson needed to be injected with Covid on TV to “demonstrate to the public that it did not pose a threat”, his former chief-of-staff has confirmed.
Lord Edward Lister, who labored in No10 between 2019 and 2021, described the comment as an “unfortunate comment” in proof to the Covid Inquiry on Wednesday. In his witness assertion to the Inquiry, Lord Lister mentioned: “The Prime Minister suggested to senior civil servants and advisors that he wanted to be injected with Covid-19 to demonstrate to the public that it did not pose a threat.
“I respect on reflection that these had been unhelpful feedback, however they had been made at a time of excessive stress and restricted understanding of what lay forward”. Appearing before the inquiry, he said: “It was earlier than the Italian scenario had actually change into obvious to everyone. It was a time when Covid was not seen as being the intense illness it subsequently turned. “It was a moment in time – I think it was an unfortunate comment.”
Pressed by Andrew O’Connor KC on it being recognized that Covid was a virulent disease many weeks earlier than then, Lord Lister mentioned: “We were still living in the forlorn hope that it wasn’t going to come – it was wrong. “I absolutely settle for it is a remark that should not have been made, nevertheless it was made within the warmth of the second, that is all.”
Mr Johnson’s former chief adviser Dominic Cummings previously recalled the anecdote during an appearance in Parliament in May 2021. Speaking on Wednesday Lord Lister said he was unsure of exact timing of Mr Johnson’s comment to officials.
It came as the Inquiry also heard Mr Johnson warned a second lockdown was like “whisky and a revolver” as he was pushed around by Rishi Sunak when he was Chancellor. Mr Sunak was accused of using “spurious” arguments in a desperate bid to stop bars and restaurants being closed in the face of warnings from health experts.
The Covid Inquiry was shown an extract from the notebooks of former chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance that said Mr Johnson was “all over the place”. The extract, from early October 2020, read: “Very dangerous assembly in no.10… PM talks of medieval measures than ones being advised… As (Head of the Covid Taskforce) Simon Ridley mentioned closing slide, PM mentioned ‘Whisky and a revolver’.
“He was all over the place. CX (Chancellor) using increasingly specific and spurious arguments against closing hospitality. “Both of them clutching at straws… There are actually solely three decisions for the excessive prevalence areas… 1) Do a correct lockdown 2) Use navy to implement the foundations 3) Do nothing… and depend the our bodies (poor, previous and BAME). When will they resolve.”
Another extract, from Sir Patrick Vallance’s notebooks and dated October 25, said of Mr Johnson: “He ‘owns’ the reality for a day and then is buffeted by a discussion with Cx.” During the session of the Covid Inquiry yesterday (TUE) it was additionally claimed officers engaged on the Cabinet Office Covid process power had been “blindsided” by Mr Sunak’s Eat Out to Help Out.
Simon Ridley, the previous head of the group, admitted there was some shock when the then-chancellor’s plan to encourage individuals to get again out to eating places in summer time 2020 was first introduced. Put to him by that this was as a result of he was “blindsided by the Treasury and there was nothing you could do”, he mentioned: “Correct.”
