Covid inquiry chair defends £200m cost and four-year process on final day
#Covid inquiry #£200 million cost #four-year process #public hearings #pandemic lessons
📌 Key Takeaways
- Covid inquiry chair justifies the inquiry's £200 million budget as necessary for thorough investigation.
- The four-year duration of the inquiry is defended to ensure comprehensive examination of pandemic response.
- Final day of the inquiry marks the conclusion of public hearings and evidence gathering.
- The inquiry aims to provide lessons and recommendations for future public health crises.
📖 Full Retelling
Baroness Heather Hallett said completing the hearings in under four years was an achievement but critics have questioned its cost.
🏷️ Themes
Public Inquiry, Pandemic Response
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Original Source
Covid inquiry chair defends £200m cost and four-year process on final day 57 minutes ago Share Save Hugh Pym Health editor Share Save The chair of the UK public inquiry into Covid 19 has defended the cost and length of the process on the last day of hearings. Baroness Heather Hallett said completing the hearings in under four years was "an extraordinary achievement" but critics have questioned the cost and the duration of the inquiry. Costing just over £200m, it looked at the response to the pandemic in all four UK nations, opening formally in 2022 with witness hearings starting in June 2023. Baroness Hallett said when people see the results of the inquiry's work, they will appreciate why it was set up. Lockdown could have been avoided - key findings from Covid inquiry UK did 'too little, too late', leading to thousands more Covid deaths, says inquiry Covid inquiry: The UK pandemic in numbers In a statement at the end of the proceedings on Thursday, Baroness Hallett said: "There are people who believe it is time to move on from the pandemic and they question the worth of this inquiry. "I hope that when they read about the extent of the suffering that we've heard and see the results of the inquiry's work, they will appreciate the huge scale of loss caused by Covid 19 and they will understand better why this inquiry was established." Baroness Hallett said over 600,000 documents had been received and reviewed as part of the inquiry, and more than 350 witnesses had been called to give evidence. She also said the terms of reference given to her by Boris Johnson when he was prime minister were the "broadest of any public inquiry to date". And she urged the public to push for changes she recommended ahead of any future pandemic. "If implemented, my recommendations should reduce the number of deaths, reduce the suffering and reduce the social and economic cost," she said. Baroness Hallett will publish eight further reports on topics such as the NHS, vaccines, test and trace...
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