Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 1

UK Covid-19

Inquiry

Opening

Statement

July 2022

Baroness Hallett’s Opening Statement

I was appointed the Chair of the UK Covid-19

public Inquiry in December 2021. The Prime

Minister set the terms of reference on 28 June

2022 following consultation with the public and

with the governments in Scotland, Wales and

Northern Ireland. I am making this statement

today to open the Inquiry and to set out my

approach to running it.

The Covid 19 pandemic affected us all. Some far

more than others. People lost loved ones and

could not mourn properly. Children and young

people lost educational opportunities.

Businesses failed. Physical and mental health

suffered. People felt isolated. Although life is

beginning at last to return to normal, the

pandemic is still with us and there are many who are still suffering. Those who

have suffered the most want to know if anything could have been done to

prevent or reduce their suffering and that is why this Inquiry has been

established.

When I was a Judge, I dealt in facts and evidence. So let me start with the facts

on the pandemic as we already know them.

On 31 December 2019, the World Health Organisation was informed of a

cluster of cases of pneumonia of an unknown cause detected in Wuhan City,

Hubei Province, China. A novel coronavirus was subsequently identified from

patient samples. Infection with the coronavirus spread rapidly and by 11 March

2020, the World Health Organisation had characterised Covid-19 as a

pandemic. The UK’s first two patients were diagnosed with the coronavirus in

York on 30 January 2020. In Europe, March 2020 saw a dramatic rise of illness

and death from the virus. In countries like Italy, strict measures restricting

movement of people were introduced.

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 3

On 11 March 2020, in connection with that year’s annual budget, the then

Chancellor of the Exchequer announced a £12 billion package of emergency

support to help the UK cope with the expected impact of the virus. Five days

later, the Prime Minister urged everyone in the UK to work from home, to stop

non-essential contact with others, avoid pubs and restaurants and to give the

UK time to cope with the pandemic. On 17 March, the Chancellor announced

£330 billion of government backed loans and £20 billion in tax cuts and grants

for companies threatened with collapse. On 18 March, the government

announced the closure of schools from the end of that week. On 20 March, the

Chancellor announced that the government would pay up to 80% of the wages

of staff at risk of being made redundant.

On 23 March, the Prime Minister announced severe restrictions on the daily

lives of everyone in the UK, in what became known as the first national

lockdown. People were only permitted to leave home to buy food, to exercise,

to attend to a medical need or provide care to a vulnerable person, or to go to

work if working from home was not possible. Procurement and the sourcing and

supply of personal protective equipment (PPE) became matters of national

concern.

The months that followed saw a significant death toll (with official statistics

stating that more than 180,000 deaths involving Covid-19 had been registered

since 9 March 2020

) , businesses and schools closed, the introduction of

home-working and home-schooling for those who could, the country borrowing

enormous sums of money to provide support, events cancelled or postponed

and severe restrictions on attendance at funerals and religious services. The

restrictions imposed on every aspect of the life of the UK were unprecedented

in peacetime.

Lockdown measures were eased and some restrictions were reimposed

throughout the year and into the next including two further lockdowns in

October 2020 and January 2021. In December 2020, the first Covid-19 vaccine

was administered and a mass vaccination programme over months and years

followed. By the Spring of 2022, restrictions on national life started to be eased

https://www.ons.gov.uk/peoplepopulationandcommunity/birthsdeathsandmarriages/deaths/bulletins/deathsregist

eredweeklyinenglandandwalesprovisional/weekending1july2022

- 13 July 2022

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 4

throughout the four nations of the UK. Of course we hope, but cannot be

certain, that the worst effects of the Covid-19 pandemic are behind us and that

another pandemic is not around the corner.

It’s against this backdrop that this Inquiry was created.

It is my job and the task of this Inquiry to consider and report on the

preparations and the response to the pandemic in England, Wales, Scotland

and Northern Ireland. The Terms of Reference - which the Prime Minister set

last month -provide the broad outline of the issues the Inquiry will investigate.

They are extensive, as befits an inquiry into an event of this magnitude.

This is therefore a substantial task, which if it is to be done properly, will take

time and have a significant cost. The decision to establish the Inquiry was not

mine, but I do have responsibility for its conduct. I am determined to run the

Inquiry as thoroughly and as efficiently as possible, bearing in mind the

Inquiry’s wide-ranging terms of reference and the need for the inquiry process

to be rigorous and fair. With such a wide scope I need to be ruthless. It would

be impossible to call every witness relating to every event, issue or major

decision, so the Inquiry has to focus on the key issues.

One purpose of this Inquiry is to provide a factual narrative account of what

happened across the whole of the UK. Another is to learn lessons to inform

preparations for future pandemics in the UK. I am determined to undertake and

conclude the work of this Inquiry as speedily as possible so that lessons are

learned before another pandemic strikes.

This is a statutory inquiry, established under the 2005 Inquiries Act. This means

that it must take place in public, subject to any restrictions imposed to protect

against the risk of harm and damage to the public interest. I will conduct the

Inquiry impartially and openly in accordance with my statutory obligation to do

so. I will ensure that those most closely involved in its work and the wider public

receive regular updates about its progress.

I have the power to obtain evidence from across the four nations of the UK and

to compel the production of documents and appearance of witnesses. I will

treat all holders of evidence and witnesses fairly, as I am required to do, but

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 5

equally I will not hesitate to make my views clear about any person or

organisation who stands in the way of the Inquiry performing its task.

It is also important to make clear what powers I do not have. My role is to find

the facts, ascertain what went wrong (and what went well), and make

recommendations on what the UK must learn from the pandemic. I do not have

the power to prosecute or have proceedings brought against anyone, let alone

fine or imprison people as a result of their acts or omissions in respect of the

pandemic.

I would like now to turn to other sources of information that will be vital to this

inquiry; listening to people about their experiences, using research and talking

to experts to gather as wide a range of views as possible.

The Terms of Reference require the Inquiry to listen to and consider carefully

the experiences of bereaved families and others who have suffered hardship or

loss as a result of the pandemic. This is a significant and important task. The

Inquiry will do this in a number of different ways, including through a ‘listening

exercise’ which will begin later this year.

This listening exercise will be of huge value to the Inquiry by gathering

experiences of the pandemic from across the whole of the UK, including from

those most affected and from those whose voices are not always heard. It will

provide an opportunity for people to tell the Inquiry about their experience

without the formality of giving evidence or attending a public hearing, so that

everyone feels able to contribute to the Inquiry, if they wish, and to be heard.

My team have begun working on how they can make this as easy as possible,

for example online as well as through conversations across the UK.

Experiences shared with the Inquiry will be analysed and reports produced

highlighting the themes that emerge. There will be no restrictions on what

people can tell the Inquiry, although their individual accounts can not be

investigated. In this way we should learn far more about the impact of the

pandemic on the bereaved, on health and social care staff and carers, on

businesses, workers, careers, and livelihoods, on the criminal justice system,

on children, on academic achievement and on different communities across the

four nations.

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 6

The Inquiry will also review existing research about the pandemic from around

the world where this will help to understand the UK’s preparedness and

response to the pandemic and commission its own research into areas where

new academic analysis is needed. Research considered by the Inquiry will be

disclosed in its proceedings where appropriate and published on the Inquiry

website.

I will appoint groups of scientific and other experts to help the Inquiry in its

work, covering a range of different topics and views. This will be important to

ensure that the Inquiry benefits from the expertise available and understands

the range of views on key scientific and economic aspects of the pandemic.

The Inquiry is an independent fact finding exercise. It will make no

assumptions, but will be led by the evidence. The expert groups will be given

the task of creating joint reports, which can be used in evidence, setting out

where they agree and disagree about topics on which they are instructed to

assist. It will be up to me as the Inquiry Chair to decide how much weight to

give to them.

The teams leading our investigative work have already identified a number of

topics on which we will commission research and seek expert advice. I will

provide more details on our intended approach to research and expert advice

throughout the Inquiry. We will gather these experiences, reports, data and

research to inform the Inquiry’s investigative work and prepare for public

hearings.

As I mentioned earlier, the Inquiry’s Terms of Reference are wide-ranging and

demanding. We have given considerable thought as to how we can best

assemble and scrutinise the evidence and the Inquiry can ultimately reach

robust and fair conclusions.

To address the many different aspects of the pandemic that are covered by the

Terms of Reference, I have decided to group them into modules. I will have

teams, based across the UK, to investigate each one. They will obtain and

analyse evidence, making sure the Inquiry’s core participants are provided with

documents and are able to prepare for the public hearings. They will work

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 7

broadly in parallel. I will then conduct the public hearings for each module, one

after the other.

The Prime Minister has said he wishes to appoint two additional panel

members to assist me in hearing the evidence and making findings and

recommendations. However, I do not want to hold up the work until they are

appointed, so I have instructed the Inquiry Team to move forward with preparing

the modules.

Modules will be announced and opened in sequence, with those wishing to take

a formal role in the Inquiry invited to apply to become ‘core participants’ for

each module, rather than throughout the Inquiry as a whole. While I recognise

that some individuals, groups and organisations may apply and become core

participants in more than one module, dividing the Inquiry’s work and

designating them in this way will allow me to ensure that each module is as

manageable as possible and conducted as efficiently as possible. I invite

applicants to group themselves together with others with a similar interest,

wherever possible, to help manage the potentially large number of people and

organisations seeking core participant status.

I will open the first three modules and hold preliminary hearings this year, with

substantive public hearings beginning in late Spring 2023.

Module 1 will open today. It will consider the extent to which the risk of a

Coronavirus pandemic was properly identified and planned for and whether the

UK was ready for that eventuality. The module will look at the UK’s

preparedness for whole-system civil emergencies, including resourcing, the

system of risk management and pandemic readiness. It will scrutinise

government decision-making relating to planning and seek to identify lessons

from earlier incidents and simulations and international comparisons.

I am planning to hold the first preliminary hearing in this module in September

and the full public hearings for Module 1 will be starting in Spring next year.

Also starting today is the application process for those who wish to be

considered as Core Participants to Module 1. The deadline for applications will

be 16 August.

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 8

Module 2 will be split into parts. The first part will look at core political and

administrative governance and decision-making for the UK. It will cover the

initial UK response to the Covid-19 pandemic and address central Government

decision-making, including political and civil service performance and the

effectiveness of relationships with the governments in Scotland, Wales and

Northern Ireland, local authority and voluntary/community sectors. It will look at

the decision-making for non-pharmaceutical interventions (in other words the

lockdowns and all the other restrictions and requirements), as well as the use of

scientific expertise, data collection and modelling, government and public health

communications, including behavioural science, messaging and the

maintenance of confidence and Parliamentary oversight and regulatory control.

Having considered the picture from a UK-wide (and also English) perspective in

Module 2, Modules 2A, 2B and 2C will address the same overarching and

strategic issues from the perspective of Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.

Modules 2A, 2B and 2C will take place in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland

respectively.

Although an Inquiry has been established in Scotland under Lady Poole to look

at matters devolved to its government (and it remains possible that inquiries

will be established in Wales and Northern Ireland), my Inquiry’s remit is

UK-wide. Given the terms of the Inquiries Act 2005 and my Terms of Reference

it is inevitable that I will have to consider matters that are both reserved and

devolved where they overlap. However, when the Inquiry returns to each of]

the devolved nations in later modules to address those matters that are not

covered in Modules 2A, 2B and 2C, I it is my intention, in relation to Scottish

matters, to leave as many devolved issues as possible to the Scottish Inquiry.

In taking this approach, my primary consideration is to be clear to people

across the UK which Inquiry is responsible for looking at particular issues. I

must also be considerate to those organisations and individuals that will be

called to give evidence, and give them confidence that there will not be

repeated calls for the same material from different Inquiries. When my Inquiry

investigates issues relating specifically to Scotland, Wales, and Northern

Ireland, I will seek to minimise duplication of investigation, evidence gathering,

and reporting with any inquiries established by the governments in those

nations.

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 9

The Inquiry’s base for public hearings will be in London, but it will also spend

time hearing evidence about the response and impact of the pandemic in each

of the four nations that comprise the UK.

The Inquiry will open Module 2 in late August this year, hold the first preliminary

hearings in the autumn, and the public hearings for this module will begin in the

Summer of 2023 in London. Modules 2A, 2B and 2C, will take place thereafter.

Module 3 will examine the impact of Covid, and of the governmental and

societal responses to it, on healthcare systems generally and on patients,

hospital and other healthcare workers and staff. Among other issues, it will

investigate healthcare systems and governance, hospitals, primary care

(including GPs and dentists), the impact on NHS backlogs and non-Covid

treatment, the effects on healthcare provision of vaccination programmes and

Long-Covid diagnosis and support.

These are just the first modules that the Inquiry will investigate and the Inquiry

will publish more information about the later modules in coming months. Very

broadly, these are likely to cover both ‘system’ and ‘impact’ issues across the

UK, including: vaccines, therapeutics and anti-viral treatment across the UK,

the care sector, Government procurement and PPE, testing and tracing,

Government business and financial responses across the UK and impact on

business sectors, health inequalities and the impact of Covid-19, education and

children and young persons and the impact of Covid-19 on public services and

on other public sectors.

I repeat my promise from the Terms of Reference that when investigating all

these issues, inequalities will be at the forefront of the Inquiry’s investigations.

I know many people will wonder how long they will have to wait to hear about

my conclusions and recommendations. By running the Inquiry through modules,

I will be able to produce regular reports. I intend to ensure the reports are

focused on key analysis, findings and recommendations and are written in plain

language so they are easily understood by anyone who wishes to read them.

Where I make recommendations to people or organisations, I expect them to

consider and respond to them quickly, to ensure that the UK is as well prepared

Baroness Heather Hallett Opening Statement — page 10

as it can be to respond to the next pandemic and to protect the lives of its

people. The Inquiry will monitor implementation of the recommendations it

makes during its lifetime.

I want to finish where I began which is marking the importance of this inquiry to

those who suffered the most. During the public consultation earlier this year,

when I met families who had lost loved ones during the course of the pandemic,

I was struck by the devastating nature of their loss, exacerbated by the impact

of the restrictions in place at the time on their ability to grieve. I know that

others have suffered significant loss too as a result of the pandemic and every

person has had their life changed to some extent. For my part, I will do my very

best to undertake the Inquiry in a way that acknowledges this suffering and

seeks to reduce the scope for others to suffer in the same way in the future.

Given the breadth of my investigations, this will not be completed as quickly as

some might like. I make no apology for that. I am determined to ensure that the

Inquiry has access to the evidence it needs and has the time to analyse that

evidence properly before witnesses appear in front of me. I will try to ensure

that the order of modules makes sense and builds a picture of the pandemic;

not everyone will agree with that order but it will allow me to look in sufficient

depth at every issue that I believe needs scrutiny.

This Inquiry is our opportunity to reflect on all that took place during the

pandemic in the UK – both what can be improved and what was done well – so

that we are better equipped to deal with any future pandemics.

It is also an opportunity to provide a long lasting record of the devastating

impact of the pandemic on people across the UK.

Finally, the Inquiry team and I will try to find a way to commemorate those

whom we have lost in the most respectful and appropriate way possible.

Baroness Heather Hallett

Chair of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry

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