UK COVID Inquiry: Sunak Reportedly Said to 'Let People Die'

Facts

• According to the diary of former chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, former chief of staff Dominic Cummings had heard then-Chancellor and current Prime Minister Rishi Sunak say it was acceptable for the UK government to just 'let people die' during the pandemic.¹
• In what Sir Vallance's diary described as a 'shambolic' day, Sunak's alleged comments on Oct. 25, 2020, were accompanied by the allegation that then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson wished to 'let it all rip' and said that citizens who would die as a consequence had already had 'a good innings.'²
• Sir Vallance told the official COVID inquiry that he wasn't informed about Sunak's controversial 'Eat Out to Help Out' scheme until it was revealed to the public, adding it was 'obvious' that the policy would 'inevitably' cause 'an increase in transmission risk.'³
• Furthermore, he alleged that then-Health Secretary Matt Hancock had a 'habit of saying things which he didn't have a basis for,' and that Johnson often 'sway[ed] between optimism and pessimism' and struggled with much of the scientific data available at the time.⁴
• However, Chief Secretary to the Treasury Laura Trott has defended Johnson's government, stating that it attempted to 'save both lives and livelihoods' and warned against individuals 'rushing to judgment' over various claims made at the inquiry.⁵
• In response to Sir Vallance's allegations, a spokesman for Sunak has said that the prime minister would address the matter while giving evidence at the COVID inquiry 'rather than respond to each one in piecemeal.'⁶

Sources: ¹Independent, ²LBC, ³ITV News, ⁴Sky News, ⁵Evening Standard and ⁶Reuters.

Narratives

• Pro-establishment narrative, as provided by The Telegraph. The consistent attack on the former chancellor and his lockdown policies forgets the human challenges in efforts to tackle the COVID pandemic. It shouldn't be a surprise that, especially within the Treasury, politicians were butting heads with a scientific team that many across the UK and within Westminster had already lost faith in. As many acted recognizing that the purpose of governance at the time was wider than simply shielding adults from the outside world, individuals shouldn't be retrospectively scorned for their attempts to return the majority of the population's life to normal.
• Establishment-critical narrative, as provided by The Guardian. Sir Vallance's contributions to the COVID inquiry are a hard listen, and only reaffirm that the complete lack of trust the UK currently holds in its political institutions is justified. If another pandemic occurred tomorrow, the Tory government would undoubtedly be just as disastrous at dealing with it as in 2020. Reforming Westminster to ensure the British population is governed by politicians committed to public service is an immediate priority for the UK.

Predictions