Government Racks Up £100m Bill Responding To Covid Inquiry

The nationalist enquiry into nan Covid pandemic has costs nan authorities much than £100m to respond to truthful far, nan BBC has learnt. This is connected apical of nan £192m spent by nan enquiry itself - meaning nan costs to nan payer is complete 50% much than antecedently thought.

The authorities spending covers ineligible proposal and staffing costs – astatine past count a squad of 248 were moving crossed cardinal departments to nutrient grounds for nan inquiry.

Inquiry sources questioned nan approach, saying nan authorities has astatine times been "hostile and difficult", blocking nan merchandise of accusation and delivering documents late.

But nan Cabinet Office said it was committed to nan enquiry and learning nan lessons for nan future.

However, nan TaxPayers' Alliance has branded it a discarded of money and nan Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK said while nan activity being done was vital, nationalist inquiries mostly needed to go much businesslike and little adversarial.

The standard and costs of nan Covid Inquiry has already been questioned by some.

It sewage nether measurement successful 2022 and its last study is not expected until 2027. It has already costs £192m – a fig which is expected to emergence past £200m by nan clip it is finished, making it 1 of nan astir costly nationalist inquiries successful history.

In full location are 10 abstracted investigations – aliases modules arsenic they are called. So acold only two, looking astatine pandemic preparedness and authorities decision-making, person been completed.

But study of Cabinet Office documents by nan BBC has recovered authorities departments spent astir £101m from April 2023 to June 2025.

The bulk of this is thought to person been accrued by 5 cardinal departments – nan Cabinet Office, Home Office, Department of Health and Social Care, Treasury and UK Health Security Agency, which person been many times asked to supply evidence.

The costing estimates do not see clip officials walk preparing and appearing arsenic witnesses successful person.

More than half nan £101m walk has been connected ineligible fees – including bringing successful outer lawyers.

An enquiry root said that to immoderate grade nan spending reflected nan protect cognition of nan authorities towards nan inquiry.

Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett and nan enquiry ineligible squad person criticised authorities departments for delays providing documents and blocking nan merchandise of cardinal information.

This astir famously came to a caput successful 2023, erstwhile the enquiry and authorities ended up successful nan High Court complete nan government's refusal to merchandise Boris Johnson's WhatsApp messages, diaries and notebooks. The authorities mislaid nan case.

Sources said nan authorities had group up a "huge operation" which had astatine times seemed "hostile and difficult" to nan inquiry.

A Cabinet Office spokeswoman said: "The authorities is afloat committed to supporting nan activity of nan enquiry and to learning lessons from nan pandemic to guarantee nan UK is amended prepared for a early pandemic."

The Cabinet Office argues nan tribunal lawsuit was brought to summation clarity connected a constituent of rule - nan correct of an enquiry to petition accusation that nan supplier considers irrelevant.

John O'Connell, main executive of nan TaxPayers' Alliance deliberation tank, said: "It's an absolute ugliness that ministers person burnt done an other £100m connected apical of what nan enquiry itself has already spent.

"These caller figures show nan full costs to taxpayers will beryllium acold higher than antecedently feared.

"Ministers must urgently get a grip connected nan spiralling costs of nan Covid Inquiry and perpetrate to delivering answers swiftly and efficiently."

A spokesperson for nan Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK said nan activity of nan enquiry was "vital" and immoderate costs would beryllium recouped galore times complete successful nan early if lessons were learned by reducing nan economical effect of nan adjacent pandemic arsenic good arsenic redeeming lives.

But he added: "The enquiry process is acold from perfect."

He said nan group supported nan Hillsborough Law, which is moving its measurement done parliament and strengthens nan ineligible work connected nationalist authorities to assistance nationalist inquiries.

He said nationalist inquiries for illustration nan Covid 1 needed to go much businesslike and little adversarial.

"Only past tin we bring down nan costs of early inquiries while protecting entree to justice."

A spokesperson for nan Covid Inquiry said: "The enquiry is dissimilar immoderate erstwhile nationalist inquiry. It was fixed a very wide scope because it is investigating aggregate aspects of a pandemic that affected everyone successful society."

He said nan chair had made clear astatine nan commencement that would return clip and person important cost, but it would consequence successful recommendations that are intended to amended protect nan UK erstwhile nan adjacent pandemic strikes.

He said nan enquiry would not remark connected nan quality of nan narration pinch nan government.