Sunak 'thought it was OK to just let people die', Covid inquiry hears | ITV News

one of the scientists who stood alongside Boris Johnson in those covid briefings night after night during the pandemic has questioned how much the then prime minister understood of what was actually going on Chief scientific adviser at the time Sir Patrick Valance wrote in his Diaries back then that Mr Johnson was Bamboozled by the graphs and data today he pointed out that Mr Johnson had given up science at 15 rishy sunak didn't Escape unscathed either in startling testimony before the covid inquiry Sir Patrick said he was never consulted about Mr sunak eat out to help out plan they were the scientists who came out of the shadows and into the harsh Spotlight of the pandemic s Patrick Valen and S Chris witty provided the scientific credibility for Boris Johnson's decisions we're Guided by the science that might have been the Mantra now we learn from the former Chief scientific adviser it was hard to get Johnson to even understand the science well I I think I'm right in saying that the prime minister at the time gave up science when he was 15 and I think he'd be the first to admit it wasn't his Forte his language always measured we might never have known exactly what s Patrick thought if he hadn't written a diary each night documenting his increasing frustration on the 4th of May 2020 he writes the PM is clearly Bamboozled the following month watching the pm get his head around stats is awful then by September that Boris Johnson looked broken head in hands a lot saying maybe we're licked as a species I do not think that there was necessarily a unique inability to grasp some of these concepts with the prime minister at the time but it was hard work sometimes to try and make sure that he had understood Mr Johnson it hardly need saying was the man who was making decisions that had incredibly broad impacts on the whole country and it was critical was it not that he did understand the advice that he was being given yes one of the themes this inquiry is looking into is whether lockdowns were brought in at the right time or could have been avoided altogether so Patrick's view is that one of the most important lessons he learned and expressed repeatedly from the first lockdown is that you had to go earlier than you would like harder than you would like and broader than you would like by October when cases were Rising again the Diaries reveal a prime minister oscillating from one position to another over a second lockdown writing PM meeting he begins to argue for letting it all rip saying yes there'll be more casualties but so be it they've had a good Innings DC Dominic Cummings says rishy thinks just let people die and that's okay 3 Days Later Sir Patrick writes we have a week in decisive PM it was definitely a late night moment of frustration um I do think that the Prime Minister was influenced a lot by the Press whilst by far the strongest lines in the Diaries relate to Boris Johnson s Patrick also noted rishy sunak eat out to helpout scheme was highly likely to have increased covid deaths and agreed Matt Hancock said things that weren't true the government's most senior scientist and late night diarist wielded a powerful pen romaly weeks News at 10