Covid inquiry: Matt Hancock is honest to a fault in scathing evidence

The former health decretary claimed the UK Government had made a series of failures in its response to the pandemic.

Matt Hancock has given evidence before the Covid-19 inquiry, in an appearance that reminded Westminster why he was a minister.

Always one of the coronavirus briefings’ strongest media performers, Mr Hancock reeled through where he thought the response to the pandemic had gone wrong, albeit in a way that appeared to throw his party under the bus.

The former health secretary was critical of the UK Government’s readiness – or lack of – and despite a desire to distance himself from responsibility, appeared to admit more than he intended throughout yesterday’s session.

Former health secretary Matt Hancock arrives to give evidence to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.

He told the hearing there had been no forward thinking about mandatory quarantine, shielding, social restrictions or border controls, adding it was “madness” not to quarantine people coming in from China.

Mr Hancock said the Government should not have just prepared for flu-based pandemics, adding he was “profoundly sorry for each death that has occurred”.

He described the social care situation as “terrible”, but sought to blame local authorities, saying the Government didn’t “have the levers to act”.

In reality, this is an accidental admission of a social care system neglected for 13 years, despite years of promise to change it. That Mr Hancock didn’t know how many care homes were in the country only makes his decision to send infected patients back into them even worse, a decision that will have cost lives.

His evidence showed a man who plainly had learned lessons from the pandemic, but that will do little to lessen the anger of those who feel his decisions and rule breaking let them down.