Lame duck Rishi Sunak to be grilled over 6 questions at Covid Inquiry
Rishi Sunak is set to appear before the Covid Inquiry for his first interrogation over his key role as Chancellor during the pandemic.
The under-fire PM will face a grilling over his £840million Eat Out to Help Out scheme and the financial support offered to low-paid workers forced to self-isolate. His questioning by lead counsel Hugo Keith KC in west London on Monday morning will kick off a crucial week for Mr Sunak, who also faces a crunch vote on his Rwanda plans on Tuesday. Labour leader Keir Starmer told The Mirror: “The Tories no longer stand for anything and their ability to govern has collapsed."
Messages have revealed that Government scientists referred to him as "Dr Death, the Chancellor" over concerns about his push to keep economic activity going while leading the Treasury. Last week it also emerged Mr Sunak had argued that ministers should let Covid "rip a bit”, according to a damning extract from Sir Patrick’s diary in May 2021 revealed to the inquiry.
Families who lost loved ones to the virus warned Mr Sunak he has “extremely serious questions to answer" when he takes the stand under oath. Here The Mirror looks at the key questions the PM faces ahead of his appearance.
Did he consult any scientists on Eat Out to Help Out?
The former Chancellor's infamous £840million Eat Out to Help Out scheme has been repeatedly blamed by scientists for a surge in Covid cases. The policy, which was branded "eat out to help the virus" by the former Chief Medical Officer Sir Chris Whitty, has been the source of much criticism at the Covid Inquiry.
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Dame Angela McLean, who was Chief Scientific Adviser at the Ministry of Defence during, also described Mr Sunak as "Dr Death" in an apparent reference to the scheme. Expect the PM to be grilled toda on whether he consulted scientists and alarming claims members of the government's Covid taskforce were "blindsided" over the policy.
Did he think 'just let people die' before the second lockdown?
In a chilling extract from the former Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance's diary it is claimed Mr Sunak believed ministers should "just let people die and that's okay". It came amid a tense debate in Government in October 2020 as pressure mounted over the need for a second national lockdown to curb the spread of Covid.
In his diary extract Sir Patrick wrote that "DC" - the former No10 chief adviser Dominic Cummings - "says 'Rishi thinks just let people die and that's okay'". Mr Sunak denied using the words when he was quizzed on the claim in the Commons - but expect him to be grilled over his opposition to a second lockdown.
What happened to his missing WhatsApp messages?
The PM is likely to face questions over his missing WhatsApps after it emerged in October he had failed to hand over crucial messages from his time as Chancellor to the Inquiry. The messages are likely to contain critical internal discussions over the Eat Out to Help Out scheme.
Mr Sunak said in his witness statement: "Having changed my phone a number of times over the last three years, I do not have access to the WhatsApp messages that I sent or received during the relevant time, and neither were the messages backed up."
But Kate Bell, the assistant general secretary at the Trades Union Congress, said: " Rishi Sunak must play by the rules and put people above his own political fortunes. That means cooperating fully and supplying all his WhatsApp messages to the Inquiry".
What did he know about the culture of rule-breaking and toxic No10?
Boris Jonson last week faced uncomfortable questions on claims of a toxic atmosphere in No10 and the Partygate scandal that rocked his premiership. Expect Mr Sunak to face questions over his own relations with No10 and officials during the crisis.
He may also be grilled over his own-rule breaking after he was fined by the Metropolitan Police for attending a 56th birthday bash for the former PM in the Cabinet Room. The event in June 2020 also led to fines being issued to Mr Johnson and his wife, Carrie.
Why didn't he increase sick pay?
The UK's poor levels of sick pay was an act of a "self-sabotage that left millions brutally exposed to the pandemic", the Trades Union Congress has argued. During the crisis MPs described the Chancellor's failure to increase sick from the then-level£96.35 per week as a "monstrous failing".
At the Inquiry Mr Sunak could face questions over why he didn't act on the issue despite spending hundreds of millions on Eat Out to Help Out. During his own evidence session the former Health Secretary Matt Hancock admitted sick pay "is far too low" and said he would double it. He said: "It's far lower than the European average, it encourages people to go to work when they should be getting better.
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Why did he block a self-isolation payments?
There have been claims Mr Sunak blocked plans to give low paid workers financial support if they needed to isolate - despite warnings it was necessary to stop Covid spreading The Covid Inquiry heard in October that ministers were told they should provide cash to make it financially viable for those on low incomes to isolate if they’d come into contact with people who tested positive.
But in his diary, Chief Scientific Adviser Sir Patrick Vallance revealed that Mr Sunak rejected the idea. In an entry in September 2020, he wrote: “CX (Chancellor) blocking all notion of paying to get people to isolate despite all the evidence that this will be needed.” A belated scheme did pay a £500 lump sum - but critics say it was "poorly administered, unfunded and hard to access" while two-thirds of people were turned down.
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