Boris Johnson had a four-day break in crucial period before Covid pandemic struck
Official files revealed that Boris Johnson took four days off during a critical period leading up to the lockdown in the United Kingdom, where the Covid epidemic emerged.
The statement came after the group campaigning for families of Covid casualties described the former prime minister as “beyond contempt” for his attack on a damning report produced by the inquiry into his government’s handling of the pandemic.
Mr Johnson refused to apologize for the 23,000 extra deaths the inquiry estimated were caused by delaying the lockdown by a week.
Instead, he used a column in a national newspaper to berate the inquiry’s chair, Baroness Heather Hallett, and argue that Professor Neil Ferguson, who based his estimates of the figure, was “hysterical”.
The official account of February 2020, which the inquiry report describes as a “lost month” as he prepared to respond to the pandemic, shows Mr Johnson took a long break during the half-term break at Chevening, a state estate in Kent.
The former prime minister was questioned in the investigation into what he did between 14 and 24 February 2020, when he testified in December 2023.
He said at the time: “I didn’t take a long holiday. I was working throughout the semester and my pace increased.”
But official operating records appear to suggest that the evidence Mr Johnson gave under oath may have been false.
The row has echoes of the parliamentary inquiry into his responses in the House Partygate, which was found to have misled the Commons.
Official files show Mr Johnson did no official government business on February 15, 16, 17 and 21.
Instead, he claims, he spent time in Chevening walking his dog Dilyn, riding the motorcycle given to him by his wife, Carrie, and hosting friends and family for lunches, dinners and overnight stays.
Independent He approached Mr Johnson for comment.
The latest statement comes as the group representing the families of those who lost their lives to Covid wants to ensure Mr Johnson no longer plays any role in public life.
They also suggested legal action, possibly a private case, against the former prime minister.
A spokesman for the group said it was “further evidence that it belongs to him”. [Johnson] At that time, he did not take Covid seriously, ignored the warnings he received and put himself before the country. This once again proves the accuracy of the report published on Thursday. “It seems he has questions to answer about his honesty before the investigation.”
they said Independent: “It is beyond contempt that Boris Johnson chose to respond to the Covid Inquiry by attacking Covid mourners over the ‘controversy’ over the death of a loved one.
“Rather than repent, regret or even apologize, Johnson is using a newspaper column to do what he could not do while under oath at the Covid Inquiry: distort the truth, promote debunked myths and ignore facts.
“But the truth is now clear that Mr Johnson never engaged. He was responsible for thousands of preventable deaths. The only promise he kept was to ‘let the bodies pile up’. He has no place in public life and we are once again calling for Boris Johnson to lose all former Prime Minister privileges following the inquiry report.”
Their response came after the former Prime Minister made a surprising speech in his weekly newspaper. Daily Mail colon.
Mr Johnson fumed: “A judge spent the thick of £200 million on an investigation and what was the outcome?
“He appears to have wanted more lockdowns. He appears to have been angry at the previous Tory government for not imposing lockdowns hard enough or fast enough, while the rest of the world thought lockdowns were probably greatly exaggerated.”
He continued: “Bozhe moi, you say, wiping away tears of laughter. Oh my God, these Britskis!”
