Different Welsh Covid messages a mistake - Johnson

Boris Johnson is expected to be questioned for two days at the Covid inquiry

It was a "mistake" that Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland had their own messages on Covid, Boris Johnson has told the Covid inquiry.

The former prime minister said it was the "natural and proper right" of governments in three nations to have their own approach.

But he said that meant different messages coming from the different nations.

It echoes calls - rejected by Labour First Minister Mark Drakeford - from some of his former ministers for a UK approach in future pandemics.

Mr Johnson made the comments at the Covid inquiry on Wednesday morning.

"I would like to point out we were relying on messaging very much to control the virus," he said.

"One problem we had, because of the natural and proper right of the devolved administrations to have their own approach, was that sometimes the BBC News could have one message from Number 10, and then a slightly different one from Scotland or wherever.

"I think we need to sort that out in the future."

Asked by the lead counsel to the inquiry, Hugo Keith, if he meant the issue was his "primary mistake," he added: "You asked me to cite a mistake that we made. I didn't say that was the primary mistake."

The former prime minister said the collaboration between the different governments was "overwhelmingly... excellent".

"There was far, far more that united us than divided us - it was really a big UK effort and the country pulled together."

The more "limited" issue came, Mr Johnson said, when the devolved administrations were "understandably" communicating directly with their own electorates.

"There were going to be times when they differed from the main UK [government] effort and I thought that was sometimes at risk of being confusing in a time when we really needed to land messages simply".

The former prime minister - in a submission to the inquiry - has already said he thought there was a “risk” that devolved governments would be “different for the sake of being different”.

Mr Johnson later accused the devolved governments of leaking information from emergency Cobra meetings.

He told Wednesday's hearing that it was "sometimes" the case and that that "was in my view a problem."

Former English health secretary Matt Hancock has told the inquiry that powers should sit with UK ministers and not Welsh ones.

In a separate submission to the inquiry, Mr Drakeford accused Mr Johnson of viewing the devolved administrations as “like a set of unruly, unreliable adolescents whose judgements were flawed”, rather than equal partners.

Mr Drakeford frequently complained of a lack of regular ministerial meetings during the height of the pandemic.

Although former prime minister Mr Johnson initiated the first UK-wide lockdown, the nature of the public health legislation involved meant that Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland were then responsible for making their own Covid rules – with the UK government deciding for England.

'Excuse after excuse'

A representative of a Welsh group speaking on behalf of families bereveaed by Covid said Boris Johnson "seems quite casual, careless and dismissive".

Anna-Louise Marsh-Rees from Covid Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru said: "I thinks it's empty words.

"I think he's saying it because he feels he has to. Because what followed was anything but an apology. He's made excuse after excuse for decisions he did or didn't make."

Ms Marsh-Rees said she felt Mr Johnson was "more likely to be making a political point" on whether the pandemic should have been handled as a UK-wide issue.

"The Coronavirus Act was put in place specifically to give devolved nations powers, so it’s very interesting now they're all saying we should have had a four nations response," she said.

Ms Marsh-Rees was in the Inquiry room all day to hear Boris Johnson's testimony.

"I've been involved for 3 years now since my father, Ian, died of hospital acquired Covid Abergavenny.

"I've been forced to become an expert in all things Covid, it's therefore alarming to hear a prime minister that doesn't know as much as I know - it's really quite astonishing."

Analysis by Gareth Lewis - BBC Wales political editor

In many ways this was a day of contradictions.

His government brought in a Covid law that gave powers to the devolved administrations, even though he doesn't think they should have had them.

Mr Johnson didn't think it was right for the prime minister to hold regular meetings with the Welsh and Scottish first ministers, but in hindsight he thinks he should have done more to bring them on board.

Despite ending up with "no wiggle room" when he eventually called the lockdown, he didn't push back on scientific advice that mass gatherings like the Cheltenham Festival were OK to go ahead less than two weeks before.

And then his comments on both excellent collaboration and leaks with the devolved governments - politically it might suit Mr Johnson to suggest that a Labour government and an SNP government were not always pulling in his direction.