Gething rewrites history on Covid report - Plaid

Vaughan Gething gave evidence at the Covid inquiry last week

A Welsh Labour minister has been accused of trying to rewrite history over why he did not read a report into a pandemic simulation he took part in.

Vaughan Gething has been criticised after he told the Covid inquiry last week he had not read the report into 2016's Exercise Cygnus.

Defending himself on BBC Radio Wales Breakfast, he said the report was a Public Health England document.

Plaid Cymru said the comments were "disingenuous" at best and "misleading" at worst.

Conservatives asked if Mr Gething felt responsibility for pandemic planning was "beneath him".

The Welsh government declined to comment.

Exercise Cygnus was a cross-government simulation, led by the UK government but which included the Welsh government and other devolved authorities, of how pandemic flu could play out, carried out in 2016 when Mr Gething was health minister.

At the inquiry last week Mr Gething was asked if he had read the report, which was published in July 2017.

"No, I didn't. I did not read this report," he said, under oath.

Asked about a paragraph warning the UK did not have sufficient capability to cope with a severe nationwide pandemic, Mr Gething said if he had read it "I almost certainly would have asked extra questions about what was then taking place".

He told the hearing he had direct involvement in the exercise itself, in October 2016.

"I attended ministerial meetings on both days as requested. My deputy at the time also attended some of those exercises as requested."

Cygnus was among the documents Mr Gething, who is now economy minister, said he had not read when he held the health brief.

When it was put to him on BBC Radio Wales that he had not read the report even though he had taken part in the exercise, Mr Gething said that was an "unfair characterisation".

"Because the Operation Cygnus report delivered was a Public Health England report, and it was a report that was delivered within the health and care and emergency planning system," he said.

“It was for officials talking to officials.

“Every single briefing that I had, including the briefing about lessons learning post-Cygnus and work being done. I read, and I considered and made decisions on."

'He had a duty'

Mabon ap Gwynfor, Plaid's health spokesman, said the comments were "at best, disingenuous and, at worst, misleading".

"Cygnus was a joint exercise that the Welsh government actively participated in to prepare for a potential pandemic. The then health minister had a duty to thoroughly read the papers and understand its implications."

He added: "Trying to rewrite history or manipulate the semantics in order to deflect attention away from the government's shortcomings is yet another reason why we urgently need a comprehensive public inquiry into the Welsh government's handling of the Covid pandemic."

Welsh Conservative Senedd leader Andrew RT Davies said: “Vaughan Gething was at the exercise the Welsh government and Welsh NHS took part in, so surely he would have an interest?

“Or does he think this type of responsibility is beneath him and for lesser mortals to deal with?

“Let’s hope he has a greater grip on the economy department - which he hasn’t shown to date - given the dark economic clouds overhead.”

A Welsh government spokesman declined to comment, saying it would not be "providing a running commentary on the evidence taken".

"We also look forward to working with the Senedd committee which will further scrutinise the UK inquiry’s conclusions at the end of each module to see if significant questions remain outstanding," he added.