39 h. ago How much the Covid inquiry is costing as figures soar to astronomical sum

The Covid inquiry set up by the Government has hundreds of staff working on it. It's expected to be the most expensive one of its kind ever

Politics

57 h. ago Planning for any future pandemic must include impact on economy – Diane Dodds

The former Stormont economy minister made the comments to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry.

Events

61 h. ago The lawyers always win: Fury as government blows £100m responding to Covid inquiry

The huge outlay by Whitehall comes on top of the near-£200million cost of the probe itself - a figure that is expected to rise significantly.

Politics

61 h. ago More potholes across Greater Manchester will be filled following big cash boost

Government funding will see more cash spent on filling pesky potholes

Politics

66 h. ago Covid Inquiry costs UK taxpayers £100million in Government responses alone

More than half of the figure has been spent on legal fees, including bringing in external lawyers

Economics

66 h. ago Government has spent more than £100m so far responding to Covid inquiry

Transparency data from the Cabinet Office shows the staff and legal costs associated with responding to the public inquiry.

Economics

5 d. ago There are those on the left and right who offer only grievance: Labour is getting on with the job of economic renewal | Keir Starmer

Judge last week’s budget in the light of our bold plans to sweep away red tape, tackle inactivity among young people and pursue a closer trading relationship with the EUKeir Starmer is the prime minister of the United KingdomReport: Labour’s economic plan will take years to deliver, Starmer saysAt the budget last week, we made the right choices for Britain, cutting the cost of energy with £150 off bills, protecting the NHS and tackling the scourge of child poverty by removing the two-child limit. We also ensured that the revenue we raised through taxes was done fairly, with everyone contributing but those with the broadest shoulders contributing their fair share. As a result of the choices we made, the budget created a more stable economic environment, driving down inflation and government bond yields. This is vital for protecting our public services, when £1 in every £10 spent by government goes on debt interest.The budget builds on the action we have already taken to improve the e...

Economics

7 d. ago Furries, 'gooning' and 'muscle mommies': What really goes on in the warped porn chatrooms that have broken the brains of young men

If the Covid Inquiry is looking for anything else to add to its expensive agenda, it might reflect on this: how pandemic-era boys cooped up in their bedrooms got hooked on the worst of the internet.

Events

1 week ago The shameful attacks on the Covid inquiry prove it: the right is lost in anti

There is nothing wrong with questioning the mighty cost of the lockdowns, but we can’t let hardline libertarians rewrite Britain’s pandemic historyThat number will stay fixed for ever in public memory: 23,000 people died because Boris Johnson resisted locking the country down in time. As Covid swept in, and with horrific images of Italian temporary morgues in tents, he went on holiday and took no calls. With the NHS bracing to be “overwhelmed” by the virus, he rode his new motorbike, walked his dog and hosted friends at Chevening.Nothing is surprising about that: he was ejected from Downing Street and later stepped down as an MP largely for partying and lying to parliament about it. Everyone knew he was a self-aggrandising fantasist with a “toxic and chaotic culture” around him. But this is not just about one narcissistic politician. It’s about his entire rightwing coterie of libertarians and their lethally dominant creed in the UK media.Polly Toynbee is a Guardian columnist Continu...

Events

1 week ago Covid inquiry hears from businesses as it begins examining economic response

Monday’s hearing began with an impact video featuring people who’s lives were affected by the pandemic.

Economics

1 week ago Readers’ Letters: Boris doesn’t deserve to be the Covid fall guy

The latest from the Covid Inquiry isn’t impressing one reader

Politics

1 week ago Boris Johnson had a four day break in crucial period before Covid pandemic struck

The official records have raised questions over whether the former prime minister may have misled the Covid inquiry

Politics

1 week ago Revealed: Covid inquiry evidence which criticised MI6 for denying Wuhan lab leak theory was censored by security officials

The inquiry stifled any discussion of the origins of Covid, with lawyers shutting down Michael Gove when he tried to tell them 'a significant body of judgment' believed the virus was man-made

Politics

1 week ago Boris Johnson took four days off as NHS warned Covid could ‘overwhelm’ system

Files show then PM was walking dog, riding motorbike and hosting guests as pandemic planning stalled in ‘lost month’Boris Johnson took four days off from official government business during a key period in the UK’s Covid preparation when the NHS was bracing to be “overwhelmed” by the virus.Official disclosure for the period in February 2020 – described by the Covid inquiry as a “lost month” in the country’s crisis response – reveal Johnson enjoyed an extended break during the half-term holidays at Chevening, a governmental estate in Kent, where he spent time walking his dog and taking motorcycle rides. Continue reading...

Events

1 week ago Boris Johnson's sister claims the Covid report makes him sound like 'the Grim Reaper'

Boris Johnson’s sister has accused the Covid Inquiry report of regarding the former Prime Minister as “the Grim Reaper himself” - dismissing the 800 page document as “expensive vindictive rubbish"

Politics

1 week ago Boris Johnson ‘beyond contempt’ for attack on Covid inquiry’s findings and refusal to apologise

Families of the Covid bereaved have reacted to horror to the lack of contrition in the former prime minister’s weekly column

Politics

1 week ago Johnson says Covid inquiry that criticised chaos in his government ‘muddled’

The former prime minister said the Hallett report should be ‘filed vertically’.

Politics

1 week ago Covid inquiry report: Why we mustn't let Nicola Sturgeon rewrite history

The sub-text to SNP claims about ‘eliminating’ Covid was the implication that Scotland was in a significantly better position that England. Statistics later show we were not

Politics

2 w. ago BORIS JOHNSON: On Covid there are two big questions: Where did the virus come from

What is in the news in Britain, asks BORIS JOHNSON. What are they talking about? You rub your eyes in sheer amazement. Covid!

Politics

2 w. ago Conservatives must apologise for their disastrous handling of Covid

Editorial: The Covid inquiry’s conclusion that the needless loss of 23,000 lives was due to government decision-making at the start of the pandemic, made worse by the toxic and chaotic leadership of Boris Johnson, has yet to make many leading Tories of the day sufficiently penitent

Events