UK Covid-19 Inquiry

I can see I’m going to have to go over all this again. It’s not a task I really face with much enthusiasm, but it doesn’t seem like anyone else is prepared to do it. To say I’m disappointed at the revisionism, sleight-of-hand and downright misleading testimony from several senior scientists to the UK Covid-19 Inquiry would be an understatement. I had naively hoped there might be some element of humility, introspection and self-reflection concerning their errors at the start of the outbreak, but I’ve seen no hint of this. (If anyone wants to reassure me that lessons have been learnt internally, then I’m all ears, but would want to see evidence of this.)

Unfortunately, neither the inquisitors themselves, nor the journalists following the process, nor the array of commentators eagerly quoting the juicy messages, seem to have the will or perhaps the scientific skills to unpick the story. That’s not to say it is hugely complicated, but a basic understanding of the underlying mathematics is vital for piecing together how it all played out, and why. And it’s very clear that most people start out with an agenda and go looking for support, rather than really being interested in understanding the truth. The scientists are delighted to have found a route to blaming the politicians, and the politicians are too focussed on knifing each other to question what the scientists are now claiming the history to be.

That’s not to say I’m perfect (far from it), but on this particular topic, I happen to be correct. A more difficult question, is whether anyone else cares. Anyway, on with the show….