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Live Reporting
Adam Hale, Oliver Slow, Steve Duffy and David Deans
All times stated are UK
Questions raised about patients being released into social care
Although the care sector will be covered elsewhere in the inquiry, the decision to discharge patients from hospitals into social care in Wales will be examined during the Wales section of the hearings.
“There’s evidence that more than 1,000 Welsh patients were discharged from hospital to care homes without a test during March and April 2020,” Tom Poole KC said.
He said that as of 5 June, figures from the Office of National Statistics (ONS) “suggest that nearly a third of Wales’ Covid-19 deaths had been within care homes”, adding that there was “a massive failure of infection control”, which contributed to the influx of infected but untested patients.
The Welsh government position was that its advice was testing would not be effective for those who were asymptomatic, Poole said, while there was also a lack of testing capacity.
“It is an issue for this inquiry whether this belief could have been genuinely or sensibly held," Poole said.
He said by early April 2020 there was clear evidence that only testing those who were symptomatic missed up to half of care home infections.
This morning's main developments
Image caption: The Wales part of the UK Covid-19 inquiry began this morning, which will scrutinise the Welsh government’s handling of the pandemic
Copyright: PA Media
The session has paused for lunch, but we'll continue to bring you analysis and updates from this morning.
Here are some of today's key developments:
- The session began with an opening statement from inquiry chair Baroness Hallett, who acknowledged that some had hoped for an independent Welsh inquiry. She promised the UK inquiry will do its best to fully investigate the major issues in Wales around the pandemic
- The inquiry then watched a film of testimony from bereaved families, which included people's experiences of trying to see relatives in hospital, and of patients catching Covid when they were admitted for other conditions. One daughter appearing in the video said the NHS ultimately failed her father and she wanted to see change
- The morning session also heard extensively from Tom Poole KC, counsel for the inquiry, who outlined the figures of deaths, infections and hospital admissions in Wales during the course of the pandemic. He also said that, as well as looking into the number of deaths, the inquiry will also ask whether the “dreadful consequences” of lockdowns were avoidable
- Another question the inquiry will look at is whether Welsh government should have advised against mass gatherings earlier than it did. Poole said it would look at the government’s advice on mass gatherings for a Wales rugby match that was then cancelled and two Stereophonics concerns that went ahead in Cardiff on 14 and 15 March
Email from health minister describes chaotic hospital scenes
Image caption: The inquiry's counsel read out an email Vaughan Gething sent to himself recording the “stark observations" of a hospital consultant who described chaotic hospital scenesCopyright: Getty Images
Poole revealed that on the day the Welsh government announced a lockdown, its then-health minister Vaughan Gething sent himself an email recording the “stark observations of a Welsh hospital consultant”.
“Complete chaos at our hospital,” read the email.
“No protection for nurses, very low morale as being asked to care for patients admitted to orthopaedic wards by medics with respiratory symptoms, masks not being released.”
Should mass gatherings have been cancelled earlier?
Image caption: The Wales v Scotland match in Cardiff in March 2020 was called off the day before kick-offCopyright: Getty Images
One question the inquiry is looking at is whether the Welsh government should have advised against mass gatherings earlier than it did.
Poole tells the inquiry that Lee Waters, who was Wales’ deputy transport minister, said on WhatsApp it was an “odd signal to send” for Labour to have cancelled its Spring 2020 conference but allow 70,000 people to gather in Cardiff for Wales v Scotland.
The match, scheduled for 14 March, was then called off by the Welsh Rugby Union – but not until the day before kick-off and not before 20,000 Scottish rugby fans had made their journeys from Scotland.
Poole said it would look at the government's advice on mass gatherings at two Stereophonics concerts held in Cardiff on 14 and 15 March.
He said the scientific evidence in early March had indicated the benefit of such a ban was not particularly significant, “but gatherings were not without some risk”.
Counsel asks if Welsh government was adequately prepared for pandemic
Poole said the Welsh government’s cabinet did not discuss Covid until 25 February - “a whole month” after it was discussed by the UK government’s cabinet for the first time.
Setting out a timeline of how the UK and Welsh governments responded in early 2020, Poole says the chief medical officer Sir Frank Atherton gave advice on 24 February that there was a “significant risk” the virus would arrive in Wales.
“Were the consequences of the lack of any control measures adequately understood?," he asked.
Key questions laid out for Welsh government to answer
Poole said there was a question of whether the Welsh government could have done more earlier to deal with the pandemic.
“Ought it to have taken heed earlier of advice and information it received from experts or by the UK government’s systems to which it had access, such as Cobra and Sage?” he said, referring to two UK-wide government advisory groups that deal with emergencies.
He asked if, given differences in health and age profiles of the Welsh population, and its pre-existing structures for dealing with public health emergencies, “ought the Welsh government to have done more to make plans to deal with the virus earlier?”
He also asked if the Welsh government should have “done more to seek to influence decision-makers in key positions within UK government in the best interests of the people of Wales?”
Poole added that had the Welsh government taken a different approach, in the critical early months of the pandemic in January and February 2020, it might have been able to “alter the course of the pandemic significantly”.
When will the inquiry publish its report?
Tom Poole, counsel for the inquiry, said the hearings in Wales will look at decision-making by the Welsh government, hear from ministers, and a range of scientific advisers including Sir Frank Atherton, Wales’ chief medical officer.
The hearings will also look at the relationship between the UK and Welsh governments.
Inquiry chair Baroness Hallett said she intends to publish the report for the first area of work "as soon as possible" - potentially by early summer 2024.
How many died from Covid in Wales?
The number of people who have died with Covid as a contributory factor had reached 12,532 in Wales by early February 2024.
Up to 9 February, there were around 10,250 deaths due to Covid, with the virus the underlying cause of death.
- The first confirmed coronavirus case in Wales was on 28 February 2020 in Swansea from a patient who had travelled back from holiday in Italy
- The first death in Wales from Covid was a 68-year-old Wrexham hospital patient on 15 March 2020
- The first wave peaked with 73 deaths on a single day in April 2020
- Covid's second wave in the winter of 2020-21 brought 83 deaths on 11 January 2021 alone - the worst single day of the pandemic in Wales
- Nearly a fifth (17%) of all Covid deaths registered have occurred in care homes
Copyright: BBC
‘A shocking figure and a terrible loss of life’ - inquiry counsel
Image caption: Tom Poole, KC, counsel for the inquiryCopyright: UK Covid-19 inquiry
Tom Poole KC, counsel for the inquiry, outlined the figures of deaths, infections and hospital admissions in Wales during the course of the pandemic.
“The number of deaths where Covid is mentioned on the death certificate is now over 12,300 – that is by any measure a shocking figure and a terrible loss of life.
“The testimonies we’ve just heard reminded us that each represents a loss of an individual, often in circumstances that make their death even harder to bear for their families and friends and which multiplied their grief many times over. "Such deaths demand the question, ‘Did it have to be that way?’”
As well as deaths, Poole said the inquiry will also ask whether the “dreadful consequences” of lockdowns were avoidable.
They included, he said, an “explosion of mental health disorders”.
He said an "entire generation of educational prospects were harmed, and pre-existing societal inequalities were seriously exacerbated”.
Video testimony from bereaved relatives
The inquiry is watching a film of testimony from bereaved relatives.
The video details delayed diagnosis of cancer, the experience of trying to see relatives in hospital, and of patients catching Covid when they were admitted for other conditions.
Before it began, Baroness Hallett said the beginning of each module at the inquiry would start with "impact films", explaining it was “because we have to remember those who died and those who suffered".
People in the video told of mental health issues during lockdown – and it feeling like being “kept in a prison”.
Others talked of the distress of not being able to attend funerals – or organising them under the restrictions.
The film also addressed the difficulty in understanding the different rules of living or working across the border with England. Another spoke of the experience of long Covid.
One daughter said the NHS ultimately failed her father in the last year of his life and she wanted to see change.
Who will give evidence at the Covid Inquiry in Wales?
Image caption: Mark Drakeford hosted regular live news conferences during the pandemicCopyright: Getty Images
First Minister Mark Drakeford and Economy Minister Vaughan Gething - who was Wales' health minister during the pandemic - are expected to give evidence during the three weeks the Covid Inquiry is in Wales.
Those also giving evidence at the hearing this week include the Welsh government's chief statistician Stephanie Howarth and their head of science Dr Robert Hoyle, while Dr Chris Williams, consultant epidemiologist for Public Health Wales, will also give a testimony.
Wales' older people's commissioner Helena Herklots and former children's commissioner Prof Sally Holland will also be asked questions by the inquiry this week.
Covid inquiry in Wales begins
The Welsh session of the Covid inquiry has begun with an opening statement from its chair, Baroness Hallett.
In her opening statement she acknowledged that some had hoped for an independent Welsh inquiry.
She said that was not a decision for her, but she promised that the UK inquiry will do its best to “investigate and analyse fully and fairly the most significant issues that concern people in Wales”.
Why is the UK Covid Inquiry coming to Wales?
The UK Covid Inquiry is sitting in Wales for the first time this week.
Politicians and key decision makers charged with guiding the country through the pandemic will appear at the hearing in Cardiff for the next three weeks.
It is the second time the hearings have taken place outside of London since it began in August 2022.
It was in Scotland a few weeks ago and is now in Cardiff, before heading to Northern Ireland.
The Welsh session, which will last three weeks and be held at a hotel in Cardiff, will cover the political decisions made in Wales during the pandemic.
It will question politicians and health officials about the handling of the outbreak, but members of the public have also been encouraged to give their own testimony to the inquiry.
What is the Covid inquiry investigating and how does it work?
Image caption: Baroness Hallett promised the inquiry would be "thorough and fair"Copyright: Piranha Photography
Boris Johnson, the prime minister throughout Covid, launched a public inquiry to look into the UK government's handling and decision-making during the pandemic.
Inquiries respond to "public concern" about events and are established and funded by government - led by an independent chair.
In this case former judge and crossbench peer Baroness Hallett, who previously led the inquests into the 7 July London bombings, is in the chair.
Inquiries can demand evidence and compel witnesses to attend. No-one is found guilty or innocent, but conclusions are published. The government is not obliged to accept any recommendations.
When Johnson announced the inquiry, the former PM said the government's response would be "under the microscope".
Lady Hallett promised the inquiry would be "thorough and fair".
The Covid inquiry began on 28 June 2022. There is no specific timescale for how long it will last, but Lady Hallett does not expect the public hearings to run beyond summer 2026.
Earlier this month the inquiry was in Scotland, now it is in Wales before going to Northern Ireland in April.
Hello and welcome
Good morning and welcome to our live page coverage as the Covid inquiry comes to Wales.
Over the next three weeks the focus will largely be on the decisions made by the Welsh government during the pandemic, including the timing of lockdowns, to the rationale of doing things differently to the UK government.
For many, it will be a chance to hear the justifications for policies that they say left them feeling unsupported and alone.
Follow here as we bring you all the latest developments and analysis from the inquiry.
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