Need to know: Dominic Cummings’ select committee appearance

Dominic Cummings has made sure that his appearance in front of the Science and Technology Committee and the Health and Social Care Select Committee will be headline news when it takes place on Wednesday morning.

But the joint Covid inquiry is about much more than the appearance of the Prime Minister’s former chief adviser –  with MPs grilling ministers, scientific advisers, and global experts on the government’s key decisions throughout the pandemic. Here’s what you need to know.

What is the “coronavirus: lessons learnt” inquiry?

The joint committees’ inquiry was set up in October 2020 to look at the lessons that can be learned from the response to the coronavirus pandemic so far.

The inquiry has been examining the impact and effectiveness of action taken by the government and the advice it has received throughout the pandemic. The idea is to record real-time evidence of the government’s decision-making process and make improvements that can be applied immediately.

The inquiry is looking at a range of issues including the impact on BAME communities and other at-risk groups, modelling, the use of statistics and the UK’s prior preparedness for a pandemic.

Who is chairing the inquiry?

Former Conservative minister Greg Clark is chair of the Science and Technology Select Committee, while fellow former Conservative minister Jeremy Hunt is chair of the Health and Social Care Select Committee.

Who are they questioning?

The joint inquiry has taken evidence on the record from ministers, their scientific advisers, people in charge of bodies like Public Health England and Test and Trace – as well as scientists and experts from all over the world.

Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, will appear in front of the inquiry at 9:30am on 26 May, followed by Matt Hancock, the health secretary, on 10 June.

Why is the joint inquiry grilling Cummings?

As Boris Johnson’s former chief adviser, Cummings has access to all manner of documents, emails, and WhatsApp messages chronicling the government response to the crisis and has tweeted that he has “the only copy of a crucial historical document from Covid decision-making”.

MPs on the joint inquiry will be hoping to use Cummings’ first-hand testimony and documents to scrutinise the run-up to the first and second lockdowns (in March and November 2020 respectively), as well as the government’s broader handling of the pandemic.

What will be covered in the evidence session?

Part one will deal with pandemic preparedness and the first lockdown. Part two will cover non-pharmaceutical interventions, such as Test and Trace, as well as Cummings’s trip to Barnard Castle and the knock-on effect that had for public policy. Part three will explore the vaccination programme, while the final section will cover the decision-making around the second lockdown.

What is Cummings likely to say?

Cummings has already teased some of his evidence in meandering Twitter threads, accusing the PM and his team of initially being too slow to react, adopting the wrong course of action and then failing to enact a correct course until the vaccines arrived. 

“Nuclear Dom” has criticised the government’s border policy as “a joke” and said there should have been “human challenge” vaccine trials in the summer. He has also claimed that government “secrecy” in its handling of the Covid crisis “contributed greatly to the catastrophe”.