Overview

• A three-year public inquiry into the UK government's handling of COVID-19 has opened to investigate whether suffering and death could have been avoided with better planning.
• The inquiry will examine whether Brexit distracted authorities from preparing for potential threats like a pandemic.
• The first section of the inquiry will assess whether the UK relied too heavily on the mistaken assumption a future pandemic would resemble the flu.
• The inquiry will hold hearings over three years to scrutinize the UK’s readiness for a pandemic, how the government responded, and lessons for the future.
• There has been criticism that relatives of COVID-19 victims were not included in the initial six-week phase of the inquiry.