Will they or won’t they? Ministers have until 4pm to give Boris Johnson’s private messages and notes to the official Covid inquiry after ex-PM hands them – as his allies accuse its chair of a ‘serious intrusion of privacy’
- Cabinet Office is refusing to hand over all the former PM’s WhatsApp messages
- Baroness Hallett received all of the information requested from Johnson himself
Ministers have only hours to decide whether to hand Boris Johnson’s Covid-era notes and WhatsApp messages to the official Covid inquiry or face a legal battle over keeping them secret.
The former prime minister yesterday piled pressure on the Cabinet Office to ‘urgently disclose’ the unredacted material to the official Covid inquiry.
The former prime minister has handed over all the material requested by probe chairman Baroness Hallett, his spokesman said, and urged that it be passed on to her.
In a swipe at the Government, Mr Johnson was said to be ‘perfectly happy for the inquiry to have access to this material in whatever form it requires’.
The Cabinet Office is refusing to provide all the former PM’s WhatsApp messages and diaries to Baroness Hallett on the grounds that it would be a ‘serious intrusion of privacy’. It has said the inquiry ‘does not have the power to request unambiguously irrelevant information that is beyond the scope of this investigation’.
The inquiry has set a deadline of 4pm today to hand over Mr Johnson’s messages, notebooks and official diaries, having granted a 48-hour extension on Tuesday.
However, Mr Johnson’s allies have also taken a swipe at Baroness Hallett over her demand.
Former Tory Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said the probe ‘must be about the systems of government, not an individual’ as there was no point ‘trying to pin blame’.
Boris Johnson last night piled pressure on the Cabinet Office to ‘urgently disclose’ his unredacted WhatsApp messages and notebooks to the official Covid inquiry
Former Tory Cabinet minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said the probe ‘must be about the systems of government, not an individual’ as there was no point ‘trying to pin blame’.
Mr Rees-Mogg said the inquiry needed to answer ‘why were we prepared for the wrong kind of pandemic, were lockdowns proportionate and how can we do it better next time. Those are the three questions. What Boris Johnson said to his great aunt on WhatsApp messages seems to me to be of very little relevance to anybody.’
The move to release his messages and notes by Mr Johnson is likely to be seen as an attempt to put pressure on Rishi Sunak and his deputy Oliver Dowden.
READ MORE: BORIS JOHNSON HANDS OVER ALL HIS COVID NOTEBOOKS TO INQUIRY
Mr Dowden has faced claims from Mr Johnson’s allies that he may have been involved in a decision to refer new Partygate allegations about the former PM to the police. A friend of Mr Johnson has suggested that the ‘WhatsApps the Government really doesn’t want disclosed are Sunak’s’ – a claim dismissed by No 10.
Lord Saville, who conducted the inquiry into Bloody Sunday, today said Baroness Hallett was best placed to decide what information was relevant to her review into the pandemic.
Speaking to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, Lord Saville said: ‘Who is to decide what is relevant or not? In my view, prima facie at least, it is Lady Hallett.
‘She is in charge of the inquiry, one of her duties is to do a thorough job. It is for her to decide whether something is relevant or not. If she looks at something and decides it is not relevant then there is no reason to publish it.’
A spokesman for Mr Johnson said last night: ‘All Boris Johnson’s material – including WhatsApps and notebooks – requested by the inquiry has been handed to the Cabinet Office in full and in unredacted form.
‘Mr Johnson urges the Cabinet Office to urgently disclose it to the inquiry. The Cabinet Office has had access to this material for several months.’
The spokesman added: ‘Mr Johnson would immediately disclose it directly to the inquiry if asked. While he understands the Government’s position, and does not seek to contradict it, he is perfectly happy for the inquiry to have access to this material in whatever form it requires.
‘Mr Johnson co-operated with the inquiry in full from the beginning of this process and continues to do so. Indeed, he established the inquiry. He looks forward to continuing to assist… its important work.’
The Cabinet Office is refusing to provide all the former PM’s WhatsApp messages and diaries to Baroness Hallett (pictured) on the grounds that it would be a ‘serious intrusion of privacy’
The decision by Mr Johnson to hand over the material will add to pressure on the Cabinet Office, with Downing Street already forced to deny allegations of a ‘cover-up’ amid criticism over the public row with the inquiry.
READ MORE: HOW COVID DOCTORS PREPARED TO PUNCH A HOLE IN BORIS JOHNSON’S THROAT
Whitehall officials are concerned about setting a precedent by handing over all the requested documents in unredacted form, rather than deciding what material is relevant.
Refusing to comply with the request to hand over the documents – which include text conversations between Mr Johnson and a host of government figures including Mr Sunak – could lead to a court battle with the inquiry.
But Whitehall officials hope a compromise can be reached before the 4pm deadline to avoid the need for a damaging legal fight with the inquiry, which was set up to examine the pandemic and the Government’s response to it.
According to the notice seeking the unredacted messages, the inquiry is requesting conversations between Mr Johnson, ex-No 10 adviser Henry Cook and a host of government figures, civil servants and officials.
The list includes Mr Sunak, Dominic Cummings, Matt Hancock, Sir Chris Whitty, and Sir Patrick Vallance.
Work and Pensions Secretary Mel Stride said the Government intends to ‘continue to be absolutely transparent and candid’ and it had already provided ‘55,000 documents, eight witness statements and corporate witness statements’ to the inquiry.
Liberal Democrat Cabinet Office spokesman Christine Jardine said: ‘Rishi Sunak must now confirm he will hand over any messages requested by the Covid inquiry. He can’t use Boris Johnson any more as an excuse to avoid handing over vital evidence.’
The stand-off comes after Mr Johnson was left furious when it emerged that the Cabinet Office had handed extracts from his prime ministerial diaries to the police without telling him.
The department referred the former PM to two forces last month over diary entries showing he was visited by colleagues and friends at Chequers and No 10 when pandemic lockdown rules were in place.
Jeremy Quin, the Paymaster General, is also understood to have approved the handing over of documents to the Commons privileges committee, which is investigating whether Mr Johnson lied to Parliament over Partygate. Mr Johnson’s allies said he had received legal advice that none of the visits broke Covid rules. He has threatened to sue the Government.
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