HCSA – the hospital doctors’ union, has issued the following statement on the release of the Covid Inquiry’s Module 1 report and recommendations.

Commenting, HCSA President Dr Naru Narayanan said: “This lays bare the dereliction of duty at the top in the years leading up to the worst global healthcare emergency of modern times. Complacency in government left us grossly unprepared in the complete absence of any serious planning for a Covid-style pandemic. The false economy of underfunding NHS services left them in the worst possible place in the run-up to 2020.

“Our hospital doctor members, their colleagues, patients and the wider public were all victims of this incompetent lack of contingency planning and effectively left to fend for themselves when the pandemic hit. Countless deaths, the trauma of working in horrific circumstances and lengthy lockdowns have scarred lives and an entire generation as a result.

“The fact is that the next pandemic is a matter of when, not if. Never again can a government be allowed to neglect its responsibility to plan, stockpile and protect its front-line workers and the wider population.

“Baroness Hallett’s recommendations must be implemented in full and without delay. Those responsible must be held to account.”

ENDS