Rishi Sunak reportedly said UK should ‘let people die’ during COVID-19 pandemic. In a recent revelation during the ongoing inquiry into Britain’s management of the COVID-19 pandemic, a concerning quote attributed to former Finance Minister Rishi Sunak has come to light.
According to The Times of India, Patrick Vallance, the former chief scientific adviser to the government, detailed a meeting in his diary on October 25, 2020, where Sunak reportedly suggested that the government should “just let people die” rather than implement a second national lockdown.
Vallance presented his diary entries to the inquiry on Monday, where he also noted that Dominic Cummings, then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s chief adviser during the pandemic, conveyed Sunak’s stance to him.
The diary quoted Cummings as saying, “Rishi thinks just let people die, and that’s okay. This all feels like a complete lack of leadership.”
A spokesperson for Rishi Sunak responded, stating that the prime minister would articulate his position when providing evidence to the inquiry, rather than addressing each allegation individually.
The ongoing inquiry, scheduled to continue until the summer of 2026, is scrutinizing the British government’s response to the coronavirus pandemic.
The response involved substantial economic shutdowns and unfortunately resulted in the loss of over 220,000 lives in the country, as reported by Reuters.
Government officials at senior levels have consistently admitted to being unprepared for the pandemic. They have also acknowledged a “toxic” and “macho” culture that impeded the effective response to the health crisis.
For Rishi Sunak, the potential risk lies in the inquiry’s findings undermining his attempts to position himself as a departure from the perceived chaotic leadership of Boris Johnson, even though he held a prominent ministerial role in that administration.
As Rishi Sunak reportedly said UK should ‘let people die’ during COVID-19 pandemic, previous evidence brought to light during the inquiry revealed that Sunak was referred to as “Dr Death” by a government scientific adviser due to his controversial “Eat Out to Help Out” policy in the summer of 2020.
The policy subsidized meals in pubs and restaurants but faced criticism from health experts who argued that it contributed to the spread of the virus.
