PM challenged as Cabinet Office battles to withhold Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages from Covid inquiry
Rishi Sunak has been accused of attempting to cover up the actions of ministers during the pandemic as the Cabinet Office intensified its battle to withhold Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages from the Covid inquiry.
But the government is opposing the request on grounds that it wants to protect the privacy of ministers and officials, and is considering legal action to prevent disclosure. A spokesperson for Johnson said he had “no objection” to his 24 notebooks and WhatsApps being given to the inquiry, and claimed government lawyers had already been given access to them.
It reported that the advice said: “We would be concerned by any approach which appeared to concede the principle that Cabinet Collective Responsibility material should be disclosed as a matter of course.” The advice added: “That material will concern a number of ministers still in office, and potentially in the same office. On any view, it will be extremely recent and of the greatest political sensitivity.
John Bell, a leading government adviser during the pandemic, said Hallett should be able to see communications between senior government figures.
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