What is the UK Covid inquiry and how does it work?

What is the UK Covid inquiry and how does it work?Image source, Getty ImagesByJennifer ClarkeBBC NewsPublished12 May 2021Updated 16 April 2026The development and rollout of the Covid vaccine across the UK was an "extraordinary feat", according to the latest report from the inquiry investigating how the pandemic was handled. It quoted one estimate that the vaccine saved 475,000 lives in England and Scotland, but said more should have been done to encourage take-up among some groups. Just under 227,000 people died in the UK from Covid between March 2020 and May 2023, when the World Health Organization said the "global health emergency" was over. What is the Covid public inquiry?Former UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson launched the Covid-19 inquiry in June 2022, more than a year after he said the government's actions during the pandemic would be put "under the microscope".The announcement came after the Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice campaign group said it was considering a judicial review over "time-wasting".The inquiry covers decision-making by the UK government, as well as the administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. The first public hearings took place in June 2023. Image source, Pirahna PhotographyImage caption, Chair Baroness Hallett said "loss and suffering" would be at the centre of the inquiry's workPublic inquiries are established and funded by the government and are led by an independent chair. They can compel witnesses to give evidence.No one is found guilty or innocent, but an inquiry publishes conclusions and recommendations. The government is not obliged to accept these.The Covid inquiry's chair is former judge and crossbench peer Baroness Hallett, who previously led the inquests into the 7 July London bombings.In December 2025, the BBC learned that the inquiry had so far cost the government more than £100m. That is on top of the £192m spent by the inquiry itself - mea...