Harding Evans acted as the Recognised Legal Representative for ‘Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru’, who were granted Core Participant status in the Covid-19 UK Public Inquiry.
We acted for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru in Module 1, Module 2, Module 2B and Module 3. You can find out more about these modules below:
Module 1 examined the UK’s resilience and preparedness for the coronavirus pandemic. The public hearings for Module 1 concluded on 19th July 2023.
You can access the transcript here. If you wish to view the recordings, you can do so on the Inquiry’s YouTube channel.
The Inquiry published its first report and recommendations following its investigation into the UK’s ‘Resilience and preparedness (Module 1)’ on Thursday 18 July 2024. You can read the full report and watch a summary video, here.
Module 2 looked at, and will make recommendations upon, the UK’s core political and administrative decision-making in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic between early January 2020 until February 2022.
The public hearings into this module took place in London from the 3rd October 2023 – 14th December 2023.
You can access the transcripts of these hearings here. Recordings of the Module 2 hearings are available on the Inquiry’s YouTube Channel. Occasional strong language does feature in parts of the evidence.
* Cabinet Secretary, Simon Case was on medical leave at the time of the hearings in 2023 and therefore excused from giving evidence for Module 2, at this time. Mr Case, who was drafted in to government in May 2020 as No.10 permanent secretary to coordinate the response, shared his evidence on Thursday 23rd May 2024.
Module 2B examined the decision-making of key groups and individuals within the government in Wales including the First Minister and other Welsh Ministers.
The public hearings into this module took place in Cardiff from 27th February 2024 – 14th March 2024.
You can access transcripts of the hearings here and recordings of the full hearings from Module 2b can be found on the Inquiry’s YouTube channel.
You can view recordings of the opening and closing statements, along with the questions put to the First Minister and former Health Minister on behalf of Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru, on the Harding Evans YouTube channel.
Module 3 will look into the governmental and societal response to Covid-19 as well as dissecting the impact that the pandemic had on healthcare systems, patients and health care workers.
The preliminary hearing took place on Wednesday 10th April 2024. You can watch the submission made on behalf of Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru on YouTube.
The public hearings for Module 4 took place in Autumn 2024, concluding on Thursday 28th November. You can watch the hearings bak on the Inquiry’s YouTube channel.
Module 4 will consider a range of issues relating to the development of Covid-19 vaccines and the implementation of the vaccine roll-out, as well as, issues relating to treatment of Covid-19 through both existing and new medications. The preliminary hearing took place in London on Wednesday 22nd May 2024.
The dates for the public hearings into this module are:
Module 5 will assess the robustness and effectiveness of procurement processes, the adequacy of the items obtained (including their specification, quality and volume) and the effectiveness of their distribution to the end-user. It will also consider the UK-wide procurement of lateral flow tests and PCR tests.
The preliminary hearings for this module took place in October 2023, with the dates for the public hearings are:
Module 6 will investigate the impact of the pandemic on the publicly and privately funded adult social care sector in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It will consider the consequences of government decision-making – including restrictions imposed – on those living and working within the care sector, as well as decisions concerning capacity in hospitals and residents in adult care and residential homes.
The Inquiry is aiming to hold preliminary hearings for Module 6 in summer 2025.
Module 7 will consider the policies and strategies developed and deployed to support the test, trace and isolate system by the UK Government and the Devolved Administrations. It will consider the decisions made by key bodies, other options or technologies that were available and factors that may have influenced public compliance.
Module 7 hearings will take place Monday 12 May – Friday 30 May 2025.
With UK Covid-19 Public Inquiry already underway, Harding Evans Solicitors worked with ‘Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru’, to assist them in their efforts to ensure that they are able to take part in the Inquiry and that the voices of the bereaved in Wales are heard.
One of the key objectives is to seek greater transparency and accountability of the events that impacted, not only those who sadly died in Wales, but the families they have left behind.
We instructed a team of Wales and London based barristers who are highly specialised in English and Welsh law and policy (and public inquiry work).
If you have any questions about the Covid-19 Inquiry, please do not hesitate to contact us. You can email us direct at walescovidinquiry@hevans.com
