Covid Inquiry: David Cameron admits too much time spent on preparation for flu pandemic

Preparation for a pandemic under David Cameron's government was mainly 'on flu', as Anushka Asthana reports

The former prime minister David Cameron has admitted his government's preparation for a pandemic was mainly "on flu", while giving evidence to the Covid-19 Inquiry.

Appearing on Monday, Mr Cameron said his administration devoted most of its time planning for a flu pandemic instead of other respiratory diseases, like coronavirus. It's something he has been "wrestling with" ever since, he said.

He told the inquiry it was a "mistake" not to look at different types of diseases when preparing for future pandemics, saying "so many consequences follow from that."

'Why were the right questions not asked?' Journalists question David Cameron as he leaves the Covid-19 Inquiry after giving evidence

Mr Cameron told the Inquiry: "This is the thing I keep coming back to, which is that pandemic was a 'tier one risk' - pandemics were looked at, but...much more time was spent on pandemic flu and the dangers of pandemic flu rather than on potential pandemics of other more respiratory diseases like Covid turned out to be.

"And, you know, I think this is so important because so many consequences follow from that.

"And I've been sort of wrestling with... I think the architecture (to deal with large-scale emergencies) was good - the National Security Council, the National Security Adviser, the risk register, and also this new security risk assessment, which was perhaps a bit more dynamic.

"But that's where I keep coming back to... is, so much time was spent on a pandemic influenza and that was seen as the greatest danger - and we had very bad years for flu so it is a big danger".

Mr Cameron added: "But why wasn't more time and more questions asked about what turned out to be the pandemic that we faced?

"It's very hard to answer why that's the case. And I'm sure this public inquiry is going to spend a lot of time on that."

The former prime minister admits 'so many consequences' follow the decision not to plan for pandemics other than flu while he was in Downing Street

The Covid-19 Inquiry is currently in its first module, where chair Baroness Hallett is looking at the UK's preparation for a pandemic.

Also on the witness list from Monday are former Chancellor George Osborne, England's chief medical officer Sir Chris Whitty, and former chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance.

It was also expected that Mr Cameron would be questioned on austerity and whether cuts to the NHS had an impact on its response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Asked whether he accepted that his government was "repeatedly warned about growing pressures on the NHS", Mr Cameron said: "Well, of course, there were pressures on the NHS, as there are pressures on many public services, but at the end of my time in office, I think public satisfaction with the National Health Service was still extremely high.

"I think the King's Fund, it might have been, was ranking (the NHS) as one of the most successful health systems in the world, we virtually abolished mixed-sex wards.

"We had got hospital infections down, we were carrying out 40% more diagnostic tests every week.

"There were successes in the NHS as well as pressures.

"But there are always pressures on the services and our job was to try and sort out the economy, which we did so we could then have bigger increases in health spending, which then followed."

He went on to "absolutely defend the record of the government" in controlling public finances while increasing funding for the health service at the same time.

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