“Deep tensions” over Brexit hampered the pandemic response in Northern Ireland and contributed to a disconnect between the approaches taken by the governments in Dublin and Westminster, the UK’s Covid-19 Inquiry has found.
The report of the inquiry’s second module, covering the UK-wide political response, also strongly criticises Northern Ireland First Minister Michelle O’Neill for attending the June 2020 funeral of senior IRA man Bobby Storey and for delaying her apology for doing so.
The report, by retired judge Heather Hallett, states that Ms O’Neill, who was deputy first minister at the time, must “bear responsibility” for her actions, which led to a breakdown in relations between her and then first minister Arlene Foster.
It states that the subsequent 10-week refusal by Ms Foster, the DUP leader, to take part in joint press conferences with Ms O’Neill on the pandemic hampered messaging to the North’s public. Ms Hallett describes decision making across the North’s devolved government departments as “chaotic”.
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The report also highlights how the open Border between the North and the Republic made co-ordination of responses difficult.
It states that on the first day in January 2020 that Britain’s then health secretary Matt Hancock addressed Westminster about Covid-19, a coach trip from Wuhan in China – where the virus first originated – landed in England.
The tour group went to Northern Ireland before crossing over the Border to the Republic on January 25th, even though one of the tourists onboard was already showing symptoms.
“No steps were taken to prevent this group from entering Northern Ireland and travelling on to the Republic of Ireland,” the report states.
The 756-page report, released on Thursday, excoriates the political response to the pandemic across the UK as being repeatedly “too little too late”, particularly in the early stages.
It also derides the “toxic” culture in Downing Street under former prime minister Boris Johnson.
But it expresses particular ire for the response of the Northern Ireland Executive, which had only been back up and running since January 2020 following a breakdown of powersharing.
The report states that “on multiple occasions [in the North] decision making was marred by political disputes between DUP and Sinn Féin ministers”.
It states Ms O’Neill’s attendance at the Storey funeral and her initial failure to apologise “contributed to tensions” in the executive. Ms Hallett describes a four-day meeting of the Executive in the North in November 2020 as a “low point”.
“The confidentiality of discussions was undermined by leaks and there was inappropriate instigation of cross-community votes to make political points by First Minister Arlene Foster,” the report states.
The inquiry noted that Ms Foster said she was “personally very upset” over Ms O’Neill’s attendance at the Storey funeral. Ms Hallett writes that she found it “highly regrettable” that press conferences were suspended. She also criticises the North’s executive for not having a longer “circuit breaker” lockdown late in 2020.
In a statement, Ms O’Neill welcomed the publication of the report, which she said was an “important milestone in the long journey of recovery after the pain and trauma of the Covid pandemic”.
She said the report would provide “further lessons … at all levels of society” which “must inform our preparedness for, and response to, any future pandemic or society-wide emergency in the future.
“Our thoughts are very much with those who lost loved ones during the pandemic,” she added.
The report also states that decision making in the North was “chaotic” and undermined by the siloed nature of the various Stormont government departments.
It highlights that health authorities in the North initially wanted the Republic to align for an all-island approach that was the same as the UK’s.
This was “unrealistic”, the inquiry found, when the Republic had introduced its own measures in March 2020 that were different from those in the UK.
Ms O’Neill told the inquiry that the Republic’s decision “was not good enough” as it took Northern Ireland by surprise.
The inquiry also heard that Ms Foster was advised by officials in the North at the time that there was “no medical/scientific evidence” to support the response taken in the Republic – which was stricter than the UK’s in March 2020.
One official from the North told the inquiry: “There was undoubtedly a chill in relationships between the UK and Irish governments before the pandemic as a result of the tensions over EU exit.”
That there were Brexit-related “tensions” with the Republic was also acknowledged by Brandon Lewis, the UK government’s former Northern Ireland secretary.
Ms Hallett’s report recommends that the Republic and Britain should better co-ordinate pandemic planning in future.
“The relationship between the UK and the Republic of Ireland is of obvious importance, given their shared and porous border,” Ms Hallett states.
