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Public Inquiry

UK COVID-19 Inquiry

Status: Ongoing Chair: Baroness Heather Hallett Established: Apr 2022 Commissioned by: Cabinet Office

Public inquiry examining the UK's response to and impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, and learning lessons for the future. The inquiry is examining preparedness, decision-making, health and social care, vaccines, and the impact on different communities.

Inquiry Website Terms of Reference Parliament Costs ‹ Previous Next ›

Response breakdown

44 recommendations total
43%
11%
34%
19 (43%) — Accepted
5 (11%) — Accepted in Part
3 (7%) — Under Review
15 (34%) — Awaiting Response
2 (5%) — Not Applicable

Reports & milestones

Reports

18 Jul 2024 10 tracked recs Module 1: Resilience and Preparedness · Tracked recommendations · PDF
20 Nov 2025 19 tracked recs Module 2: Core Decision-Making · Tracked recommendations · PDF
19 Mar 2026 10 tracked recs Module 3: Impact on Healthcare Systems · Tracked recommendations · PDF
16 Apr 2026 5 tracked recs Module 4: Vaccines and Therapeutics · Tracked recommendations · PDF
30 Nov 2023 0 tracked recs Every Story Matters · PDF

Timeline

12 May 2021 Inquiry Announced Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced a statutory public inquiry. · Source
15 Dec 2021 Chair Appointed Baroness Hallett appointed as Chair.
28 Jun 2022 Terms of Referenc… Terms of Reference finalised after consultation. · Source
04 Oct 2022 Preliminary Heari… First preliminary hearing held.
13 Jun 2023 Module 1 Hearings… Module 1 examining preparedness and resilience began.
03 Oct 2023 Module 2 Hearings Module 2 examining core UK decision-making.
15 Jan 2024 Module 2 Devolved… Hearings examining Scottish, Welsh and NI decision-making.
18 Jul 2024 Module 1 Report P… First report on pandemic preparedness published. · Source

Recommendations

5 shown (filtered)
Clear
Code Recommendation Addressed to Response
COVID-M4.1
The UK government should establish a standing pharmaceutical expert advisory panel, in consultation with the Department of Health and Social Care and …
 Department of Health and Social Care No Response View →
COVID-M4.2
The UK government, Scottish Government, Welsh Government and Northern Ireland Executive should maintain networks with local communities to produce targeted vaccination strategies …
 UK Health Security Agency No Published Response View →
COVID-M4.3
Each of the four UK public health or health security agencies should work together to: maintain accurate, UK-wide insight into the state …
 UK Health Security Agency No Published Response View →
COVID-M4.4
The UK government and devolved administrations should work together, with their respective health delivery services, to facilitate and coordinate regulatory bodies' access …
 Medicines and Healthcare products Reg… No Published Response View →
COVID-M4.5
The UK government must reform the Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme as soon as possible. The reform should include as a minimum: increasing …
 Department for Work and Pensions No Response View →

Parliamentary activity

256 mentions since Jul 2020
9 debates 112 questions 36 statements
03 Jun 2026 Written Question Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme
Sir Christopher Chope (Conservative)
01 Jun 2026 Written Question Covid-19 Inquiry
Jess Asato (Labour)
20 May 2026 Written Ministerial Statement UK COVID-19 Inquiry response costs for Quarter 3 25/26
Baroness Anderson of Stoke-on-Trent (Labour)
20 May 2026 Written Ministerial Statement UK COVID-19 Inquiry response costs for Quarter 3 25/26
Nick Thomas-Symonds (Labour)
19 May 2026 Written Question Vaccine Damage Payment Scheme
Ian Roome (Liberal Democrat)
View all 256 mentions →

Costs

Total: £213,708,000
Period Total Inquiry legal CP legal Source
Mar 2026 (cum.) £213,708,000 £67,344,000 £54,773,000 link
Sep 2025 £19,012,000 £10,892,000 £8,471,000 link
Mar 2025 £66,723,000 £18,704,000 £20,470,000 link
Mar 2024 £80,889,000 £20,453,000 £19,335,000 link
Mar 2023 £25,625,000 £9,210,000 £3,129,000 link