Rishi Sunak was branded “Dr Death the chancellor” by a senior government scientist at the height of the Covid pandemic.
The jibe came after the controversial Eat Out To Help Out scheme which Sunak launched in his role as chancellor.
The ongoing Covid Inquiry heard that Dame Angela McLean, who is now the prime minister’s chief scientific adviser, referred to Sunak as “Dr Death the Chancellor” in a WhatsApp group of scientists in September 2020.
In an earlier session of the Inquiry, it was learnt that top scientific advisers including Sir Patrick Vallance and Professor Chris Whitty believed the 50% discount eating-out scheme in 2020 risked fuelling Covid cases.
Vallance’s personal diaries also revealed how he and Whitty were not consulted in advance on Sunak’s scheme, and would not have approved it had that not been the case.
Naomi Fulop, spokesperson for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK, spoke at the Inquiry, saying:
“This inquiry has made clear that there was absolutely no consultation with the government’s scientific advisers on Eat Out to Help Out, that it contributed to the loss of thousands of lives, put unnecessary pressure on the NHS and plunged the country into a brutal second lockdown.
“It’s unbearable to think that if it wasn’t for Rishi Sunak’s reckless, unscientific and callous approach, my mum might still be with me.
“When our current chief scientific adviser has referred to our prime minister as ‘Dr Death’, how can any of us have faith in our government if another pandemic strikes?”
The latest batch of shocking WhatsApps were shown to the Inquiry during evidence given from scientist Professor Carl Heneghan, who was a vocal critic of the government over lockdowns.
The messages and emails also reveal that any opponents of lockdown measures were referred to as the “let it rip brigade” by then-chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance.
In the same Whatsapp exchange, Dame Angela, who at the time was scientific adviser for the Ministry of Defence, refers to Professor Heneghan as a “f***wit”.
The WhatsApps add to a swathe of shocking revelations previously revealed by the Covid Inquiry over the past month.