Campaigners hoping to secure a Welsh inquiry into Covid have been chosen to take part in the second stage of the UK investigation into the handling of the pandemic.

The campaign group, Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru (CBFJC), which includes Machynlleth woman Catherine Griffiths, has taken a critical step forward, now gaining Core Participant (CP) status in Module 2, the part of the public inquiry that opens the door to Welsh families directly questioning UK Government Covid-19 political and scientific decisions. The Group has also been granted CP status in Module 2B that examines decisions made in Wales.

 CP status in Module 2, linked into sub-module 2B, means families will be able to scrutinise in detail how well (or not) the Welsh Government acted, politically and scientifically, in the light of UK Government decisions.

All this builds on the earlier move by inquiry chair, Baroness Hallett, to grant the group CP status in Module 1, in which Welsh families can challenge how well prepared (or not) the Welsh and UK Government were before the pandemic. 

In formal terms, the inquiry is split into stages. Module 1 is about preparedness and Module 2, UK decisions, with sub-module 2B dealing with Welsh Government decisions.

CBFJC will be keen to probe key concerns including to what extent did the Welsh and UK Governments share scientific, medical, legal and other expert knowledge, how, why and on what basis did Welsh Government decisions differ from those taken by the UK Government, whether, and if so to what extent, decisions taken (or not taken) were justified by the emerging state of knowledge in all of its forms. They will also ask whether, and if so to what extent, Welsh Government decisions were supported by expert opinion across the disciplines and to what extent were the decisions and actions of the Welsh Government influenced by political considerations.

The inquiry is based in London and will hear evidence there starting in 2023. There will be a hearing held in Wales for Module 2B.

 Anna-Louise Marsh-Rees, lead for CBFJC said: “We may have been denied a Wales inquiry but it’s heartening to see the UK inquiry chair acknowledges that things were done differently in Wales. We thank the chair for giving those bereaved by Covid in Wales a voice not only on Welsh decisions but UK decisions too. As time passes it becomes more critical for future lessons learned that we get the answers to long overdue unanswered questions.”

Emphasising the major significance of being granted CP status in Modules 2 & 2B, Craig Court, solicitor at Harding Evans, representing the group, said: “This is a big step forward for the families to be able to explore the evidence in the search for truth and justice for their loved ones who were subject to life and death decisions both in Wales and in the UK as a whole. The decisions taken by the UK Government in early 2020 obviously had a huge impact on the people of Wales and it is only right that the people of Wales are included at this stage”.