COVID inquiry: Government seeks judicial review over order to hand over Boris Johnson WhatsApp messages
The Cabinet Office is seeking a judicial review of Baroness Hallett’s order to release Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages, diaries and notebooks, it confirmed in a letter to the COVID inquiry.
The government department said it was bringing a judicial review challenge “with regret” – but added that there were “important issues of principle at stake”.
Despite the development, it said it would “continue to co-operate fully with the inquiry before, during and after the jurisdictional issue in question”.
The legal action comes after days of wrangling in which the government hesitated over handing the tranche of documents to the public inquiry over fears it would compromise ministers’ and other individuals’ right to privacy.
Outlining its refusal to hand over the material in its letter, the Cabinet Office again questioned whether it had “the power to compel production of documents and messages which are unambiguously irrelevant to the inquiry’s work”.
COVID legal challenge ‘desperate attempt to withhold evidence – politics latest
Such materials include personal messages and “matters unconnected to the government’s handling of COVID”, it said.
It argued that requesting “irrelevant” material “represents an unwarranted intrusion into other aspects of the work of government” and that “important issues of principle are at stake here, affecting both the rights of individuals and the proper conduct of government”.
It said it had explored “a number of possible avenues for resolving this difference of opinion”, including offering redacted versions of the materials and “a more focused or sequential approach to the direction of the information requirements”.
“We remain hopeful and willing to agree together the best way forward.”
Inquiry chair Lady Hallett ordered the government to hand over the documents last week without any amendments, using a section 21 notice.
The tranche includes messages sent between former prime minister Mr Johnson and his fellow ministers and advisers during the pandemic, as well as diary entries.
But the Cabinet Office said today that Mr Johnson’s messages did not cover whole period the inquiry wants because he was using a new phone from May 2021.
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Rishi Sunak gives his response to speculation surrounding Boris Johnson’s messages being given to the COVID inquiry.
A government lawyer said the former prime minister had also swapped his own legal representation recently and gave “specified legal counsel permission to access an electronic record of certain WhatsApps” over the past two days.
Then on Wednesday night, Mr Johnson “invited Cabinet Office to share this information with the inquiry”.
“By working through the night, lawyers acting for Cabinet Office have now completed our review for national security and unambiguously irrelevant material and are in a separate communication providing the relevant material to the inquiry today,” it added/
But the department wanted to note they had “not been able to verify the completeness of this material” given to them by Mr Johnson, saying it did not cover the “whole of the specified time period, but only the period from May 2021 when the former prime minister acquired a new phone”.
It added: “We have asked Boris Johnson if he will provide to us any further messages caught by the Section 21 notice.”
The inquiry confirmed on Thursday afternoon that it had received a response from the Cabinet Office.
In a short statement, it said: “At 4pm today the chair of the UK COVID public inquiry was served a copy of a claim form by the Cabinet Office seeking to commence judicial review proceedings against the chair’s ruling of 22 May 2023.”
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The Cabinet Office has reiterated its refusal to hand over some of Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages to the COVID inquiry
Further information will be provided at a preliminary hearing at 10.30am on 6 June, it said.
On Wednesday afternoon, Mr Johnson’s team said all the information the inquiry wanted had been passed to the Cabinet Office.
His spokesman said the ex-prime minister wanted the Cabinet Office to “urgently” hand over the material, in a move that put pressure on Rishi Sunak and the government to hand over the documents.
Responding to the judicial review, Labour’s deputy leader Angela Rayner accused Mr Sunak of undermining the inquiry and said he was “hopelessly distracted with legal ploys to obstruct the Covid Inquiry in a desperate attempt to withhold evidence”.
“Instead of digging himself further into a hole by pursuing doomed legal battles to conceal the truth, Rishi Sunak must comply with the Covid Inquiry’s requests for evidence in full. There can be no more excuses.”
Daily Cooper, the deputy leader of the Liberal Democrats, also criticised the government’s decision, calling it a “kick in the teeth” for bereaved families.
“This cowardly attempt to obstruct a vital public inquiry is a kick in the teeth for bereaved families who’ve already waited far too long for answers.
“The government is delaying the inquiry even further and clogging up court time, all to prevent Sunak and his Conservative colleagues from having to release their messages.”
Pakistan has launched attacks on “multiple targets” across India, according to the media wing of Pakistan’s military.
Pakistan said in a statement that retaliatory attacks are underway in response to what it called “continuous provocation” by India, which fired missiles at three air bases inside Pakistan.
“Multiple targets in this operation are being engaged all across India,” the statement from Pakistan Armed Forces (PAF) said.
Pakistan’s military said it used medium-range Fateh missiles to strike more than 25 military sites, including airbases and weapons depots in the Indian states of Gujarat, Punjab and Rajasthan, as well as locations in India-administered Kashmir.
Pakistan’s military posted footage on X showing missiles being fired from what appeared to be a mobile launcher.
Pic: MilitaryPakISPR
The AP news agency also said loud explosions have been heard in India-administered Kashmir, in the disputed region’s two big cities of Srinagar and Jammu, and the garrison town of Udhampur.
Meanwhile, an Indian military source told Reuters that India has launched air operations in Pakistan, although no further details were given.
The operations mark the latest escalation in a conflict between the two nuclear-armed rivals, triggered by a deadly attack last month in India-administered Kashmir.
Most of the 26 civilians killed were Hindu Indian tourists. India blames Pakistan for backing the assault, an accusation Islamabad rejects.
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif has called a meeting of the National Command Authority, the body which takes security decisions, including those related to the country’s nuclear arsenal.
State-run Pakistan television said three air bases were struck by India on Friday, although Pakistan insisted most of the missiles had been intercepted.
Despite the military offensive, PAF also posted a message on X in what appeared to represent an opportunity to de-escalate the situation.
“Now that a response has been given we hope the neighbour [India] will move to dialogue and diplomacy like Civilized Nations,” it said.
In recent days, both countries have launched a series of missile and drone strikes, although the scale and impact have been consistently questioned by each other.
On Wednesday, India conducted airstrikes on several sites in Pakistani territory. Pakistan said it shot down five Indian fighter jets.
On Thursday, India claimed to have repelled drone and missile attacks at military targets in more than a dozen cities and towns, including Jammu in India-administered Kashmir. Meanwhile, India claimed it struck Pakistan’s air defence systems and radars close to the city of Lahore.
A damaged house in Jammu, in Indian-administered Kashmir, after a Pakistani drone attack. Pic: AP
The Indian army said on Friday that Pakistan fired about 300 to 400 drones, targeting military installations along the western borders – a claim strongly denied by Pakistan.
The G7 group of advanced economies, which includes Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the US and Britain, urged maximum restraint from both India and Pakistan.
“We call for immediate de-escalation and encourage both countries to engage in direct dialogue towards a peaceful outcome,” a statement issued on Friday said.
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World
European leaders to meet in Ukraine for ‘coalition of the willing’ talks – and issue call to Russia
Sir Keir Starmer will join other European leaders in Kyiv on Saturday for talks on the “coalition of the willing”.
The prime minister is attending the event alongside French President Emmanuel Macron, recently-elected German Chancellor Friedrich Merz and Polish Prime Minister Donald Tusk.
It will be the first time the leaders of the four countries will travel to Ukraine at the same time – on board a train to Kyiv – with their meeting hosted by President Volodymyr Zelenskyy.
Follow latest updates on the Ukraine war
Sir Keir Starmer, Emmanuel Macron and Friedrich Merz travelling in the saloon car of a special train to Kiev. Pic: Reuters
Military officers from around 30 countries have been involved in drawing up plans for the coalition, which would provide a peacekeeping force in the event of a ceasefire being agreed between Russia and Ukraine.
Ahead of the meeting on Saturday, Sir Keir, Mr Macron, Mr Tusk and Mr Merz released a joint statement voicing support for Ukraine and calling on Russia to agree to a 30-day ceasefire.
Sir Keir and Volodymyr Zelenskyy during a meeting in March. Pic: AP
“We reiterate our backing for President Trump’s calls for a peace deal and call on Russia to stop obstructing efforts to secure an enduring peace,” they said.
“Alongside the US, we call on Russia to agree a full and unconditional 30-day ceasefire to create the space for talks on a just and lasting peace.”
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Putin’s Victory Day parade explained
The leaders said they were “ready to support peace talks as soon as possible”.
But they warned that they would continue to “ratchet up pressure on Russia’s war machine” until Moscow agrees to a lasting ceasefire.
“We are clear the bloodshed must end, Russia must stop its illegal invasion, and Ukraine must be able to prosper as a safe, secure and sovereign nation within its internationally recognised borders for generations to come,” their statement added.
“We will continue to increase our support for Ukraine.”
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The European leaders are set to visit the Maidan, a central square in Ukraine’s capital where flags represent those who died in the war.
They are also expected to host a virtual meeting for other leaders in the “coalition of the willing” to update them on progress towards a peacekeeping force.
This force “would help regenerate Ukraine’s armed forces after any peace deal and strengthen confidence in any future peace”, according to Number 10.
World
Ten explosions near international airport in India-administered part of Kashmir, officials say
Ten explosions have been heard near Srinagar International Airport in India-administered parts of Kashmir, officials have told Reuters news agency.
The blasts followed blackouts caused by multiple projectiles, which were seen in the sky above the city of Jammu earlier on Friday.
Explosions were also heard in the Sikh holy city of Amritsar, in the neighbouring Punjab state, according to Reuters.
An Indian military official told the agency that “drones have been sighted” and “they are being engaged”.
It comes as tensions between India and Pakistan across the line of control around the region of Kashmir have boiled over this week, leading to fears of a wider conflict.
On Wednesday morning, India carried out missile strikes in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered parts of the disputed region.
The retaliation came weeks after 26 people, mainly Indian tourists, were shot dead by gunmen in an India-administered part of Kashmir last month.
The government in India said it hit nine “terrorist infrastructure” sites, while Pakistan said it was not involved in the April attack and the sites were not militant bases.
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Explained: India-Pakistan conflict
Around 48 people have been killed since Wednesday, according to casualty estimates on both sides – which have not been independently verified.
India also suspended its top cricket tournament, the Indian Premier League, as a result of rising tensions, while the Pakistan Super League moved the remainder of its season to the United Arab Emirates.
Meanwhile, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said at a conference on Friday that the US is in constant contact with both India and Pakistan.
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