COVID inquiry: Senior civil servant Martin Reynolds admits WhatsApp messages in Boris Johnson group chat were ‘set to disappear’

Published

1 year ago

October 30, 2023

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A senior civil servant during the pandemic admitted setting WhatsApp messages to “disappear” as calls for a COVID inquiry grew – but said he can’t remember why.

Martin Reynolds, who was Boris Johnson’s principal private secretary, turned on a “disappearing message function” on a group chat titled “PM Updates” on 15 April 2021, the COVID inquiry has been told.

Asked by barrister Hugo Keith KC why he did this, he said he can “guess” and “speculate” but he “cannot recall exactly why I did so”.

He added: “It could, for example, have been because I was worried of someone screenshotting or using some of the exchanges and leaking them.”

Mr Reynold’s evidence session also heard:

Boris Johnson held a meeting with Russian media mogul Lord Lebedev during the height of the pandemic;
The former prime minister “blew hot and cold” on vital issues;
The former chief adviser to Downing Street, Dominic Cummings, was the “most empowered chief of staff ever seen”;
Mr Johnson was described as “mad” for thinking his WhatsApp messages would not be made public;
The UK’s top civil servant Simon Case described being “at the end of my tether” at Mr Johnson “changing strategic direction” before the nation went into lockdown, while Mr Cummings agreed saying he was getting “despairing” messages from people in meetings with him;
At meetings women were “talked over” and there was “significant misogyny” on display;
Mr Reynolds apologised “unreservedly” for sending a BYOB invite during the first lockdown

Downing Street said the use of disappearing WhatsApp messages “is permitted as civil servants and ministerial private offices are required to record and log official decisions for the official record”.

Politics latest: Key figures under Boris Johnson giving evidence to COVID inquiry

The extent and nature of decision-making through the messaging app has become a key plank of Lady Hallet’s probe.

There has been criticism that major decision-making during the pandemic may have been made over WhatsApp and not through the normal processes, raising questions about accountability in cases where messages can’t be accessed by the inquiry.

Johnson ‘hadn’t realised WhatsApps would become public’

Elsewhere in the session, Mr Reynolds suggested Mr Johnson may not have realised his messages would eventually become public.

As part of the evidence on Monday, an exchange was shared from December 2021 in which the head of the civil service, Simon Case, said: “PM is mad if he doesn’t think his WhatsApps will become public via Covid inquiry – but he was clearly not in the mood for that discussion tonight! We’ll have that battle in the new year.”

Mr Reynolds responded: “Agreed – thanks for your help.”

Pressed on the meaning behind “battle”, Mr Reynolds told the inquiry he could not remember.

But he added: “I imagine that the prime minster – I’m afraid I can only speculate – but I imagine he hadn’t realised that all of his WhatApps would become public via the Covid inquiry.”

Cummings ‘most empowered chief of staff ever seen’

A number of disparaging messages about Mr Johnson were read out at the inquiry, including Mr Case saying the then prime minister “cannot lead” and was making things impossible.

Mr Reynolds was also questioned about the power dynamics in Number 10 in January and February 2020, just before the pandemic broke out.

He said there had been an “unusual dynamic” under Mr Cummings – Mr Johnson’s ally turned adversary – and described him as the “most empowered chief of staff Downing Street had ever seen”.

It was also revealed the former prime minister had a phone call with and met Russian media mogul Lord Lebedev, the owner of the London Evening Standard and a shareholder in The Independent, on 18 and 19 March 2020.

Mr Reynolds said he was not present and did not know what the meeting was about. He said he “could not recall” if he asked Mr Johnson why he was spending his time on that rather than the “urgent” matter of coronavirus, which was rapidly spreading through Europe.

He told the inquiry: “Ultimately it is for the prime minister to decide his use of time and if he decided that was important, it’s for him to decide.

“I may have said ‘are you sure you want to do this’ or indeed others may have done the same.”

Johnson ‘blew hot and cold’

On Mr Johnson’s leadership style, Mr Reynolds admitted he “did blow hot and cold on some issues”.

It was put to him that when the former prime minister returned after he was hospitalised with COVID, messages showed he “oscillated in terms of what should be done, he wondered whether he should be regarded as the ‘mayor in the Jaws film’ – shutting the beaches”.

Mr Reyonlds added: “Then, within hours or days, he would take a contrary position.”

Asked if it was something he noticed, as others have done, Mr Reynolds responded: “I think it’s fair to say the prime minister did, as it were, blow hot and cold on some issues.”

Asked if that included the “most vital issues which his government faced”, Mr Reynolds said: “Yes, but also the most difficult choices the country was facing – both of which had very difficult consequences.”

Mr Reynolds was infamously nicknamed “Party Marty” after writing a notorious “bring your own booze” email to Downing Street staff during the first lockdown.

He is the first of several senior Downing Street officials giving evidence to the COVID inquiry this week, followed by former director of communications Lee Cain this afternoon and Mr Cummings tomorrow.

Politics

Panama’s capital to accept crypto for taxes, municipal fees

Published

8 hours ago

April 16, 2025

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<div>Panama's capital to accept crypto for taxes, municipal fees</div>

Panama’s capital city will accept cryptocurrency payments for taxes and municipal fees, including bus tickets and permits, Panama City mayor Mayer Mizrachi announced on April 15, joining a growing list of jurisdictions globally that have voted to accept such payments.

Panama City will begin accepting Bitcoin (BTC), Ether (ETH), Circle’s USDC (USDC), and Tether’s USDt (USDT) stablecoin for payment once the crypto-to-fiat payment rails are established, Mizrachi posted on the X platform.

Mizrachi said previous administrations attempted to push through similar legislation but failed to overcome stipulations requiring the local government to accept funds denominated in US dollars.

In a translated statement, the Panama City mayor said that the local government partnered with a bank that will immediately convert any digital assets received into US dollars, allowing the municipality to accept crypto without introducing new legislation.

Panama City joins a growing list of global jurisdictions on the municipal and state level accepting cryptocurrency payments for taxes, exploring Bitcoin strategic reserves to protect public treasuries from inflation and passing pro-crypto policies to attract investment.

Taxes, Panama, Bitcoin Adoption — *Source:* *Mayer Mizrachi*

Municipalities and states embrace digital assets

Several municipalities and territories around the globe already accept crypto for tax payments or are exploring various implementations of blockchain technology for government spending.

The US state of Colorado started accepting crypto payments for taxes in September 2022. Much like Panama City said it will do, Colorado immediately converts the crypto to fiat.

In December 2023, the city of Lugano, Switzerland, announced taxes and city fees could be paid in Bitcoin, which was one of the developments that earned it the reputation of being a globally recognized Bitcoin city.

The city council of Vancouver, Canada, passed a motion to become “Bitcoin-friendly city” in December 2024. As part of that motion, the Vancouver local government will explore integrating BTC into the financial system, including tax payments.

North Carolina lawmaker Neal Jackson introduced legislation titled “The North Carolina Digital Asset Freedom Act” on April 10. If passed, the bill will recognize cryptocurrencies as an official form of payment that can be used to pay taxes.

Magazine: Crypto City: The ultimate guide to Miami

Politics

Fed’s Powell reasserts support for stablecoin legislation

Published

11 hours ago

April 16, 2025

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<div>Fed's Powell reasserts support for stablecoin legislation</div>

As digital assets gain mainstream adoption, establishing a legal framework for stablecoins is a “good idea,” said US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

In an April 16 panel at the Economic Club of Chicago, Powell commented on the evolution of the cryptocurrency industry, which has delivered a consumer use case that “could have wide appeal” following a difficult “wave of failures and frauds,” he said.

Fed's Powell reasserts support for stablecoin legislation

Powell delivers remarks at the Economic Club of Chicago. Source: Bloomberg Television

During crypto’s difficult years, which culminated in 2022 and 2023 with several high-profile business failures, the Fed “worked with Congress to try to get a […] legal framework for stablecoins, which would have been a nice place to start,” said Powell. “We were not successful.”

“I think that the climate is changing and you’re moving into more mainstreaming of that whole sector, so Congress is again looking […] at a legal framework for stablecoins,” he said.

“Depending on what’s in it, that’s a good idea. We need that. There isn’t one now,” said Powell.

This isn’t the first time Powell acknowledged the need for stablecoin legislation. In June 2023, the Fed boss told the House Financial Services Committee that stablecoins were “a form of money” that requires “robust” federal oversight.

Support for stablecoin legislation is growing

The election of US President Donald Trump has ushered in a new era of pro-crypto appointments and policy shifts that could make America a digital asset superpower.

Washington’s formal embrace of cryptocurrency began earlier this year when Trump established the President’s Council of Advisers on Digital Assets, with Bo Hines as the executive director.

Hines told a digital asset summit in New York last month that a comprehensive stablecoin bill was a top priority for the current administration. After the Senate Banking Committee passed the GENIUS Act, a final stablecoin bill could arrive at the president’s desk “in the next two months,” said Hines.

Bo Hines (right) speaks of “imminent” stablecoin legislation at the Digital Asset Summit on March 18. Source: Cointelegraph

Stablecoins pegged to the US dollar are by far the most popular tokens used for remittances and cryptocurrency trading.

The combined value of all stablecoins is currently $227 billion, according to RWA.xyz. The dollar-pegged USDC (USDC) and USDt (USDT) account for more than 88% of the total market.

Magazine: Unstablecoins: Depegging, bank runs and other risks loom

Politics

Court grants 60-day pause of SEC, Ripple appeals case

Published

13 hours ago

April 16, 2025

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Court grants 60-day pause of SEC, Ripple appeals case

An appellate court has granted a joint request from Ripple Labs and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to pause an appeal in a 2020 SEC case against Ripple amid settlement negotiations.

In an April 16 filing in the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, the court approved a joint SEC-Ripple motion to hold the appeal in abeyance — temporarily pausing the case — for 60 days. As part of the order, the SEC is expected to file a status report by June 15.

Law, Ripple, SEC, Court — *April 16 order approving a motion to hold an appeal in abeyance. Source: PACER*

The SEC’s case against Ripple and its executives, filed in December 2020, was expected to begin winding down after Ripple CEO Brad Garlinghouse announced on March 19 that the commission would be dropping its appeal against the blockchain firm. A federal court found Ripple liable for $125 million in an August ruling, resulting in both the SEC and blockchain firm filing an appeal and cross-appeal, respectively.

However, once US President Donald Trump took office and leadership of the SEC moved from former chair Gary Gensler to acting chair Mark Uyeda, the commission began dropping multiple enforcement cases against crypto firms in a seeming political shift. Ripple pledged $5 million in XRP to Trump’s inauguration fund, and Garlinghouse and chief legal officer Stuart Alderoty attended events supporting the US president.

Despite support for the end of the case coming from both Ripple and the SEC, the August 2024 judgment and appellate cases leave some legal entanglements. Alderoty said in March that Ripple would drop its cross-appeal with the SEC and receive a roughly $75 million refund from the lower court judgment. It’s unclear what else may result from negotiations over a settlement in appellate court.

New leadership at SEC incoming

Acting chair Uyeda is expected to step down following the US Senate confirming Paul Atkins as SEC chair on April 9.

During his confirmation hearings, lawmakers questioned Atkins about his ties to crypto, which could create conflicts of interest in his role regulating the industry. In financial disclosures, Atkins stated he had millions of dollars in assets through stakes in crypto firms, including Securitize, Pontoro and Patomak.

Magazine: SEC’s U-turn on crypto leaves key questions unanswered