COVID: Why won’t the Government learn?

If now is not the time to learn lessons from the COVID crisis, when is? We’re joined by writer, broadcaster and host of the Rock’n’Roll Politics podcast Steve Richards to discuss No.10’s painful learning curve and ask if Boris Johnson’s promised public inquiry ever actually happen. Plus, what have the extraordinary 12 months we’ve just lived through meant for the efficacy of government? The latest edition of the IfG’s annual Whitehall Monitor has all the answers.

• “The lessons, frankly, are obvious even if Boris Johnson repeatedly refuses to learn them.” – Steve Richards
• “This is a government that finds it hard to admit mistakes… They say ‘we’ll do the right thing at the right time’ without ever admitting when the right time is.” – Tom Sasse
• “Boris Johnson doesn’t do context or consequences. He didn’t do consequences as a journalist and it’s a really serious flaw.” – Steve Richards
• “Even if you can’t start an inquiry in the middle of a crisis, there’s merit in getting the ball rolling fast – because these things take a vast amount of time.” – Emma Norris
• “The Prime Minister seems incapable of learning lessons. The same mistakes are repeated over and over.” – Steve Richards

Presented by Bronwen Maddox with Emma Norris, Sarah Nickson, Tim Durrant and Tom Sasse. Audio production by Alex Rees

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