Covid Inquiry Counsel Mocks Matt Hancock Over ‘Little Notebook’ Of Undisclosed Evidence

Covid Inquiry counsel Hugo Keith KC mocked former Health Secretary Matt Hancock that he should check his “little notebook” of undisclosed evidence, after Hancock claimed to have records beyond the materials provided to the Inquiry to back his claim that he pushed for lockdowns mid-March 2020.

Hancock claimed he advised then Prime Minister Boris Johnson on March 13th, 2020, to implement a lockdown. This assertion was met with scepticism by Keith, who noted the absence of any evidence supporting Hancock’s claim.

“You know perfectly well that we have scoured every possible source for documents and materials relevant to issues in this inquiry,” the counsel said. “Are you saying that you have a record of a phone call which you have not disclosed at this inquiry?”

Hancock said that he had not withheld information but repeated that he had a record of the phone call taking place.

Post-lunch break when Hancock returned to continue cross-examination, he said that having checked his records he had confirmed he called Johnson at 3.24 pm on the said date. Keith expressed surprise, questioning Hancock about the undisclosed phone record. Hancock clarified that while the call’s occurrence was recorded, the contents were not.

Meanwhile, commenting on proceedings via X, Johnson’s former advisor Dominic Cummings accused Hancock of “flat out lying to the Inquiry.” Cummings said that Hancock was actually “against” lockdowns and at a meeting on March 14th was “bullshitting everybody about herd immunity.”

Minutes later, discussing a different phone call, Keith joked that Hancock may be able to find the details “in that little notebook you’ve just produced.”

Hancock, clearly begrudged, replied: “It’s not a notebook. It was a phone record.”