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To anyone interested in the political handling of the pandemic, Matt Hancock’s WhatsApp messages are explosive.
So far, much of our understanding of decision-making and handling of scientific advice to government has been based on official minutes, committee evidence or rumour.
But are they damning evidence of a minister failing to act on scientific advice? Or are they, in the words of the former health secretary today, a minute-by-minute record of “a lot of people working hard to save lives”?
What is not up for debate is that COVID infections in care homes were a leading cause of deaths during the first wave of the pandemic. Between mid-March and mid-June of 2020 nearly 20,000 care home residents died with COVID recorded on their death certificate.
So when, on 14 of April, according to the messages, Sir Chris Whitty, the chief medical officer, called for testing of all people being sent to care homes, it was genuinely urgent.
So why did Mr Hancock decide, as is suggested in the WhatsApp messages, to only test people being admitted to care homes from hospital, not from the wider community?
One important factor would have been testing capacity. By 2022, test and trace were processing nearly four million COVID tests a week.
But on 14 April 2020 it was fewer than 75,000. While the first walk-through testing centres were being opened, a system for mass community testing was only just being established.
Read more:
How were the WhatsApps leaked?
Five key exchanges
Hancock under increasing pressure – follow latest
Surely it was sensible to focus limited testing resources where they might have the greatest benefit and testing just those being discharged from hospitals into care homes?
It could explain Matt Hancock’s response on WhatsApp: “I do not think the community commitment adds anything and it muddies the waters.”
Even though testing capacity was limited at the time, those involved believe it was growing fast enough to offer call for testing of anyone…
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