🔗 Share this article Confinement a Week Earlier Would Have Spared 23,000 Fatalities, Coronavirus Report Concludes An harsh government inquiry into the United Kingdom's management of the Covid crisis has concluded which the response were "too little, too late," noting that imposing restrictions just a single week earlier might have prevented over 23,000 lives. Primary Results of the Inquiry Outlined in exceeding seven hundred fifty documents spanning two parts, the results portray a consistent picture showing hesitation, inaction as well as a seeming inability to understand from experience. The account about the beginning of Covid-19 in early 2020 is portrayed as notably brutal, labeling February as being "a lost month." Government Shortcomings Highlighted It raises questions about the reasons why the then prime minister neglected to chair one gathering of the emergency response team in that period. Action to the virus largely stopped throughout the school break. During the second week of March, the circumstances was "almost calamitous," with a lack of plan, no testing and consequently little understanding regarding the extent to which Covid was spreading. Potential Impact Although admitting that the decision to implement restrictions was unprecedented as well as exceptionally hard, implementing further steps to curb the transmission of the virus earlier might have resulted in such measures may not have been necessary, or been of shorter duration. When confinement became unavoidable, the investigation stated, if implemented imposed on March 16, modelling indicated that would have lowered the total of deaths in England during the initial wave of Covid by almost half, which equals 23,000 lives saved. The failure to appreciate the magnitude of the risk, or the immediacy for measures it demanded, resulted in that once the option of a mandatory lockdown was initially contemplated it proved belated and such measures had become unavoidable. Repeated Mistakes The report additionally noted that several similar errors – reacting with delay and downplaying the rate together with impact of the pandemic's progression – were later repeated subsequently in 2020, as controls were removed only to be belatedly restored because of spreading new strains. It calls such repetition "unacceptable," noting that the government were unable to learn lessons during multiple waves. Final Count Britain suffered one of the worst pandemic outbreaks in Europe, amounting to around 240 thousand Covid-related fatalities. This investigation represents another from the public investigation covering each part of the handling as well as handling of the pandemic, that was launched two years ago and is due to proceed into 2027.