Covid: Wales probe pressure after Scotland announcement

Welsh ministers are facing renewed calls for a Wales-specific Covid inquiry after the Scottish government announced plans to hold its own investigation.

Opposition parties have long demanded an inquiry to look specifically at the handling of the pandemic in Wales.

The Welsh first minister has insisted a UK-wide inquiry is more appropriate, and he does not want "rival inquiries".

Welsh ministers said they were "considering" the Scottish proposal.

A spokesperson said this was "alongside our continued engagement with the UK government on the detail of the four-nation inquiry".

At her news conference on Tuesday, Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said Scotland's Covid inquiry "will look at all matters related to the handling of the pandemic that are within our devolved competence".

"I do believe a full public inquiry has an extremely important role to play, both in scrutinising the decisions that we took and indeed continue to take in the course of the pandemic, but also of course in identifying and learning appropriate lessons for the future," she added.

The inquiry, an SNP manifesto commitment, is due to begin before the end of the year and discussions are under way to identify and appoint a judge to chair it.

Claire Fender, co-founder of Covid Bereaved Families for Justice Cymru, said the group was "delighted" by the news.

She said Wales would "get lost" in a "very England-focused" UK inquiry and the Welsh government should follow Scotland's example.

Ms Fender said she believed there were already "a lot of problems, especially in the NHS, which have become more apparent during the pandemic".

"Unless we stop, evaluate and really look at everything, we're not going to learn and we're going to carry on with the same problems and so lives fundamentally will be lost," she told BBC Radio Wales Drive.

Wales' First Minister Mark Drakeford has until now insisted only a UK-wide inquiry "will have the capacity and force to oversee the interconnected nature of the decisions that have been made across the four nations".

The UK-wide investigation will begin next spring and the Welsh government has requested that "specific chapters of the inquiry deal exclusively with the lived experiences of those here in Wales".

However, following Ms Sturgeon's announcement, the leader of the Conservatives in the Senedd, Andrew RT Davies, wrote to Mr Drakeford urging him to "waste no more time" in convening an inquiry.

"Now that the Scottish first minister has announced that there will be such an inquiry in Scotland, the Welsh government is the only government in Great Britain that will not subject itself to such scrutiny," he says in the letter.

"In my view, this is unacceptable.

"Nobody can doubt that you and your cabinet have worked extremely hard since the beginning of Covid-19, but there are questions that need answering and lessons that need to be learnt, particularly if Wales is to be fully prepared for a future pandemic."

Mr Davies also warns the first minister that unless he changes his mind "I fear you run a real risk of undermining the Senedd and bringing the Welsh government into disrepute".

Plaid Cymru health spokesman Rhun ap Iorwerth said the Welsh government had "no excuse" not to follow Scotland's lead, urging ministers in Cardiff to "take responsibility" for their actions "good and bad".

"Wales rightly acted independently in so many areas during the pandemic and with so many of the relevant policy areas devolved, and so many decisions having been taken in Wales, we need a Wales-specific inquiry.

"The loss of life, as well as the loss of freedoms, of education, and a deep economic impact will weigh heavy on us for years to come."

"We need to look at what happened in detail, and in public, to learns lessons for the future," he added.

One Labour backbencher, Caerphilly Senedd member Hefin David, while stressing on Twitter that he still wanted a "consistent, UK-wide inquiry with clear devolved elements" appeared to suggest Welsh ministers should think about reversing their previous position.

They "must take time to consider what is right for Wales" due to the UK government showing "scant regard for devolution", he tweeted.

A Welsh government spokesperson said: "We are considering the Scottish government's proposal alongside our continued engagement with the UK government on the detail of the four nation inquiry.

"We are seeking commitment that the four-nation inquiry will deal comprehensively with the actions of the Welsh government and the experiences of the people of Wales."