The Cabinet Office refused to appoint a second chair to the Covid inquiry to ensure better representation of minority groups, saying it would “lengthen the process” and “delay reports”.
The inquiry, which has just concluded its first stage of evidence giving, is overseen by a single chair, crossbench peer Heather Hallett, who is white.
A letter from the Federation of Ethnic Minority Healthcare Organisations (FEMHO), Southall Black Sisters and other core participants had urged prime minister Rishi Sunak to appoint a panel of chairs to help in “understanding and investigating the specific issues faced by Black, Asian and minority ethnic communities”.
