The long dark shadow cast by Coronavirus has provided cover for the demise of public accountability and the rule of law across the health service in England, with the crisis being used as a reason to suspend or ignore safeguards designed to protect the public interest.
Media attention has focused on the suspension of the rules governing how contracts to provide public services are procured. During the crisis an estimated £1 billion worth of public sector contracts have been handed to companies without competition, with concerns being raised about the relationship between those who have won contracts and members of the government.
But this is just one example of a trend towards ‘ultra vires’ decision making in the government’s pandemic response.
