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Why are British politicians so scared of transparency?

From scientific advice and procurement contracts to Freedom of Information requests, our government has drastically reduced transparency during the COVID-19 pandemic. That’s a real threat to our democracy.

By Peter Geoghegan and Jenna Corderoy
Why are British politicians so scared of transparency?
TV Pool/PA Wire/PA Images
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Greg Clark is not known as a thorn in his government’s side. The Conservative MP for Tunbridge Wells has held numerous cabinet roles in his fifteen years in the Commons.

Clark’s years of ministerial service made his letter to Boris Johnson this week all the more remarkable. Writing as the chair of the Science and Technology Committee, Clark criticised the government’s “inadequate” COVID-19 testing regime and the “slowness” of mitigation strategies.

But calmly-spoken Clark was particularly critical of one aspect of the British government’s COVID-19 response in particular: transparency. Or, rather, the lack of it.

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Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0