UK Covid-19 public inquiry: Portadown woman slams Department of Health and Chief Medical Officer for failing to hand over key evidence

Portadown woman Martina Ferguson's mother Ursula Derry died in January 2021 from Covid.

Martina was unable to visit her mother in a care home for nine months during lockdown. Ursula later died in hospital - where Martina was the only one of her six siblings allowed to visit her.

She later became a spokeswoman for NI Covid Bereaved Families for Justice Campaign.

The delays by the Department of Health and Chief Medical Officer are "very concerning" she told the News Letter.

At a hearing for the inquiry in London this week, counsel to the inquiry Jacqueline Carey criticised the Stormont Department of Health and Chief Medical Officer's delayed responses to requests for evidence made more than six months ago.

The inquiry is "becoming concerned about slippage in deadline for responses and the impact that that will have not just on Module 3 [the impact of Covid on healthcare] but for other modules as well," she said.

"This includes the chief medical officers in England and Northern Ireland, the Department of Health and Social Care, the Department of Health in Northern Ireland, and the UK Health Security Agency."

She added that "it cannot be the case that some recipients need over six months to respond... or acceptable that they miss agreed deadlines".

The written responses are needed urgently to identify further lines of enquiry and witnesses in a timely manner.

"So delays now risk holding up the next phase of Module 3 work, and that in turn may also impact on other modules' ability to progress their investigations in a timely way."

The inquiry may need to use its legal power to impose deadlines for written responses, she added.

Ms Ferguson has one burning question she wants answered about lockdowns.

"Were we following the science and what was that science? People were made to stay at home, they were barred from visiting their elderly relatives in care homes and barred from being with their loved ones who were dying in hospital."

Her group has recently been given Core Participant Status in the inquiry.

The support group meets in the Europa Hotel in Belfast today from 11am to be updated by their legal team.

The Stormont Department of Health said it had already responded to nine requests for information from the inquiry - but declined to say how many are outstanding.

A spokeswoman said: “The Department is very aware of the far-reaching and devastating impacts the Covid-19 pandemic had on all aspects of society and recognises that the Inquiry is uniquely placed to identify recommendations and learnings for the future.

"The Department has received a number of Rule 9 requests [for written statements] across the four live modules. Nine have already been responded to and work is ongoing on the remainder.”

It will respond as quickly as possible on outstanding requests and has diverted significant resources to this, it added.