Michael Gove speaking at the Covid Inquiry

Michael Gove has told the Covid-19 Inquiry that he changed his mind on the need for action to restrict the spread of the virus in part due to information provided by friends outside Government.

The former minister for the Cabinet Office said he initially shared Boris Johnson's concerns about "overreacting" and the economic consequences.

Mr Gove added:

"At the very end of February I was inclined to give substantial weight to the prime minister's concerns.

"It was only in the succeeding days that I became more and more convinced actually that action was required."

Mr Gove said the introduction of lockdowns in parts of Italy had influenced him, adding it was "also material that had been sent to me by friends outside Government that led me to believe action was needed".

Michael Gove highlighted the opinion that Covid-19 was "man-made" when explaining the challenges faced by the Government as the pandemic emerged in 2020.

When asked about shortcomings in preparedness for a new virus, Mr Gove said:

"There is a significant body of judgment that believes that the virus itself was man-made and that presents challenges as well."

He was told by Hugo Keith Keith KC, counsel to the inquiry, that the "divisive" issue was not part of the inquiry's terms of reference.

Mr Gove added:

"I think it is important to recognise that the virus presented a series of new challenges that required both the science to adjust and science , by definition, adjusts on the basis of accumulating evidence - both about the operation of the virus and its effect on particular elements within the population."

Michael Gove has defended former health secretary Matt Hancock, insisting "too much was asked" of his department at the beginning of the pandemic.

Mr Gove told the Covid-19 Inquiry: "I have a high opinion of Matt Hancock as a minister.

"However, I believe that too much was asked of DHSC (Department of Health and Social Care) at that point."

He added:

"We should collectively have recognised that this was a health system crisis at an earlier point and taken on to other parts of Government the responsibility for delivery that was being asked of DHSC at the time."

Michael Gove has defended Boris Johnson's No 10 against claims of dysfunctionality, saying there will always be "strong views, sometimes punchily expressed".

The senior Tory was questioned by lead counsel to the Covid-19 Inquiry Hugo Keith KC about WhatsApp messages by Cabinet Secretary Simon Case saying working with Mr Johnson's team was like "taming wild animals".

"It is certainly the case that under Boris Johnson there were strong personalities in No 10," the Levelling Up Secretary said.

"You're never going to get a perfect team of personalities, all of whom are beautifully aligned and amongst whom there is perfect harmony.

"You will always have - it's in the nature of politics - strong views, sometimes punchily expressed.

"The nature of decision-making in any organisation under pressure means that people do sometimes need to be a little bit direct."

Michael Gove has defended his conduct and that of Cabinet Office staff during the early stages of the pandemic after apologising for mistakes.

He told the Covid-19 Inquiry: "I want to stress that I and those with whom I worked were also seeking at every point, in circumstances where every decision was difficult and every course was bad, to make decisions that we felt we could in order to try to deal with an unprecedented virus and a remarkable assault on the institutions of the country."

Michael Gove has apologised to victims and bereaved families for Government failures during the pandemic.

When challenged on "chaos" in the Cabinet Office in early 2020, Mr Gove said: "If I may ... apologise to the victims who endured such pain, the families who endured so much loss as a result of the mistakes that were made by Government in response to the pandemic.

"As a minister responsible for the Cabinet Office, and was also close to many of the decisions that were made, I must take my share of responsibility for that.

"Politicians are human beings. We're fallible. We make mistakes and we make errors. I am sure that the inquiry will have an opportunity to look in detail at many of the errors I and others made."

Michael Gove has told the UK Covid-19 Inquiry that the Cabinet Office was "flawed", stuffed with extra responsibilities like a "Mary Poppins bag" by successive prime ministers, and not effective at dealing with crises.

The veteran Tory, who was Cabinet Office minister and chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster when the pandemic began in 2020, said: "The inherent structure of the Cabinet Office was flawed.

"The Cabinet Office in and of itself, over many years, has operated in a way which is not as effective as it should be for the effective delivery of government policy, both business as usual, and also in response to crises.

"The Cabinet Office had an approach which I fear ceded too much responsibility to lead government departments and did not mean the assumption of sufficient responsibility at the centre."

Mr Gove also said successive prime ministers have added responsibilities to the Cabinet Office's plate that do not fit easily elsewhere.

"So, it becomes a sort of Mary Poppins bag into which different prime ministers will shove things that they believe require to be dealt with by the Government's nanny, as it were."

Hear the latest news on Downtown on FM, DAB, smart speaker or the Rayo app.