Gaps in Wales' pandemic preparations found by Senedd committee

The parts of Wales’s preparations for a pandemic that need further examining have been identified in the first report from the Senedd’s Covid Committee.

The Committee was tasked with identifying gaps in the UK-wide Covid-19 Inquiry that needed to be examined in more detail in Wales.

It identified a total of nine gaps, which will be presented in a motion to the whole Senedd for debate next week. They include:

• Reviewing the most effective resilience and preparedness model for Wales
• Data sharing during emergencies
• Clarity of public messaging

If the Senedd agrees that motion, the Committee will then work to provide Wales-specific scrutiny beyond the work done by the UK-wide Inquiry.

Joyce Watson MS and Tom Giffard MS, Co-Chairs of the Covid-19 Inquiry Special Purpose Committee:

“Today we launch the first report of the Covid-19 Inquiry Special Purpose Committee. It is the result of months of comprehensive work to assess and identify potential gaps for further examination from the findings of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s Module 1 report.

The pandemic was a painful and traumatic experience for many in Wales.

“ We are extremely grateful for the insights and experiences shared by everyone who assisted us with our work, including our public consultation and stakeholder event.

“We have detailed our conclusions and highlighted each area we believe requires further examination. These gaps will be presented in a motion to the whole Senedd for their consideration next week.”

The UK COVID-19 Inquiry's Module 1 report on the resilience and preparedness of the UK was published in July 2024. In January 2025, the Welsh Government, along with the UK and other devolved governments, published its response.

To identify any gaps in the Module 1 report, the Committee undertook comprehensive engagement and evidence gathering.

This included a gap analysis report by civil contingency experts from Nottingham Trent University, as well as taking into account the response from the Welsh Government to the Inquiry report.

The motion asking for the Senedd’s consent to undertake further examination of the nine gaps will be debated in the Senedd on Wednesday, 2 April, marking it the first time a Senedd Committee’s work programme will be decided by a vote in Plenary.

The Welsh Government have been approached to comment.

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