Rishi Sunak has given an interview to the Spectator in which he claims to have been the only lockdown sceptic in the Cabinet – a not-so-subtle dig at Liz Truss, who has vowed never to lock down again. The Telegraph has more.
Rishi Sunak has said it was wrong to “empower scientists” to such a degree during the pandemic, as he revealed how he spoke out in government about the costs of lockdown.
In an interview with the Spectator magazine, the former Chancellor said he was banned from discussing the “trade-offs” of plunging the country into restrictions, such as missed doctor appointments and mounting NHS backlogs.
He claimed he became “very emotional” at times about the damage closing schools would cause to children, but said his objections were met with a “big silence” from colleagues.
Recalling discussions at the heart of the Government during the early days of the pandemic, Mr. Sunak said: “Those meetings were literally me around that table, just fighting. It was incredibly uncomfortable every single time.”
He said he believed that one of the major mistakes of the pandemic was to allow the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) to have so much sway over policy.
“We shouldn’t have empowered the scientists in the way we did,” he said. “And you have to acknowledge trade-offs from the beginning. If we’d done all of that, we could be in a very different place. We’d probably have made different decisions on things like schools, for example.”
He said that in one meeting he attempted to raise his misgivings about closing down schools, adding: “I was very emotional about it. I was like: ‘Forget about the economy. Surely we can all agree that kids not being in school is a major nightmare,’ or something like that.
“There was a big silence afterwards. It was the first time someone had said it. I was so furious.”
The self-described “underdog” in the race to become the next prime minister explained how the minutes from SAGE meetings were edited so that dissenting voices were not included in the final draft.
“The SAGE people didn’t realise for a very long time that there was a Treasury person on all their calls. A lovely lady. She was great because it meant that she was sitting there, listening to their discussions,” he said.
He said the Treasury official was able to brief him on what was said in the meetings but omitted from the minutes, including disagreements with a conclusion or why people were not sure about it.
Mr. Sunak recalled the moment when Prof Neil Ferguson and his team at Imperial College London presented their Report 9, which claimed Covid casualties could reach 500,000 if no action was taken but would be reduced to 20,000 with a lockdown.
But he said any discussions about the cost of imposing such draconian measures on society were suppressed.
Worth reading in full.
Stop Press: Fraser Nelson, writing in the Telegraph, says the great lockdown scandal is about to unravel, praising Rishi Sunak for his candour.
The disclosures should start a great unravelling of the lockdown myth, its pseudo-scientific sheen stripped away and the shocking political malfeasance left to stand exposed. Were SAGE minutes manipulated, with dissent airbrushed out? If Sage “scenarios” were cooked up on fundamentally wrong assumptions we need to know, because that will mean lockdowns were imposed or extended upon a false premise. A premise that could have been exposed as false, had there been basic transparency or proper scrutiny.
Worth reading in full.
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Well either he’s telling the truth or he is saying what he thinks the voters want to hear. Either way it’s a positive, IMO.
If he’s telling the truth though it says something good about his judgement but nothing good about his courage, leadership and character. Same goes for Truss and her similar statements on the times she tried to speak out but things were presented as a fait accompli (“when I was given the chance to speak” – leaders don’t sit quietly with their hand up, waiting for teacher to call on them). Some differences within a leadership group are inevitable and staying silent on them is necessary for the group to function. Not this one, not by a mile.
Good points there. I guess it shows weakness however we look at it!
Words are cheap….
Think the Channel ‘migrants’….
You’re right about this being positive even if his words are chosen to increase his popularity. Because if this is the case, it indicates that the crowd he is selling himself to as potential leader are much less weighted towards lockdown ideology than they used to be. I think both candidates now recognize that the public’s attitude to restrictions has vastly shifted.
>Either way it’s a positive, IMO.
Indeed it is because it shows that in the government’s view (at least Sunak’s), the tide is turning against the restrictions if they even need to consider the sceptics.
A positive would have been to say something when he saw something which did not make sense and put all of us in danger. Sadly, for many who have lost their lives due to the mistakes of this cabinet, sage, and other health authorities, it is too little too late. Please remember what this government did to its own citizens. It will happen again if the British people do not stand up for their LIVES!!!
If he was so appalled, he should have resigned like Robin Cook did over Iraq.
Exactly. Or like Carrington over the Falklands. Statesmen take responsibility. Politicians like authority without responsibility.
I’m no supporter of Labour, but Robin Cook came from an old breed of politician …. not a careerist like Sunak and so many others …… and he had some genuine honour.
He did, of course, end up dead in “unusual circumstances.” Just like Dr Kelly. Funny that …..
Wow.
I’d believe this if it was true….and that he’d said it 18 months ago.
Unfortunately this is just current public opinion opportunism to get votes from the Tory heartland voters in a few week’s time.
If Sunak had cared for children, the lonely, mental health, the economy, cancer screening (the list goes on) then he’d have said something then.
Did he show disgust at the way we were treated by police during protest?
Did he call a press conference to tell us how bad the economy would get?
Did he stand up outside no 10 and call for an end to lockdown publicly?
Did he give millions money to do sod all because of Covid lockdowns?
Did he keep shtum?
Did he go along with it?
Is he WEF?
Can he be trusted?
Can any of them be trusted? I’ll leave you guys to answer that!
Recording again on Saturday…
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We’ve been banned from Twitter for a week…find out why! Plus we talk Canada and Justin Trudeau, your first ‘Listener Rant’, Climate change madness, University PHD’s gone mad, Scotland’s gone crazy, The return of the Big Breakfast and MUCH MORE!
https://therealnormalpodcast.buzzsprout.com/1268768/11142910-ep-51-banned-from-twitter-find-out-why
>Can any of them be trusted? I’ll leave you guys to answer that!
That’s the problem that everyone I’ve spoke to about the next election says. Not only has the lockdowns etc. hurt us financially and mentally, it’s really damaged the reputation of politics. Our local Facebook community group banned all political discussion because people didn’t want to hear it. That. for a community, is not a positive thing to do.
Absolutely spot on!
This is a positive development. Even if it isn’t sincere (and I see no reason to doubt that it it is) then it’s a good thing that the two candidates know there is mileage in criticising lockdowns. Vaccines next please!
The lockdown sceptics are being vindicated every day. If Rishi disagreed, he certainly didnt show it, his ‘eat out’ was a classic. The advertising was agreed long before covid was declared and the Nudge unit was also on the payroll. He was running the Treasury
These politicians are shameful.
And now they’re blaming the scientists. I was sure that they’d do this — they were just ‘following the science’ and were duped by those clever scientists — so, I’m sure that next time they’d want the politicians to be in charge.
They silenced any scientist by essentially saying they’d never work again if they opposed government advice in any way.
If he really felt that politicians were duped by the scientists then perhaps he’d state that he wanted to introduce a law banning social media and other outlets from removing posts that merely contradict government advice?
The blame-game between the (so called) scientists and politicians has started – it’s going to get ugly. However, rather than blame each other, they both should look at themselves in the mirror as they’re both as culpable as each other – scientists for lack of an holistic view & the refusal to consider any other expert opinion, and politicians for being so cowardly they either were too feeble to stop it or hid behind it. They should also remember, when they are pointing a finger at someone, there’s 3 pointing back at themselves.
Learned long ago in the corporate world where they taught me and others the art of “problem solving”. Pity gov’t leaders not taught this (or arrived in gov’t with these skills):
When working any problem, all those involved with working the problem should recognise and “appoint” four roles:
* Problem Owner
* Solution Owner
* Decision Maker
* Technical Expert <–Never *Ever* Let the Expert usurp other roles especially “Decision Maker”.
Two thoughts here:
Over the last few days we’ve had a strange reversal in the direction of a few ‘official rumour’ type posts.
This is very fast and rather extreme (180 degree turn) — almost as if they’re rushing through statements ahead of some very bad news.
Very bad news for them presumably.
I think the general public received all its bad news already (lockdowns, jabs, jab injuries, jab coercion) and has been living with it for some time.
Their bad news – presumably some horror stats finally being aired on the BBC – is actually good news for us.
I’m sure it will all be presented with the same faux surprise that Fraser Nelson treated us to in his surreal Sunak article.
Very bad news for them, but things sceptics have been saying and warning of all along.
By his claims he shows himself to be a weak man or liar.
No one would remain in the Cabinet if they were prevented from expressing their views and having them properly considered by his peers. If his views on Covid really were as different from government policy as he claims he should have resigned. My view is that with support from Ministers Boris might have stayed true to the values he had spoken about in the past and resisted the siren calls from Ferguson and SAGE, etc
Sunak knows Cabinet papers will not be published for ?30 years so he can claim anything he likes in a last minute attempt to get office.
How convenient that the minutes of these meetings were doctored, sorry, edited, in order to omit dissenting voices, presumably including Rishi’s. If that is true it’s absolutely shocking for many reasons.
Hindsight is a wonderful thing. I do wonder if all this ‘distancing’ that’s going on is going to lead to further ‘shocking revelations’ in the near future (none of which will be shocking to anyone unless they only use the BBC as their source of info).
Incidentally, and off topic, but I was furious this morning to see Boris blame our energy crisis on the Ukraine war and that we should suffer out of solidarity with the Ukrainians. Let’s see how that actually translates when the British are freezing and starving.
The young men crossing the Channel -a future paramilitary force to be used against us? They’re certainly not coming to wipe geriatric arses for minimum wage – will be warm and well-fed, despite never having contributed anything to the public finances.
That has been my position from the off. There must be some training camps dotted about somewhere.
I understand that they’re already trained.
Oh, right. Makes sense.
Several people are of this opinion and it’s understandable. (Godfrey Bloom is apoplectic about it: calls it government policy) Certainly, Border Force seems very obliging and welcoming to them: are they recent recruits?
I’m not arguing, but I need to hear a rationale for it. Why import a hostile force? Who benefits? Why only men? It can’t just be to enrich Serco. We have enough useless eaters of our own.
I don’t get it. Someone explain, please.
I had a casual conversation with a prospective Brexit Party candidate before the 2019 GE and mentioned that the Tories were no doubt bolstered by Johnson’s leadership. He told me he’d met Johnson and he wasn’t very impressed. At the time; I believed it was sour grapes. After his servile compliance to SAGE, how right he was and how utterly wrong, I was.
Sino is Liar.
Yep. Totally transparent.
At the end of the day he is carbon zero, WEF 2030, bankrupt the nation state to introduce the CBDC.
So who cares, he’s just trying to get the top seal at the table to completely fuck us from.
Interesting comment made by a UK lawyer…. He’s just admitted his complicity in a crime. Shame!
[In reply to Lawyers of Light]
By the way, this is an admission of guilt on the known or ought to have known principle, under international law. If he really was told to “stay quiet” on things he knew would harm people, then he has committed a crime, because the policies led to deaths.
This is evidence.
Some interesting links from the last 24 hours of posts made in Medical Doctors for Covid Ethics
A hard hitting film of the fall out from the bioweapon injections
https://t.me/RealRobertKennedy/127
Another tragic loss of life due to Pfizer. French to English translation reported to be spot on by a bilingual member of the group
https://www.laquintacolumna.info/colabora-con-la-quinta-columna/
Chile protecting the Magna Carta Rights of its citizens
https://realnewsaustralia.com/2022/04/03/chile-approves-a-law-to-protect-employment-rights-of-mutants-and-genetically-modified-humans/
This would violate all medical ethics
https://beforeitsnews.com/opinion-conservative/2022/08/situation-update-aug-23-2022-aerosolized-vaccines-to-be-sprayed-on-human-cities-for-global-depopulation-mike-adams-must-video-3639176.html
Could any of the more statistically numerate sceptics evaluate this one please?
https://www.redvoicemedia.com/2022/08/12-million-dead-from-vax-new-shocking-estimates-estimates-msm-is-forced-to-admit-lockdowns-killed-video/ref/7/
WEF control grid agenda posted in plain sight.
https://www.zerohedge.com/geopolitical/world-economic-forum-suggests-there-are-solid-rational-reasons-microchip-kids
A furthering of the depopulation agenda… The appeal, anonymity of this for young women is obvious. What about those abusive, violent & coercive partners forcing this onto vulnerable women? Far too major an intervention to be prescribed without face to face consultation & alternatives discussed & offered.
https://www.theguardian.com/world/2022/aug/23/permanent-access-to-at-home-abortions-to-be-granted-in-england-and-wales
Not a conviction politician then. Chilling and perfectly reasonable comments below about a special inland force possibly being prepared to use against the people. Sunak has admitted that there is no transparency in government and people wonder why paranoia has set in. It must be a fact that apart from the WEF, WHO, UN, and all the usual suspects, there is a great deal we are not being told. Pleased to see Toby and Lockdown Sceptics (as was) vindicated , though.
So this jumped up ‘b’anker KNEW that the policies he was supporting were destructive and there had been no cost/benefit analysis ….. but he went along with them and LIED to us for 18 months.
And now he thinks he’s qualified/suitable to become Prime Minister.
Unbelievable!
Isn’t the doctoring of cabinet minutes a criminal offence? we have very few “conviction” politicians and Sunak is NOT one of them.
Perhaps a few more politicians with convictions would be in order, and I mean of the court type.
The Queen should immediately withdraw those gongs for Whitty, Vallance, et al. I don’t think for a second, that the Head of State risked an un-trialed vaccine. I also believe the ruling classes will NEVER recover from this deception.
Can you imagine the furore if Her Majesty had died for ‘unknown reason’ (currently the biggest killer in several countries) following her vaccine/booster, assuming she had them. The entire cabinet (collective responsibility), or even the vast majority of parliament (voting through all the lockdown/vaccine measures with no real scrutiny) would be facing severe sanction.
Sorry guys this Lockdown business (evil and stupid though Lockdowns are) is hiding the enormous pachyderm in the room of vaccine death and injury. Why is no one taking this up? We simply have to stop this experimental gene therapy treatment killer from ever ever being used on the human race again. Just stop it please!!!!
Good. Now to pull apart the scam of the state-sanctioned injectables.
Let’s hope the scandal concerning the utter denial around vaccination caused injury/death also breaks very soon. I can’t wait for The Archbishop of Canterbury’s apology for calling the millions of unvaccinated ‘immoral’. As it is, the admission that the vax didn’t stop transmission or infection is out in the open so the dam has to burst very shortly (it will be interesting to see when folk at the US CDC start changing their tune now Fauci has announced he’s leaving).
Fauci is getting out of Dodge because he’s smelt the change in the climate coming when the GOP take the House and the Senate in November. They’ll have him doing jail time.
I absolutely don’t believe in this man (Sunak) at all. This is all too pat and timely (for him). Why didn’t he have the guts to stand up to them at the time? – he’s a grown man, they aren’t all school boys, didn’t he have any moral courage? Please read Kathy Gyngell’s excellent piece in today’s TCW, ‘Sunak’s belated Covid confessions: A shocking indictment of a man without a moral compass’. Why have we no discernment at all? Who would want this man in charge of our country? If he didn’t have the courage then, he won’t have it now or in the future. Sadly, Truss is just as bad in another way – hopelessly uneducated, no knowledge of history, geopolitical or otherwise, generally useless. But it’s obvious – our politicians are all bought, we’re heading rapidly for the Great Reset. Wake up, everyone, before it’s too late!
Correct. An excellent piece by Kathy G. but the article does read like a compilation of all the best comments posted here on DS including many of mine.
It strikes me, observing today’s cartoon in ‘The Times of Brussels’, that Rishi’s ‘Book of Revelation’ in the Speccie, is just a continuation of the interminable Remoaner Fatwa on @BorisJohnson, disingenously trying to pin the blame for #TheGreatCovid19Fraud on #10, when in truth, the major crime, the wilful failure to count the cost, can only be laid at the door of Rishi’s pad, #11. Remember at the outset we followed the sensible HPA pandemic plan? Remember @BorisJohnson ‘Let the bodies pile high’? Remember the reports @BorisJohnson only moved from the HPA pandemic plan to the insane #EU/#NATO/#USDemocrat lockdown hysteria plan when Macron called Bozza and threatened to shut the ports and starve us into submission if we didn’t shut the pubs? Remember #Partygate was the only event that gave Joe Blogs an insight into the fact that #TheGreatCovid19Fraud is the most MAHOOSIVE holographically generated lie in History, a lie generated in the bowels of Whitehall & #11? We won’t be fooled again Rishi … We see you..
Oh boy you can’t make this stuff up. Too little too late Rishi. Anyone else want to vote for a man, like so many others without a moral compass, as described in today’ TCW?
