How to watch the Covid inquiry as Rishi Sunak gives evidence

Rishi Sunak is giving evidence to the Covid inquiry today, where he will be quizzed on his time as chancellor during the pandemic.

It comes after a YouGov survey for The Times found that 52 per cent of people think his notorious Eat Out to Help Out scheme was a bad idea, while only a third think it was a good plan.

The Prime Minister is set to face allegations that the scheme, which offered mid-week half-price food and drink at selected restaurants in August 2020, fuelled the spread of coronavirus.

His questioning will kick off a crucial week for Mr Sunak, as he faces a crunch vote on his Rwanda asylum policy on Tuesday.

When is Rishi Sunak giving evidence?

The Prime Minister is giving evidence on Monday 11 December.

The session will begin at 10.30am GMT and end at 4.30pm.

How can I watch the Covid inquiry live?

There is a live stream of Monday’s proceedings right here on this page.

The Covid inquiry also has a dedicated YouTube channel on which you can watch each day of the inquiry live.

The channel also uploads previous days’ hearings, if you want to watch them back.

What should we expect?

Questions remain about what scientific advice Mr Sunak sought before launching the Eat Out To Help Out scheme, which will be a key subject of his questioning.

Chief medical officer Professor Chris Whitty, former government chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance, former deputy chief medical officer Sir Jonathan Van-Tam, and former health secretary Matt Hancock have all testified at the inquiry that they were not consulted or informed in advance about the scheme.

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But in his written statement Mr Sunak said that neither Professor Whitty nor Sir Patrick raised any concerns about Eat Out To Help Out when it was launched.

He is expected to claim that Eat Out To Help Out boosted the work prospects of women and ethnic minorities, a defence which featured in Boris Johnson’s evidence.

The former prime minister said last week that he discussed the policy with Mr Sunak, and that the pair were “acutely conscious” that women had been disproportionately affected by the lockdown and were more likely work in the hospitality sector.

Sir Patrick told the inquiry last month that the scheme almost certainly drove a second wave of Covid cases in the UK, claiming it was “very difficult to see how it wouldn’t have had an effect on transmission”.

WhatsApp messages shown to the inquiry saw Professor Dame Angela McLean, the government’s chief scientific adviser, also refer to Mr Sunak as “Dr Death the chancellor”.

The message was sent to John Edmunds, a professor of infectious disease modeling, who told the inquiry that he was “angry” about the policy which he felt “encouraged people to take an epidemiological risk”.

Other messages shown to the inquiry suggested senior Government officials knew while Eat Out To Help Out was still in place that the scheme was spreading infections, but chose to bury the news from the public.