Britain’s COVID-19 response inquiry enters a second phase with political decisions in the spotlight

By PAN PYLAS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s inquiry into the response to the coronavirus pandemic and its impact on the nation has entered the second phase with political decision-making taking center stage. Families whose loved ones died during the pandemic have held a silent protest outside the inquiry Tuesday. They claimed the new stage of the investigation is ignoring how they were failed by politicians. Chair Judge Heather Hallett insisted that their voices won’t be ignored. The phase is called Module 2 and will focus on the U.K. government’s actions during the crisis. The U.K. had one of the world’s deadliest outbreaks with around 230,000 coronavirus-related deaths up to Sept. 28. The inquiry has four phases.