"Too little, too late."
That was the brief summary of Heather Hallett, chair of the UK Covid-19 inquiry.
Running to 800 pages, the second of ten reports, the overall inquiry is set to be a massive body of work.
It has been under way since spring 2022 and is expected to cost the UK taxpayer up to £200 million.
One of its headline findings is that 23,000 fewer people would have died in England during the first wave had the government introduced a lockdown one week earlier.
Overall, the report paints a picture of a Westminster government that was underprepared for a pandemic, failed to grasp the significance of it, and had a "toxic and chaotic" culture.
Here are some of the main findings.
The report does not advocate tougher lockdowns
In a 23-minute, pre-recorded video, Heather Hallett details the main findings of the report.
She suggests if decisions had been made faster, lockdowns that were introduced may not have needed to be so severe.
However, delayed and poor decisions necessitated harsher measures.
"The inquiry does not advocate for national lockdowns, far from it.
"Restricting people's liberty in such a draconian fashion with all the devastating consequences should be avoided if at all possible," Ms Hallett concluded.
Her criticism is directed towards all four governments in the UK, including the Northern Ireland Executive.
Ms Hallett suggests that the first lockdown in England in 2020 may not have been necessary, or at least could have been much shorter, had the government acted sooner.
The 'destabilising influence' of individuals
From Downing Street parties to toxic work culture, the behaviour of those at the centre of power is heavily criticised.
Former Prime Minister Boris Johnson was rebuked for his "expressions of over-optimism".
He famously told a Covid-19 briefing that he was in hospital "the other night" with coronavirus patients, adding, "I shook hands with everybody, you’ll be pleased to know. And I continue to shake hands".
This attitude to the virus undermined health advice, the report found.
His chief adviser, Dominic Cummings, is described as a "destabilising influence" at Number 10.
The report found that he contributed significantly to a "culture of fear" and "poisoned the atmosphere" in Downing Street.
Decisions that should have been made by prime minister Boris Johnson were instead made by Mr Cummings.
The chief adviser was also found to have used "offensive, sexualised and misogynistic language, including in WhatsApp messages to [Boris] Johnson".
In a post on social media this week, Mr Cummings dismissed the report's findings.
He wrote: "The Inquiry has been a mix of Inspector Clouseau, cover-ups, and rewriting history. The lawyers have paid themselves millions and made understanding of what happened even worse."
Societal effects of lockdowns
The report finds that UK governments were correct to impose lockdowns as they "received clear and compelling advice" to do so.
However, governments did not properly assess the "wider societal, workforce and economic impacts".
This included the impact of school closures on children.
It found that while children were unlikely to suffer serious harm from the virus, they "suffered greatly from the closure of schools and requirement to stay at home".
Although everyone in the UK was impacted by the pandemic, the report finds that it was the vulnerable and disadvantaged that suffered most.
"They were the most affected by the restrictions imposed to control the virus.
"They were the ones most likely to die. Yet not enough was done to protect them," Ms Hallett said.
Recommendations
The inquiry has sought to identify lessons that should be learned to inform the response to a future pandemic.
They include better planning, more "constructive working" between all four governments in the UK, better communication with the public, decisive action and improved parliamentary scrutiny of emergency measures.
It also recommends that more attention is paid to the impact of decisions on society and the economy.
Will Ireland have an inquiry?
Earlier this year the Irish Government established a "Covid-19 Evaluation".
Unlike the UK, it will not have statutory powers to compel witnesses or evidence.
In a statement to RTÉ News, the Department of the Taoiseach said that the evaluation operates "independently" from the Government.
Led by Professor Anne Scott, it’s work has been under way for the past 11 months.
The report is expected to be submitted to the Government by the end of 2026 and will be considered by the cabinet "prior to publication".
