Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry Newsletter: Issue 2 (Autumn 2022)

The COVID-19 pandemic is the most severe public health emergency we have faced in living memory.

All of Scotland’s more than 5 million people have been affected by the response to the pandemic. And, according to the most recent figures published by Audit Scotland, £15.5 billion of public money was allocated by the Scottish Government to its COVID-19 response in the years 2020/2021 and 2021/2022.

This is the context in which the independent Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry has been tasked with investigating the devolved strategic response to the pandemic. Ultimately, the Inquiry will publish reports which identify the lessons that need to be learned and make recommendations to the Scottish Government. Learning from what happened can help Scotland be better prepared for the future.

The Inquiry is tasked with investigating a period which has not yet finished, because the Inquiry’s Terms of Reference, which were finalised in June 2022, require it to investigate the response up until the end of this year.

As public inquiries are independent, they are set up from scratch, which we explained in more detail in our summer newsletter. The Inquiry’s initial establishment phase has focused on setting up the systems and infrastructure which will enable the Inquiry to do its work, and recruiting the dedicated team required to support such a major undertaking.

While the Inquiry is being established, the legal team, comprising advocates, solicitors and paralegals, has also been carrying out initial investigatory work. This important work is continuing pending the appointment of a new Chair for the Inquiry following the Hon. Lady Poole’s resignation for personal reasons.

On 3 October 2022, Lady Poole issued the following statement:

“I was honoured to be appointed by the Deputy First Minister to lead such an important independent public inquiry into the handling of a pandemic which has touched everyone in Scotland. However, for personal reasons, I have had to take the very difficult decision to submit my resignation as Chair. I will continue to assist the Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry during my notice period and would like to thank the Inquiry team for their hard work, dedication and commitment.”

It is for the Scottish Ministers to appoint a replacement Chair of the Inquiry. The Deputy First Minister stated on 3 October 2022 that he had spoken with the Lord President about arrangements for appointing a new judicial Chair for the Inquiry, and that he would update the Scottish Parliament in due course. Lady Poole continues to assist the Inquiry during her notice period.

The Inquiry commissioned introductory scoping research earlier this year on aspects of the devolved strategic response to the pandemic. You can read more about this research in our summer newsletter. In addition, we have published Inquiry protocols and notices which underpin the gathering of information by the Inquiry.

We started gathering information from the Scottish Government in February 2022, and since then have continued that process in a series of calls for evidence. We have procured a document management system so that the large volume of information we expect to receive during the Inquiry’s investigations can be managed efficiently.

In addition, we have issued 'do not destroy' letters to organisations and individuals, and are reviewing core participant status applications made to the Inquiry.

We also intend to begin listening project pilot activities later this year. The listening project will inform the Inquiry’s investigations and reports to the Scottish Government on the lessons that need to be learned to ensure that we are better prepared for any future pandemic. Our website explains our remit and ongoing work, and is where we publish regular updates.

This is an Inquiry for the people of Scotland and the Inquiry team is resolutely committed to conducting a thorough, robust and independent investigation that gets to the answers you deserve.

The Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry will investigate the devolved response to the pandemic and will publish reports which make recommendations to the Scottish Government so we are better prepared in future.

Independent inquiries are not restricted solely to oral evidence from witnesses at public hearings when gathering information to identify the lessons that need to be learned. There are many other ways in which individuals and organisations can contribute to an inquiry’s investigations.

The procedure and conduct of every public inquiry are for the Chair to decide and are tailored to each inquiry’s distinct remit. In the Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry, there are three unique features which have to be taken into account when deciding on procedure:

1. The unprecedented scope of our investigation: The pandemic directly affected the lives of more than 5 million people in Scotland. This means we must manage a huge volume of information and evidence in a structured, efficient and cost-effective way.
2. The period we are tasked with investigating has not yet finished: We must investigate a period up to 31 December 2022. We do not want to put people in a position where they submit information now, and then have to provide an update after the period we are investigating ends.
3. We must interact with the UK Covid-19 Inquiry to minimise duplication: We have been liaising regularly with the UK Inquiry and are now working together on a memorandum of understanding, which will formalise how we collaborate in future.

Bearing all that in mind, the Scottish COVID-19 Inquiry will initially focus on gathering information so we can establish the key issues to be investigated, before launching targeted formal public hearings to identify the lessons that need to be learned.

We will gather this information in five different ways:

Our listening project

Our reports would take too long to produce if everyone affected by COVID-19 in Scotland spoke about their experiences at public hearings, but we want to make sure people can share their views with the Inquiry in proportionate ways to help its work.

The listening project aims to give you the opportunity to participate in the Inquiry, should you wish to do so. It will allow you to share your experiences with us and tell us what lessons you believe should be learned. The listening project will also enable us to gather essential information in a manageable way to guide our investigations. We intend to begin listening project pilot activities towards the end of this year and open it up more widely in early 2023.

We will publish more detailed information about the project nearer the time.

Commissioning research and expert reports

We will add this research and expert input to the introductory academic scoping research we have already published on our website. This too will help direct our investigations.

Voluntary calls for evidence 

We will call for formal written submissions and documents from the public, government, businesses and other organisations across the country after the period we are investigating comes to an end.

We will provide clear guidance about the information and volume of documents we require so that the Inquiry is not overwhelmed and is able to fulfil its remit in a timely manner. We will add the information we obtain through these calls to the information we have been gathering since February this year.

Mandatory calls for evidence 

The Inquiry has statutory powers to compel the production of documents and other information. We will use these powers where information and documents have not been provided voluntarily, so that we investigate robustly.

Using these statutory powers, we will continue to issue notices which require recipients to hand over documents and other information relating to the Inquiry’s Terms of Reference.

Public hearings 

Once we have gathered sufficient information, we will hold a series of focused, formal public hearings. The work we will have done before these hearings, and the information we will have gathered, will be used to ensure we can capture oral evidence on the lessons to be learned across all 12 areas in our Terms of Reference.

We recognise the need to hold public hearings as soon as we can and will move to this stage of the inquiry as speedily as possible. The Chair will use statutory powers to compel witnesses to attend these oral hearings, if necessary.

The precise order of our oral hearings will be decided upon in due course, taking into account what the UK Covid-19 Inquiry is doing, and the requirement that we make reasonable efforts to avoid duplication.

The information we obtain in all these different ways will provide a firm foundation for the Inquiry’s reports. We look forward to working with you to achieve the Inquiry’s objectives as effectively and quickly as possible.