Coronavirus: Government faces legal challenge over refusal to hold PPE inquiry after deaths of scores of NHS workers

'Now is the time to learn key lessons to enable us to avoid future pitfalls, protect the frontline and ultimately save lives'

A refusal to hold an inquiry into protective equipment shortages – blamed for the deaths of scores of health and care workers – has triggered a High Court challenge against the government.

Doctors and campaigners have lodged a claim for a judicial review against the “nonsense” stance, warning lives will be at risk if the feared second spike of coronavirus arrives later in the year.

They say frontline workers were left with no equipment when the pandemic struck, while others had to make do with “inadequate, out of date perishing supplies”.

Only Italy has suffered a similar number of deaths of healthcare workers as the 300 that have lost their lives in the UK since March.

“The government have told us that looking into the issue now will distract officials, thus risk causing further deaths. This is a nonsense,” said Dr Rinesh Parmar, chairman of the Doctors’ Association UK.

“It is our members and colleagues who are working non-stop to save lives – indeed, the only ones who have stopped are those who are shielding, sick or have died.

“As we recover from the first wave of Covid-19 there is a real and credible possibility that we will face a second wave in the coming months or into the winter.

“Now is the time to learn key lessons to enable us to avoid future pitfalls, protect the frontline and ultimately save lives.”

And Richard Robinson, of Hourglass, a charity for older people, said failings in care homes had “contributed to the deaths of over 130 staff and more than 20,000 residents”.

“Our care homes have effectively been left to fend for themselves throughout the pandemic, as staff – in some cases left with nothing but bin bags for protection – risk their own lives,” he said.

“It is vital that lessons are learned from our response to the pandemic before we encounter a second wave. There can be no excuse for a repeat of the carnage we’ve seen.”

The campaign, which is crowdfunding its case, says an inquiry which complies with Article 2 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR), the right to life, is needed.

But, in a written response to a pre-action letter government lawyers said there are existing mechanisms – such as medical examinations and inquests – to investigate deaths from Covid-19.

“In the context of a national emergency and pandemic of this kind, there are many ways in which the government is properly held to account, including in parliament,” the letter said:

“The same applies in relation to timing – especially in circumstances in which the government is working flat out to manage all of the issues which the pandemic has thrown up and no-one needs any persuasion as to the ongoing importance of seeking to secure that all those who need it have the right PPE.”