Care homes ruling shows politicians are not immune to long Covid effects

Matt Hancock’s chances of a political comeback seem slimmer than ever, as Sean O’Grady explains

A scene inside the Wren Hall care home in Nottingham in April 2020 at the start of the pandemic (AP)

For troubled ministers in this Conservative government, “living with Covid” means forgetting about it and, in particular, forgetting about some of the more obvious policy failures during the crisis.

The official inquiry led by Baroness Hallett won’t begin its, no doubt dramatic and damaging, hearings until next year, conveniently, but with Partygate and other revelations such as the court ruling on care homes, the government’s performance will remain in the news.

Even aside from the estimated 170,000 excess deaths that touched virtually everyone in the country, some 1.5 million more are suffering from long Covid. While many other scandals directly affect only a minority of the population, the coronavirus is still making its presence felt. Long Covid is also a political phenomenon.