We would like to invite you to the first session of our People’s Covid Inquiry tomorrow, chaired by Michael Mansfield QC.
Tomorrow night will see the first of eight online sessions which will make up The People’s Covid Inquiry, led by campaigning organisation Keep Our NHS Public [1] and chaired by renowned human rights barrister, Michael Mansfield QC. A host of leading academics, celebrities, campaigning groups and unions [2] together with frontline workers and members of the public, will give evidence in an attempt to learn lessons from the events surrounding this pandemic.
Session one (entitled How well prepared was the NHS?) will take place tomorrow night (Wednesday 24th February) at 7pm and will question how policy over the last decade has impacted on the resilience of the NHS, public health and social care systems, and its preparedness for the coronavirus pandemic whilst delivering continuity of core NHS services.
The panel will be formed of:
Michael Mansfield QC (chair)
Professor Neena Modi (Professor of Neonatal Medicine, Imperial College London and president, UK Medical Women’s Federation)
Dr Tolullah Oni (Urban Epidemiologist & Public Health physician at the Medical Research Council Epidemiology Unit, University of Cambridge)
Dr Jacky Davis (NHS consultant radiologist and author)
Lorna Hackett (Barrister and counsel to the Inquiry)
Witnesses for the session will be:
Jo Goodman (Co-founder of Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice)
Professor Sir Michael Marmot (Director, UCL Institute of Health Equity, UCL Dept of Epidemiology and Public Health)
Holly Turner (Children’s Mental Health Nurse/CAMHS)
Professor Gabriel Scally (President Epidemiology and Public Health Section Royal Society of Medicine, Visiting Professor of Public Health, University of Bristol, member of Independent SAGE)
Dr John Lister (Health policy academic, Journalist and campaigner)
Register for the session here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_a3y1fJPJQ9aUkL3x5oRFtw
In the absence of an arranged formal public investigation, campaigners believe that the time for a Covid Inquiry is now, in order to analyse why this country has suffered over 100,000 deaths, and what lessons should be learned to inform future decision and policy making. The 8 sessions will take place fortnightly until June and focus on different topics relevant to the pandemic. Future participants will include Green Party MP Caroline Lucas, Chair of Independent SAGE Sir David King, author and poet Michael Rosen, Lancet editor Richard Horton, and the doctor, writer and broadcaster Phil Hammond.
The People’s Covid Inquiry will culminate in a report and a key set of demands presented to the government. Testimony gathered will provide the basis for evidence-based recommendations on the provision of health and social care in the UK, including the future funding and organisation of the NHS. Sessions are free to access and open to all. A dedicated website [3] and campaign video [4] has also been launched featuring testimony from members of the public, keyworkers and celebrities, which will aid the publicity and public accessibility of this important project.
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Spokespeople are available for broadcast interview. For more information, please contact Samantha Wathen, press officer for Keep Our NHS Public [email protected] or call/WhatsApp: 07776047472
Notes to editors
- Keep Our NHS Public is a national independent organisation campaigning for a well-funded, publicly owned and provided NHS www.keepournhspublic.com
- https://www.peoplescovidinquiry.com/who-we-are
- Home | PeoplesCovidInquiry
- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35wvBk_lCx4