I'm not worried about Covid inquiry messages, says Rishi Sunak - BBC

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By Paul Seddon

Politics reporter

Rishi Sunak says he is not worried about being embarrassed by messages seen by the Covid inquiry, despite a legal wrangle over their disclosure.

The government has taken the unprecedented step of suing the inquiry over its demands to see unredacted WhatsApps sent during pandemic.

But the prime minister insisted he was being transparent in his approach.

He added that he was personally providing information, and it was taking up "a lot of my own time".

The inquiry has asked to see unredacted messages on former prime minister Boris Johnson's phone, between him and around 40 politicians and officials, including Mr Sunak.

But the government says some of them are not relevant to the inquiry's work, and could compromise individuals' privacy if handed over unredacted.

Last week, it launched legal action against the inquiry over its demands to see the unredacted WhatsApps, as well as Mr Johnson's notebooks.

Speaking to BBC political editor Chris Mason during a two-day trip to the United States, Mr Sunak said he could not comment on the specifics as the case was ongoing.

But he insisted the government had acted with "candour and transparency", including disclosing more than 55,000 documents so far, with "more to come".

Asked directly whether he was worried about something coming out that would embarrass him personally, he replied: "No, not at all.

"I as well am co-operating and providing information to the inquiry," he added. "It's actually taking a lot of my own time, and that's right that I do that."

Labour's deputy leader Angela Rayner questioned his response, writing on Twitter: "So why are you taking legal action to hide them [the messages]?"

WhatsApps wrangle

The inquiry, set up in May 2021, is investigating the government's handling of the pandemic and is due to begin public hearings next week.

Mr Johnson has said he is happy to hand over unredacted WhatsApps on his phone dating back to May 2021, around a year into the pandemic response.

He says he is unable to hand over messages prior to that point, because the messages were on his old phone, which he changed for security reasons.

However, he has said he is happy to co-operate with security officials to find a way to ensure the messages are passed to the inquiry.

On Tuesday, a lawyer for the Covid inquiry said it had written to the Cabinet Office to get hold of the old device and confirm how it will be "accessed fully".

Elsewhere in his BBC interview, Mr Sunak said it was too early for a "definitive answer" about who was responsible for damage to the Kakhovka dam in Russian-occupied Ukraine, with British security officials continuing their investigations.

But he added if Russia was found to be responsible, it would fit with a "pattern of behaviour" it had displayed throughout the war to "deliberately attack" civilian infrastructure.

Ukraine has blamed Russia for the collapse of the dam, which has prompted the evacuation of thousands of people. Moscow has denied responsibility, instead blaming Ukrainian shelling.

Mr Sunak also said the UK should "have confidence" in its ability to act as a global leader in regulating artificial intelligence (AI), a topic he is set to discuss with President Biden at a White House meeting on Thursday.

The prime minister is hoping to put post-Brexit UK in the driving seat of efforts to set new global rules for the emerging technology.

Some experts have questioned the extent to which the UK will be able to shape new global rules outside the European Union, with the UK now shut out of key gatherings between European and American regulators such as the Tech and Trade Council.

But Mr Sunak said the level of AI investment in the UK, and the quality of British research, meant it could "shape the conversation" on future rules.

"Other than the US, there's no other democratic country that has that strength in AI," he argued.