Ex-High Court judge Baroness Hallett expected to chair Covid inquiry

Former High Court judge Baroness Hallett is to chair the inquiry into the government's handling of the pandemic, the BBC has been told.

The cross-bench peer presided over the inquests following the terrorist attacks in London on 7 July 2005 and she was the first woman to chair the Bar Council.

The inquiry is expected to start in the first half of 2022.

Its remit has yet to be announced, but it will cover the whole UK.

More than 146,000 people in the UK have died within 28 days of a positive coronavirus test since the pandemic began early last year.

On Tuesday, the UK recorded 59,610 new Covid cases, the highest number since January, along with 150 deaths within 28 days of a positive test.

The UK government is working with the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland on the scope of the inquiry.

Separately, Scotland plans to start its own inquiry later this year.

Boris Johnson announced in May that the UK-wide inquiry would begin in 2022.

In a report published earlier this year, the Institute for Government think tank said: "The inquiry needs to focus first on establishing the exact state of knowledge of ministers and officials when significant decisions were made.

"Only then can it fairly consider the reasonableness of those decisions and make recommendations about how the government needs to change as a result."

Baroness Hallett's office has been contacted for comment.