Inquiry hears of covid 'cull of elderly' claims

CARE home deaths felt like a “cull of older people”, the UK Covid-19 inquiry has heard as Matt Hancock defended how he handled an “impossible” situation.

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There were tense exchanges as the former health secretary gave evidence to the wide-ranging probe.

Mr Hancock, who resigned from government in 2021, responded to an accusation he had “blatantly lied about the situation” when he told a press conference on May 15 2020: “We've tried to throw a protective ring around our care homes.”

The inquiry has heard there were more than 43,000 covid deaths in UK homes between March 2020 and July 2022.