"Raab denies Cummings' pandemic decision-making, Javid claims he acted as 'PM in all but name' in UK COVID inquiry"

Dominic Raab, former First Secretary of State, denies claims made by former cabinet colleague Sajid Javid that key government decisions at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic were made by Dominic Cummings. Raab defended Cummings, stating that he was "trying to galvanise" the government and provide direction. Raab also defended the government's decision-making during the pandemic, stating that they made the best decisions based on the fluidity of the scientific information available at the time. Javid, in his testimony to the Covid-19 inquiry, described a "toxic" and "dysfunctional" culture in No 10, with Cummings acting as the de facto prime minister. The inquiry also heard about controversies surrounding the discharge of Covid-positive patients into care homes and the exclusion of Javid from a key meeting on the Omicron variant.