Penny Mordaunt has told a senior Conservative MP that she intends to refer national security concerns to the Cabinet Office to be investigated as “a national security issue”.
The Leader of the House was answering business questions in the Commons and was challenged by former Tory chairman Sir Jake Berry on the Covid inquiry.
Sir Jake is concerned that evidence brought to the Covid inquiry by former Prime Minister Boris Johnson and current Levelling Up Secretary Michael Gove about China’s potential role in the pandemic “was ruled out of order.”
He demanded that the terms of the Covid inquiry be changed to allow it to look at “whether the virus was man-made” and how it was released onto the world.
Afterwards, he told Express.co.uk that if China was shown to have caused the pandemic “then the UK should be seeking reparations for the damage it caused.”
In the Commons Sir Jake said: “Could you want for any better evidence than hearing serving and former cabinet ministers, and in fact a former Prime Minister’s evidenceabout the origin of Covid virus being ruled as out of order to show that the terms of the inquiry need to be be updated.
“This is an inquiry that needs to serve the people of this country and the victims of this terrible disease and it is already out of date.
His question came amid growing disquiet over China’s role in the pandemic and questions being asked internationally whether the virus was deliberately released.
Sir Jake said: “This is an important issue. It is vital the Covid Inquiry deals with all issues surrounding this disease and how it was handled.”
Ms Mordaunt suggested that it would not be possible to change the terms of the inquiry which was looking at how the government handled the pandemic.
But she agreed that the issues of the virus’s origins need to be investigated and promised to refer the issue to the Cabinet Office, where national security issues are dealt with.
She said: “[Sir Jake] raises an extremely important point and some of the issues he raises weren’t in the original terms of the inquiry.
“The questions he raises are very legitimate, particularly for our national security.
“Although it may not be possible to change the terms of the current inquiry that is looking at the government’s response to that situation.
“I will certainly raise with the Cabinet Office the issues he raises particularly in relation to national security.”
