The explosive WhatsApp messages from inside Downing Street heard at Covid inquiry as Dominic Cummings gave evidence

The UK’s inquiry into how the authorities handled the Covid-19 pandemic today (October 31) heard evidence from top aides to Boris Johnson.

In a lengthy day of evidence, then-Number 10 director of communications Lee Cain and top advisor to the Prime Minister Dominic Cummings, delivered a damning verdict on how the government attempted to deal with the emerging crisis in 2020. The pair’s evidence to the probe revealed a culture of expletive-laden assessments of colleagues, ‘chaos’ in Downing Street, and a culture of governing by WhatsApp.

The pair gave evidence a day after Martin Reynolds, the civil servant dubbed "Party Marty" due to his role in the partygate scandal. On Monday, he apologised and said that government protocols were "inadequate" and "grossly deficient" in the early days of the pandemic.

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Mr Reynolds also mentioned there was an "unusual dynamic" in No 10 during that time, and he activated the "disappearing message function" on a WhatsApp group named "PM Updates" in April 2021 due to worries about possible leaks. In other testimony, Boris Johnson faced criticism from the UK's top civil servant, Simon Case, who expressed his frustration that he "cannot lead" and was making government "impossible" in WhatsApp messages shared with the inquiry.

Here, the Manchester Evening News details the most intriguing, explosive, and damning WhatsApp messages seen at the inquiry today.

Lee Cain, Boris Johnson’s former communications chief, said he agreed there was a “lack of leadership” and “chaos” in the government.

Appearing this morning,