Rishi Sunak has apologised to the victims of Covid, as he faced questions over his role as chancellor during the pandemic.
It came as the prime minister gave evidence to the Covid inquiry on Monday morning.
“I just wanted to start by saying how deeply sorry I am to all of those who lost loved ones and family members through the pandemic,” he said.
“And all those who suffered in various differs ways throughout the pandemic and as a result of the actions that were taken.”
Sunak added it was “important we learn the lessons so we can better prepare in the future”.
The prime minister is expected to be grilled over his flagship Eat Out To Help Out scheme that was launched in the summer of 2020.
Designed to help the hospitality recover from the economic impact of lockdown, the Treasury covered the cost of 50% of restaurant bills.
However, the inquiry has already heard that neither chief medical officer Chris Whitty or chief scientific adviser Patrick Vallance were consulted in advance about the potential impact of the policy on the spread of Covid.
Angela McLean, who is now the prime minister’s chief scientific adviser, referred to Sunak as “Dr Death the chancellor” during a discussion about Eat Out To Help Out.
Matt Hancock, who was health secretary at the time, also said he did not know about the scheme until the the day it was announced to the public.