Coronavirus: The pandemic warnings the government is accused of ignoring

The evidence points to the government being guilty, over many years, of failing to prepare for the worst, writes Rob Merrick

The PM has clearly botched this one (AFP)

There is no doubt Boris Johnson badly botched his response to the coronavirus outbreak, refusing for crucial weeks to impose the unpopular restrictions necessary to save lives.

Incredibly, ministers and scientists flirted with not suppressing its spread too much, in order to create “herd immunity” among the public – a theory hastily abandoned as the death toll threatened to explode.

But what about long before anyone had even heard of this strange new illness wreaking havoc in China? Is the government guilty of failings stretching back many years?