Baroness Arlene Foster has said she accepts responsibility for how the executive handled the Covid pandemic.
Baroness Foster was Northern Ireland’s first minister from 2016 to 2017 and during the pandemic from January 2020 until she resigned on 14 June 2021.
She told the UK Covid inquiry Northern Ireland should have locked down sooner than it did to prevent more deaths.
But she added: “We felt we had time and we didn’t have time, and that’s a source of great regret.”
This is not be the first time Baroness Foster has appeared before the inquiry.
In July 2023 she said the UK government should have stepped in to make decisions in the absence of ministers at Stormont from 2017 to 2020.
Health officials have said the absence of ministers impacted the preparedness for health emergencies.
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