Written Ministerial Statement

The content of this written ministerial statement is as received at the time from the Minister. It has not been subject to the official reporting (Hansard) process.

The Executive Office: Publication of the Covid-19 Module 2 Report by the Rt Hon the Baroness Hallett DBE

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Published at 12.30pm on Friday 21 November 2025

Mrs O'Neill (The First Minister) and Mrs Little-Pengelly (The deputy First Minister): Baroness Hallett, the Chair to the UK-wide Covid-19 Public Inquiry, published her findings of Module 2 of the Inquiry on 20 November 2025 to examine core political and administrative governance, and decision-making across the UK.

The publication of the report represents a significant milestone for families of those who lost loved ones during the pandemic and for those who continue to be impacted by the pandemic. Our thoughts continue to be with them.

Module 2 was divided into four sub-modules, one for each jurisdiction of the UK. Public hearings for Module 2C took place in Belfast from 29 April to 16 May 2024, during which time a wide range of witnesses provided evidence to the Inquiry.

Following publication of the Module 1 report, TEO established a cross-departmental steering group to consider and progress implementation of the recommendations. This group will continue to fulfil that function for recommendations arising from the Module 2 report.

TEO continues to engage with representatives of the NI Covid Bereaved Families for Justice and other stakeholders in order to learn from their experiences of the pandemic here and help ensure we are better prepared for the next pandemic. We are grateful to all those who give of their time to engage with us.

We would like to thank the Chair for the work of the Inquiry. It is important that we take time to consider the report and the recommendations in detail before making any further comment.