![]() ![]() ![]() The issue has caused tension between Johnson and Sunak's administration, which claimed this week that it did not have the material Hallett wanted. Hallett, however, said "the entire contents of the specified documents are of potential relevance to the lines of investigation being pursued by the inquiry." The government is worried about the precedent that disclosing Johnson's full, unredacted conversations might set. The tone is often candid or casual, and potentially embarrassing. WhatsApp is a favored way for British politicians, officials and journalists to converse. "We are confident in our position but are carefully considering next steps," he said. Just before the deadline expired, Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said his government would "comply, of course, with the law and cooperate with the inquiry." "We do so with regret and with an assurance that we will continue to cooperate fully with the inquiry." "The Cabinet Office has today sought leave to bring a judicial review" of the decision, it said. Soon after the deadline passed, the government said it would seek to challenge the order in court. (1500 GMT) Thursday for the government to hand over the unredacted documents, covering a two-year period from early 2020. Hallett - who has the power to summon evidence and question witnesses under oath - wants to judge for herself, and set a deadline of 4 p.m. COVID-19 Brief newsletter: Sign up for an informed guide on the pandemic.The government has handed over incomplete versions, saying it cut personal and private information that is "unambiguously irrelevant" to the investigation. The notebooks, diaries and WhatsApp messages between Johnson and other officials form key evidence that the head of the probe, retired judge Heather Hallett, wants to see. It said Thursday it would try to challenge the order in court, setting up an extraordinary legal battle with an inquiry that Johnson himself set up. The British government has refused an order to hand over a sheaf of former Prime Minister Boris Johnson's personal messages to the country's COVID-19 pandemic inquiry. ![]()
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