On Wednesday, Baroness Foster told the inquiry she agreed with comments by former Deputy First Minister Michelle O’Neill that there was “by and large no real oversight” at Stormont around planning for the early stages of the pandemic.
But she told the inquiry she felt she had given the leadership required during her time as first minister.
“It was probably the most difficult period of my political career, dealing with Covid was the most challenging, but we tried to put our best foot forward,” she added.
The inquiry also heard Baroness Foster questioned about her party’s controversial use of a cross-community vote mechanism in autumn 2020, to prevent some Covid rules from being extended.
The tense four-day executive meeting has already been the focus of evidence from other witnesses, who criticised the DUP for using it as a means of vetoing the measures.
Source Agencies
