Covid Inquiry: Diary of a CSA (Sir Patrick Vallance)

Newscast

BBC

Politics, News

4.4 • 6.4K Ratings

🗓️ 20 November 2023

⏱️ 31 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

In today’s session at the Covid Inquiry, more of chief scientific adviser Sir Patrick Vallance’s diary was revealed. He described Boris Johnson as ‘weak and indecisive’ and being ‘clearly bamboozled’ by Covid science. Adam and Chris talk to health correspondent, Jim Reed, to understand what we can learn from the evidence. And staff at OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, demanded the return of their former boss, Sam Altman, after he was unexpectedly fired. Adam is joined by the BBC’s technology editor Zoe Kleinman to learn what this means for the future of AI. You can join our Newscast online community here: https://tinyurl.com/newscastcommunityhere Today's Newscast was presented by Adam Fleming. It was made by Chris Gray with Joe Wilkinson and Sam McLaren. The technical producer was Philip Bull. The senior news editors are Sam Bonham and Jonathan Aspinwall.

Transcript

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0:00.0	BBC Sounds, music radio podcasts.
0:04.7	Dear Diary 20th of November, 2023.
0:09.0	Today I spent several hours watching the former Chief Scientific Advisor to the government, Sir Patrick Valence, giving evidence to the COVID inquiry.
0:17.0	What was weird is that my dad's visiting, so he sat and watched most of it with me.
0:21.0	It took me right back to those heady days when government ministers
0:25.3	were wrangling with scientists about whether to lockdown, when to lockdown, what a lockdown
0:29.7	was, whether to have another one. Anyway, this is just a brain dump to process my thoughts.
0:34.4	I hope no one hears this on something like, I don't know, an episode of Newscast.
0:38.4	Newscast. Newscast. Newscast from the BBC. Why can't people buy a house?
0:43.4	Look at their wages.
0:44.6	Do you have any questions on things that are not related to math?
0:46.5	People who say that we were partying simply do not know what they are talking about.
0:50.9	The era of global warming has ended. The era of global
0:54.6	boiling has arrived. It's the first time ever I've been able to say, well done
0:59.2	Kia. I'll end by tempting her to update newscast and update this house.
1:03.8	The Prime Minister is not under a desk.
1:06.9	Hello, it's Adam in the studio.
1:08.2	And it's Chris at Westminster.
1:09.9	And you've been at the COVID inquiry today.
1:11.8	I have been to Paddington in West London
1:14.3	to this kind of grand kind of townhouse.
1:17.3	That probably under plays it actually.
	...

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