Boris ally claims government has password for phone demanded by Covid inquiry

Sign up for the View from Westminster email for expert analysis straight to your inbox Get our free View from Westminster email Get our free View from Westminster email SIGN UP I would like to be emailed about offers, events and updates from The Independent. Read our privacy policy A breakthrough may have been in the saga surrounding Boris Johnson’s old mobile phone, after an ally claimed Rishi Sunak’s government has recovered the passcode to unlock it. open image in gallery Boris Johnson repeatedly at odds with Sunak government over Covid inquiry However, The Times reported that the device was last accessed in December 2021 after Lord Geidt, then the PM’s ethics adviser, asked for messages relating to an investigation about the funding of the refurbishment of the Downing Street flat. As this is a diplomatic phone, the security measures may very well be different, but even still, It’s not an impossible task by any means.” open image in gallery Boris Johnson’s ‘Phone 1’ demanded by Covid inquiry Susie Flintham, a spokesperson for Covid-19 Bereaved Families for Justice UK, said the idea of the passcode holding things up was “a complete joke”. The campaigner said: “No one seriously believes that Johnson’s messages can’t be accessed because he forgot a passcode that he was apparently using last December.” The Cabinet Office had until 4pm on Monday to hand over the unredacted WhatsApp messages from Mr Johnson’s previous phone after it lost a legal challenge.