Covid inquiry: Boris Johnson denies deleting WhatsApp messages

Boris Johnson, the former prime minister, has denied deleting WhatsApp messages from February to June 2020. It comes after it was revealed that he had been unable to provide his communications to the Covid-19 inquiry due to a 'technical issue'.

The Times reported that Mr Johnson informed Lady Hallet's probe that technical experts couldn't retrieve WhatsApp messages from January 31 to June 7 - a period covering the early days of the pandemic and most of the first lockdown.

Technical experts had been trying to recover messages from his old mobile phone in order to hand them over to the inquiry. Mr Johnson was originally told to stop using the device over security concerns after it emerged his number had been online for years. READ MORE Boris Johnson to be grilled at Covid inquiry over handling of pandemic READ MORE:The last family living on a derelict street - and they're refusing to leave Mr Johnson reportedly forgot the passcode for the device however, it was reported that technical experts managed to help him recover the messages for the inquiry.

A spokesperson for the former prime minister said: "Boris Johnson has fully cooperated with the Inquiry's disclosure process and has submitted hundreds of pages of material.