Why are people in Britain talking about Boris Johnson’s WhatsApp messages?

By JILL LAWLESS
Associated Press

LONDON (AP) — Critics accuse the British administration of running “government by WhatsApp” due to the popularity of the messaging app with politicians and officials. So it feels inevitable that a tussle over WhatsApp messages is at the heart of Britain’s official inquiry into how the country handled the COVID-19 pandemic. Thousands of messages exchanged between then-Prime Minister Boris Johnson and government ministers, aides and officials form key evidence for the investigation  chaired by retired judge Heather Hallett. The Conservative government is now led by Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. It wants to be able to edit the messages before handing them over. The government says some are personal and irrelevant to the inquiry.