Northern Ireland's former first minister Baroness Arlene Foster has expressed 'great regret' that Stormont did not anticipate the speed with which the Covid-19 pandemic spread.The ex-DUP leader told the Covid-19 Inquiry that by mid-March 2020, ministers had been advised the peak of the first wave was still 14 weeks away.In the event, the powersharing administration found itself triggering the first lockdown before the end of that month.

Northern Ireland's former first minister Baroness Arlene Foster has expressed 'great regret' that Stormont did not anticipate the speed with which the Covid-19 pandemic spread.The ex-DUP leader told the Covid-19 Inquiry that by mid-March 2020, ministers had been advised the peak of the first wave was still 14 weeks away.In the event, the powersharing administration found itself triggering the first lockdown before the end of that month.